Junior national road race champion Finn Mason discusses his steep learning curve since switching to road, his breakthrough win, and his move to Uskis Saint Piran Development Team
Popularised by author Malcolm Gladwell, one of the great theories about life is that it takes 10,000 hours to achieve true expertise in a skill; the discipline of road cycling no exception. From fetching bottles to positioning in the wind, selecting a wheel to follow to launching a sprint at the perfect time, there is much more to the sport than pure athletic ability.
With the majority of riders at elite level learning their craft from a young age, their skills are honed and second nature by the time they reach that status. However, one young rider bucking that trend and going some way to debunking Gladwell’s theory is Finn Mason. The 19-year-old became the first Scot to win the National Junior Road Race Championship back in June, displaying a tactical masterclass beyond his experience, and will step up to the new Uskis Saint Piran Development Team for 2024, despite only taking up road racing at the start of 2022.
Image: Scott Armour/InView
“I’ve learnt an incredible amount of stuff in the last two years, but it’s still very much, I don’t know a lot!” admits Mason, who impressed as a mountain biker through the age-groups, prior to taking up road racing on the advice of his coach, former professional James McCallum.
I try to take every opportunity I get to learn and take on feedback from all my coaches
“I try to take every opportunity I get to learn and take on feedback from all my coaches, because even at this stage, even though I’m young in the sport, everyone has a much bigger head start over me in terms of tactics,” he states, pointing out that it is the fundamental skills so often taken for granted he had to learn after signing for the Cycling Academy team and switching to road racing for the 2022 season.
“Even as simple as just positioning in the bunch, when is a smart time to attack? As simple as where is the wind coming from and where do you want to be? When do you want to take your turn on the front? Very fundamental skills that are second nature as you develop in the sport, but I hadn’t done it before, so it’s a very steep learning curve. I’ve still got a lot more complex skills to learn and develop.”
Mason rose to prominence overnight, demonstrating his improvement with victory on the biggest stage at the Junior National Road Race Championships at the start of July in Lancashire, the crowning glory in his short career so far. Racing on a tough circuit, finishing atop the famous Birdy Brow climb, he delivered a close to perfect race. Taking opportunities when they presented themselves, the Scot got the better of a two up sprint with Seb Grindley, beating some of the best prospects in world cycling on the day.
Mason pips Grindley to win the 2023 Junior National Road Championships road race. Image: InView/Man Down Media
“It was a very hilly course, it was up and down. There was no flat,” he explains, talking through his race. “I had a couple of team mates that went off the front at the start to kind of relieve the pressure for me to do anything, so for the first few laps I was able to just chill towards the front of the group. About halfway a few boys attacked, there was at least one rider from the significant teams, so I identified that was the move to be in, so I quickly bridged across to it and it quickly became just three riders – me, Seb [Grindley] and Zac [Machin].
Me and Seb went up the hill side by side, and it was right in the last 50 metres we started sprinting. There was just a tyre in it
“We still had three laps, about 60km to go by ourselves, so we dug in all the way to the end. I think we had about 1’30” coming into the final climb, a hilltop finish. On the first lap I had practiced the descent into the final climb, going down it as fast as I could, to see who could follow me and to see if that was a place on the last lap I could attack. I got in front for the descent on the last lap and tried to make a bit of an attack, and I attacked as we hit the bottom of the climb. Zac was dropped and Seb bridged across. Me and Seb went up the hill side by side, and it was right in the last 50 metres we started sprinting. There was just a tyre in it, but I got there!”
Mason’s victory propelled him into the limelight and proved his potential to be a top class road racer; his raw ability now visible to all, with a British title to go with his trio of Junior Scottish Championships across the disciplines: mountain bike, hill climb and cyclocross. He will ride for the new Uskis Saint Piran Development Team in 2024, an under-23 development team directly linked to the UCI Continental Squad, providing riders like Mason with a pathway through the sport.
Image: Scott Armour/InView
“A few months ago now, I approached Ricci [Pascoe] to ask if he had any room on his Conti team and he said he was starting up this new under-23 team that’s going to act as a feeder team into the Conti team. We decided that the best move for me, with Saint Piran, was to join the under-23 team and develop as a rider and improve myself, and then in future years move up to the Conti team.
