Jenson Young, a former U23 Cyclocross National Trophy winner, had a breakthrough 2023 road season with ROKiT-SRCT but faced challenges due to a persistent knee injury. The team's near-closure led him to search for a new squad for 2024, with hopes of eventually moving to the highly competitive French amateur scene
Cycling is a team sport. One rider may take the glory, but it is the culmination of a collective effort, not only from the riders. One rider who knows this better than most is Jenson Young, a former U23 Cyclocross National Trophy series winner and owner of the Ribble-Verge Cyclocross team, who experienced a breakthrough season on the road with the ROKiT-SRCT squad after a tough three years with Saint Piran.
Speaking to The British Continental, the Yorkshireman shares his thoughts on his 2023 season, running a successful team and what the future holds for him following the uncertainty surrounding the ROKiT-SRCT team, which led him to searching for a new squad for 2024.
2023 Grand Prix presented by Wattbike – Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England – Jenson Young of ROKiT-SCRT climbing Michaelgate. Image: Oliver Brookwell/SWpix.com
“Can I say the team?” Young asks when questioned on what made 2023 such a success. Joining ROKiT-SRCT at the beginning of the year gave the 22-year-old renewed purpose, a sense of confidence, and most importantly, brought the enjoyment back to the sport, with the results speaking for themselves. Under the wing of highly-rated DS Adam Ellis, Young was one of the form riders of the first part of the season. Second overall at the competitive Peaks 2 Day set the tone, following it up with victory at the Yorkshire Under-23 Classic, second in the Danum Trophy, and the mountains classification at the Ràs Mumhan in Ireland. Young barely finished outside the top five until the Rapha Lincoln Grand Prix in May.
“I had a biggish period of rest after the ‘cross [season],” he explains. “I started a bit from scratch, turning up for the road, but I started the rest pretty fit, so it probably did help. I had a good first half of the road season.
“I was targeting the CiCLE Classic, but after that, I went to Ireland and then to the Lincoln GP. Lincoln was a bit of a goal, once I found some decent form. I think I was the first rider after the ten up the road.”
I’m good at a hard course, where the hills aren’t too steep, or like Lincoln, where it’s a fairly short one
Young impressed on the cobblestones of Michaelgate, winning the bunch sprint for 11th, and in doing so revealing himself as a potential winner of future editions. “Out of the Prems, I think Lincoln is up there. It probably does suit me, to be fair, it’s the one with the best chance of getting a win. I’m good at a hard course, where the hills aren’t too steep, or like Lincoln, where it’s a fairly short one.”
Unfortunately for Young, a persistent knee injury, which flared up in the week prior to the Lincoln GP, derailed his fine start to the season; a podium in the third round of the Proper Northern Road Road Series, a National B at the end of July, the highlight before the switch back to cyclocross in September. “Over the period of about six weeks, I had to have three of them off the bike. It kind of set me back loads, I had to get back fit, and I’d get the injury back. I sort of ruined the second half of my season, I never really got back to where I was, which was a shame,” he explains.
2023 U23 Men’s National Road Series Round 2 – Under 23 Yorkshire Classic. Jenson Young of Team ROKiT-SRCT. Image: Olly Hassell/SWpix.com
The 2023 season was to be Young’s only one with the ROKiT-SRCT squad. The team announced in October of the year that it would close after struggling to find a sponsor. It was a surprising and disappointing turn of events for Young. “It was a quality set up and to say it was Adam’s first year as a DS, he did a mega job really, organising all the races abroad, it’s something we need more of in the UK,” he says.
I didn’t expect it, I had nothing else lined up. It came out of nowhere and was a bit of a blow really
The team’s near-closure was a blow to Young, who had agreed to continue with Redding’s outfit into 2024 as they looked to move up to UCI Continental level. “When I joined I thought it was a bit of a project, like, this could be good, build up with these. Before the team [made the announcement that it would stop], I got my place [at the team] sorted for next season, so when it was said ‘we’re not going to be a road team’ it was a bit of a shock. Because I didn’t expect it, I had nothing else lined up. It came out of nowhere and was a bit of a blow really.”
The team’s sponsorship fortunes have subsequently changed, with new sponsors first enabling a gravel-only focused set-up, followed by funding which will allow its riders to race on the road too. However, in the midst of all the uncertainty, Young and the other riders needed to look elsewhere for 2024 team.
He was one of the first ROKiT-SRCT riders to get picked up, and although it is not the step up to UCI Continental level he was hoping for, Young is optimistic for the season ahead, with his race programme not dissimilar to this 2023. “Luckily, when ROKiT-SRCT [nearly] shut down, I got asked straight away. I couldn’t have really gotten a better offer from a better team when I was told which riders would be on it. There should be opportunities to go abroad, maybe not as much as ROKiT, and there’s an option to go ride kermesses, guesting with other teams. Obviously, we’ll do all the Prems as a team. It’s not really a step up, but it’s not a step down, so I’ll see what I can get out if it,” he explains.