I think the Uskis team will allow me the chance to develop as a rider and learn tactics and other games in road racing that I’ve not had experience of yet
“I think the Uskis team will allow me the chance to develop as a rider and learn tactics and other games in road racing that I’ve not had experience of yet. I’m definitely still very new.”
Mason, like all young riders, has his sights set on the top level of the sport, with the Saint Piran project the start of that journey. “I’d like to ride in the WorldTour some day, but I’m just at the beginning of the ladder to get there. I think with Saint Piran, it’s kind of given me the first rung on the ladder to help me step up and keep improving and then hopefully one day be signed to a WorldTour team.”
His 2024 race programme with the Cornish squad is still unknown, with a question mark looming over whether the team will be permitted to race alongside the UCI Continental squad in national level races. However, Mason revealed that he will be racing in both Britain and Europe, with the possibility of continuing his mountain biking roots, calendar dependent. “I hope to continue mountain biking, it’s something I really enjoy. The Saint Piran team are totally on board with me continuing to do mountain bike, but it’s whether we have time in the calendar to allow that to happen because my focus in the next couple of years will be primarily on the road. But if a slot opens up for me to do a mountain bike race, then I’ll jump on that.”
Image: Scott Armour/InView
Mason’s journey to this point has been heavily shaped by his Scottish roots, joining the Cycling Academy team at the start of his journey in 2022. “I’d say it’s currently the biggest junior development team in Scotland, but it’s a fairly new team still, starting a couple of years ago,” he explains, with the outfit gaining widespread notoriety after giving former CiCLE Classic winner Finn Crockett a ride earlier this year.
We’ve got a really strong pool of riders who I get to train with and learn from all their experience
Mason counts Crockett, a Commonwealth Games Road Race medallist, among his training partners, as well as cyclocross star Cameron Mason, surrounding himself with high-class riders to harvest experience from. “We’ve got a really strong pool of riders who I get to train with and learn from all their experience,” he notes, explaining that being based in central Scotland has played a large role in his journey, with the nation now emerging a force on the international stage. “We do have a lot of communities which are strong for cycling. The landscape that we’ve got is beautiful, so getting out and going cycling around it is always a motivating factor to get on your bike and train, it seems to be a good place to grow up cycling!”
After spending his youth mountain biking, Mason explains that the transition to the road is not that big physically, but requires a very different approach to racing. “They’re different, but they are very transferable in terms of on-bike skills, but obviously, the tactical knowledge around racing in the two different disciplines is completely different.
“A mountain bike race is like a time trial, basically. You’ve not got the considerations of other people around you, it’s as hard as a you can for an hour. With road, obviously, that’s not the case. I’d say the physical skills on-bike are very close with cornering and stuff, but in terms of tactics they’re quite different, which is the main learning point I’ve had over the last couple of years.”
Image: InView/Man Down Media
Mason has honed his road racing skills in both Britain and abroad over the past two seasons, where he picked up vital skills at a rapid pace. Although results in his first year were modest, the experience of finishing tough UCI ranked junior races such as the Keizer der Juniores in Belgium set him in good stead for his second season, where he started with a new found aplomb; producing some some eye catching results in the UK, including a 5th place on GC at the Junior Isle of Man Tour, and 3rd in the National B Hugh Dornan Memorial Race to Roseneath in the build up to his Junior National Road Championships victory.
The big difference is instead of ten guys at the pointy end of the race, you’ve got 100 guys who are at the pointy end of the race. It makes it a lot more tactical, there’s a lot more to think about when you’re racing in Europe
Racing in Europe forced Mason to learn at speed, fast-tracking his tactical development. “When you’re racing in the UK, it’s a smaller pool of riders, so the quality is there, but you’ve not got the numbers. When you go to Europe you notice the quality improve slightly, but the big difference is instead of ten guys at the pointy end of the race, you’ve got 100 guys who are at the pointy end of the race. It makes it a lot more tactical, there’s a lot more to think about when you’re racing in Europe.”
Like a lot of young riders, Mason is unsure where his strengths lie, natural ability and tactical nouse the main determinant in the majority of junior races. “I’d say I’ve not really specialised as anything yet, I’m quite an all round rider. I like a climb, but I can also do quite well on the flat as well. If I had to categorise myself as something, it would be more of a power climb type rider, but I wouldn’t say I’ve specialised into any category as a rider yet.”
2024 will see the reigning British Junior Road Race Champion face tougher tests in a new environment under the Saint Piran banner, stepping up to the under-23 class. It signals the start of a new journey for Mason, as he continues to learn, putting in the hours, striving for road racing expertise.
Popularised by author Malcolm Gladwell, one of the great theories about life is that it takes 10,000 hours to achieve true expertise in a skill; the discipline of road cycling no exception. From fetching bottles to positioning in the wind, selecting a wheel to follow to launching a sprint at the perfect time, there is much more to the sport than pure athletic ability.
With the majority of riders at elite level learning their craft from a young age, their skills are honed and second nature by the time they reach that status. However, one young rider bucking that trend and going some way to debunking Gladwell’s theory is Finn Mason. The 19-year-old became the first Scot to win the National Junior Road Race Championship back in June, displaying a tactical masterclass beyond his experience, and will step up to the new Uskis Saint Piran Development Team for 2024, despite only taking up road racing at the start of 2022.
“I’ve learnt an incredible amount of stuff in the last two years, but it’s still very much, I don’t know a lot!” admits Mason, who impressed as a mountain biker through the age-groups, prior to taking up road racing on the advice of his coach, former professional James McCallum.
“I try to take every opportunity I get to learn and take on feedback from all my coaches, because even at this stage, even though I’m young in the sport, everyone has a much bigger head start over me in terms of tactics,” he states, pointing out that it is the fundamental skills so often taken for granted he had to learn after signing for the Cycling Academy team and switching to road racing for the 2022 season.
“Even as simple as just positioning in the bunch, when is a smart time to attack? As simple as where is the wind coming from and where do you want to be? When do you want to take your turn on the front? Very fundamental skills that are second nature as you develop in the sport, but I hadn’t done it before, so it’s a very steep learning curve. I’ve still got a lot more complex skills to learn and develop.”
Mason rose to prominence overnight, demonstrating his improvement with victory on the biggest stage at the Junior National Road Race Championships at the start of July in Lancashire, the crowning glory in his short career so far. Racing on a tough circuit, finishing atop the famous Birdy Brow climb, he delivered a close to perfect race. Taking opportunities when they presented themselves, the Scot got the better of a two up sprint with Seb Grindley, beating some of the best prospects in world cycling on the day.
“It was a very hilly course, it was up and down. There was no flat,” he explains, talking through his race. “I had a couple of team mates that went off the front at the start to kind of relieve the pressure for me to do anything, so for the first few laps I was able to just chill towards the front of the group. About halfway a few boys attacked, there was at least one rider from the significant teams, so I identified that was the move to be in, so I quickly bridged across to it and it quickly became just three riders – me, Seb [Grindley] and Zac [Machin].
“We still had three laps, about 60km to go by ourselves, so we dug in all the way to the end. I think we had about 1’30” coming into the final climb, a hilltop finish. On the first lap I had practiced the descent into the final climb, going down it as fast as I could, to see who could follow me and to see if that was a place on the last lap I could attack. I got in front for the descent on the last lap and tried to make a bit of an attack, and I attacked as we hit the bottom of the climb. Zac was dropped and Seb bridged across. Me and Seb went up the hill side by side, and it was right in the last 50 metres we started sprinting. There was just a tyre in it, but I got there!”
Mason’s victory propelled him into the limelight and proved his potential to be a top class road racer; his raw ability now visible to all, with a British title to go with his trio of Junior Scottish Championships across the disciplines: mountain bike, hill climb and cyclocross. He will ride for the new Uskis Saint Piran Development Team in 2024, an under-23 development team directly linked to the UCI Continental Squad, providing riders like Mason with a pathway through the sport.
“A few months ago now, I approached Ricci [Pascoe] to ask if he had any room on his Conti team and he said he was starting up this new under-23 team that’s going to act as a feeder team into the Conti team. We decided that the best move for me, with Saint Piran, was to join the under-23 team and develop as a rider and improve myself, and then in future years move up to the Conti team.