Picture by Olly Hassell/SWpix.com – 07/05/2023 – Cycling – British Cycling U23 Men’s National Road Series Round 2 – Under 23 Yorkshire Classic – Penistone, Yorkshire, England – Jenson Young of Rokit SRCT takes the victory with Joe Shillabeer of Team 05/03 in second and George Wood of Cycling Sheffield in third
In the longer term, Young has his sights set on following in the footsteps of a number of young British riders, moving to France and taking on the highly competitive French amateur scene, which has seen riders such as Harrison Wood and Oliver Knight turn professional over the past couple of years. It was a move Young may have made coming into 2024, had circumstances been different.
I don’t want to go there and get my head kicked in, I want to go there and win races at a good level, like riders like Adam Mitchell has done.
“Long term, I think it would be good to get abroad and get in a decent team there,” he muses. “I feel like I potentially could have done that after this season, but obviously having ROKiT and their plans, that step up cancelled last minute, [it] ruined that. I think I just need another solid year. I want to be at the level where I can be competitive at those races. I don’t want to go there and get my head kicked in, I want to go there and win races at a good level, like riders like Adam Mitchell has done.”
Young was unfortunate to miss out on a trip organised by his coach, Loughborough-based Phill Maddocks, to France, where riders such as Ben Chilton and Dexter Leeming-Sykes put in eye-catching performances to earn contracts with the Team U Charente Maritime squad for 2024. “I missed out on that opportunity with my knee injury, I was meant to be going over there with Chilton and Dexter. My coach did that trip and he’s keen to take riders over to France. He’s got contacts, he knows the races to do that can get you on big teams.”
Picture by Olly Hassell/SWpix.com – 14/07/2023 – Cycling – British Cycling National Circuit Series, Road – The Dudley Grand Prix, Men’s National Circuit Series – Jenson Young of ROKiT – SRCT
Young knows the difference a team can make to a rider, reflecting on his time with Saint Piran as a missed opportunity during his under-23 years. Lightly raced in 2022 as new riders were brought into the fold mid-season, Young found himself outside of the team’s plans later in the year, leading to him looking for new opportunities.
“I started messaging around teams,” he explains. “At the last minute, when I was speaking to a few other teams, I had Adam [Ellis] from SRCT message me, as well as Scott [Redding].
When I didn’t enjoy it with [Saint] Piran, it just wasn’t fun, I didn’t really want to ride my bike, there was nothing to train for
“Scott messaged me the year before, but [Saint] Piran were like ‘we want to give you another year’, and I was like, ‘it’s Conti, hopefully I can get some good opportunities’, so I turned SRCT down because I didn’t know what it was going to be. The year after, Adam messaged, and it sounded good. The calendar which he was telling me about sounded good, and I was like, I might actually get some decent opportunities, I will definitely be more motivated, I’ll enjoy it more. When I didn’t enjoy it with [Saint] Piran, it just wasn’t fun, I didn’t really want to ride my bike, there was nothing to train for. So that helped, I couldn’t really say no.”
Young is no stranger to team dynamics and the effect they can have, finding himself in the role of team manager and rider of the Ribble-Verge Cyclocross team, becoming sole owner last year.
“We go for a mix of riders, so we’re spread out in all the categories so everyone can get their opportunity,” he outlines, with Toby Barnes finishing second overall in the elite National Trophy and Leon Atkins taking the spoils in the U16 Boys Trophy, winning five of the rounds.
Cyclo-cross National Trophy Series 2023/24 Round 6: Tong, Bradford – Home Farm, Tong, Yorkshire – Senior / U23 Open Trophy Race – Jenson Young of Ribble – Verge Sport. Image: John Clifton/SWpix.com
At only 22, Young is in the unique position of managing and riding for a team simultaneously, noting, “Sometimes it can be a bit weird, telling riders things when I’m actually racing myself”. It also gives him a unique experience in the financial difficulties teams are facing across the board. “It’s just hassle, trying to sort sponsors out. Every other team seems to be having the same problems, really. Verge have been sponsoring the team since day one, their sponsorship has just gotten better having stuck with the team.
It would be good to get a few extra sponsors, to help improve the team, give the riders a bit more support, get them abroad a bit easier
“It would be good to get a few extra sponsors, to help improve the team, give the riders a bit more support, get them abroad a bit easier. With the help of Garden Shed last year, that really helped,” says Young, with the team sending junior Joel Hurt to race in Belgium and Toby Barnes recording a top-20 in the Dublin World Cup over the winter.
On a personal level, Young endured a difficult season, a torn ligament in his ankle sustained in September derailing his plans. “It wasn’t as good as 2022-2023, but it wasn’t a write off,” he explains, with his injury hampering him throughout.
“I lost a bit of fitness through not training for about a week or so, but I did a couple of races and did alright,” he says. “[I] got third in Ireland in a UCI [C2 Race], not on great fitness, then Derby [National Trophy], with the running, it ruined my ankle.” Young was forced to miss the Torbay round of the National Trophy, a competition he was targeting after winning the under-23 series and finishing second in the elite category last season. “It was sort of a big goal to win the senior one this year. But obviously, after missing the first one and a DNF in the second because of my ankle, it wrote off any chance of that straight away,” he admitted.