“I think the Uskis team will allow me the chance to develop as a rider and learn tactics and other games in road racing that I’ve not had experience of yet. I’m definitely still very new.”
Mason, like all young riders, has his sights set on the top level of the sport, with the Saint Piran project the start of that journey. “I’d like to ride in the WorldTour some day, but I’m just at the beginning of the ladder to get there. I think with Saint Piran, it’s kind of given me the first rung on the ladder to help me step up and keep improving and then hopefully one day be signed to a WorldTour team.”
His 2024 race programme with the Cornish squad is still unknown, with a question mark looming over whether the team will be permitted to race alongside the UCI Continental squad in national level races. However, Mason revealed that he will be racing in both Britain and Europe, with the possibility of continuing his mountain biking roots, calendar dependent. “I hope to continue mountain biking, it’s something I really enjoy. The Saint Piran team are totally on board with me continuing to do mountain bike, but it’s whether we have time in the calendar to allow that to happen because my focus in the next couple of years will be primarily on the road. But if a slot opens up for me to do a mountain bike race, then I’ll jump on that.”
Mason’s journey to this point has been heavily shaped by his Scottish roots, joining the Cycling Academy team at the start of his journey in 2022. “I’d say it’s currently the biggest junior development team in Scotland, but it’s a fairly new team still, starting a couple of years ago,” he explains, with the outfit gaining widespread notoriety after giving former CiCLE Classic winner Finn Crockett a ride earlier this year.
Mason counts Crockett, a Commonwealth Games Road Race medallist, among his training partners, as well as cyclocross star Cameron Mason, surrounding himself with high-class riders to harvest experience from. “We’ve got a really strong pool of riders who I get to train with and learn from all their experience,” he notes, explaining that being based in central Scotland has played a large role in his journey, with the nation now emerging a force on the international stage. “We do have a lot of communities which are strong for cycling. The landscape that we’ve got is beautiful, so getting out and going cycling around it is always a motivating factor to get on your bike and train, it seems to be a good place to grow up cycling!”
After spending his youth mountain biking, Mason explains that the transition to the road is not that big physically, but requires a very different approach to racing. “They’re different, but they are very transferable in terms of on-bike skills, but obviously, the tactical knowledge around racing in the two different disciplines is completely different.
“A mountain bike race is like a time trial, basically. You’ve not got the considerations of other people around you, it’s as hard as a you can for an hour. With road, obviously, that’s not the case. I’d say the physical skills on-bike are very close with cornering and stuff, but in terms of tactics they’re quite different, which is the main learning point I’ve had over the last couple of years.”
Mason has honed his road racing skills in both Britain and abroad over the past two seasons, where he picked up vital skills at a rapid pace. Although results in his first year were modest, the experience of finishing tough UCI ranked junior races such as the Keizer der Juniores in Belgium set him in good stead for his second season, where he started with a new found aplomb; producing some some eye catching results in the UK, including a 5th place on GC at the Junior Isle of Man Tour, and 3rd in the National B Hugh Dornan Memorial Race to Roseneath in the build up to his Junior National Road Championships victory.
Racing in Europe forced Mason to learn at speed, fast-tracking his tactical development. “When you’re racing in the UK, it’s a smaller pool of riders, so the quality is there, but you’ve not got the numbers. When you go to Europe you notice the quality improve slightly, but the big difference is instead of ten guys at the pointy end of the race, you’ve got 100 guys who are at the pointy end of the race. It makes it a lot more tactical, there’s a lot more to think about when you’re racing in Europe.”
Like a lot of young riders, Mason is unsure where his strengths lie, natural ability and tactical nouse the main determinant in the majority of junior races. “I’d say I’ve not really specialised as anything yet, I’m quite an all round rider. I like a climb, but I can also do quite well on the flat as well. If I had to categorise myself as something, it would be more of a power climb type rider, but I wouldn’t say I’ve specialised into any category as a rider yet.”
2024 will see the reigning British Junior Road Race Champion face tougher tests in a new environment under the Saint Piran banner, stepping up to the under-23 class. It signals the start of a new journey for Mason, as he continues to learn, putting in the hours, striving for road racing expertise.
Featured image: Scott Armour/Man Down Media
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