The Barnsley rider did manage to pick up a win at the North of England regional championships at the start of December, where he dominated proceedings to win by a number of minutes, and he finished a strong 5th at the final round of the National Trophy in Tong, dropping out of a podium place due to mechanical issues. Hoping for a strong display at the National Championships in Falkirk, Young’s injury hampered him to a 14th place finish on an unusually dry course. “It didn’t feel like the Nationals!” He points out with the tough course running dryer than usual for January. “It’s just the nature of some courses. When I get back on the bike after a tough run, the ankle can still be very painful.”
This campaign has been a far cry from Young’s usual consistency, his all-round ability on a cyclocross bike allowing him to challenge on almost any course.
2023 Dudley Grand Prix, National Circuit Series – Jenson Young of ROKiT – SRCT. Image: Olly Hassell/SWpix.com
“The real hard courses suit me a fair bit.” He says, discussing his strengths. “I’m not bad at the fast ones because I’m alright on the road, but when it gets to deep mud, I quite like that. Like for example, [the] Dublin World Cup last year. Most of that was just deep, slow going mud and that was one of the best races I’ve had.” He noted.
Young’s performance in the World Cup in Dublin, where he finished just outside of the top-20 in a race dominated by Wout van Aert, was one of a number of overseas races he competed in last season, spending a lot of time in the sport’s Benelux heartlands. “It’s really good fun, especially with the fans over there. It feels a lot different with the atmosphere, it gets the adrenaline going a lot more than the UK races, that’s for sure,” reflects Young, noting that the style of racing is very different from in the UK.
You set off there, I’m like third or fourth row at best, and you can’t push on the first lap. You’re always on catch up, you have to race completely differently
“You’re not on the front row and racing it from the front. Usually, in the first couple of laps I’m up there and dictating the pace, I’m not stuck behind people. But, you set off there, I’m like third or fourth row at best, and you can’t push on the first lap. You’re always on catch up, you have to race completely differently.
“[In the] UK, I don’t know what it is, if it’s the courses or what, but everyone goes as fast as they can [for] the first couple of laps and sort of slows down as the laps go on. But races there seem to speed up, if anything, as it goes on. If you ever see van der Poel’s lap times, he’ll stick in a lap 20 seconds quicker when he attacks. In the UK, that’s not going to happen because everyone’s flat out pretty much. You think they’re riding 100%, but they’re not. You’re with someone in the race and all of a sudden they’ve left you.”
Young says that despite this, the National Trophy is a good preparation for these races with the level being higher than the regional leagues, although there are multiple aspects you can’t prepare for, especially on some of the iconic sand based courses. “I don’t think anything can prepare you for those races to be fair, the only way you’re going to get better at those races is to do them and keep doing them,” he explains.
“I’ve raced Koksidje three times now. You can’t practice for it, you can’t prepare for it. There’s literally nothing you can do. I mean you can find bits of sand in the UK, and in Belgium they’ve got quite a bit. When I went there my practice laps were literally learning how to ride the sand. It’s like doing a new sport, I felt like a road rider cross for the first time.”
No matter what people say, if I didn’t race cross in the winter, I wouldn’t be as good on the road
Young attributes a large part of his success on the road to his winters spent racing cyclocross. “No matter what people say, if I didn’t race cross in the winter, I wouldn’t be as good on the road,” he asserts , pointing to two main benefits: bike handling and fitness.
“Every year when I get on the cross bike and the first race and I’m all over the place, when I get on the road bike in January it feels nice, I’m good on the corners and things like that. And just sort of fitness going through the winter, fair enough I’m not getting as much rest, but it’s sort of fun through the winter – I’m not really thinking at weekends I’ve got to do a massive block next week. Normally, in the early part of the road season I’m doing pretty well.”
Cycling is a team sport. One rider may take the glory, but it is the culmination of a collective effort, not only from the riders. One rider who knows this better than most is Jenson Young, a former U23 Cyclocross National Trophy series winner and owner of the Ribble-Verge Cyclocross team, who experienced a breakthrough season on the road with the ROKiT-SRCT squad after a tough three years with Saint Piran.
Speaking to The British Continental, the Yorkshireman shares his thoughts on his 2023 season, running a successful team and what the future holds for him following the uncertainty surrounding the ROKiT-SRCT team, which led him to searching for a new squad for 2024.
“Can I say the team?” Young asks when questioned on what made 2023 such a success. Joining ROKiT-SRCT at the beginning of the year gave the 22-year-old renewed purpose, a sense of confidence, and most importantly, brought the enjoyment back to the sport, with the results speaking for themselves. Under the wing of highly-rated DS Adam Ellis, Young was one of the form riders of the first part of the season. Second overall at the competitive Peaks 2 Day set the tone, following it up with victory at the Yorkshire Under-23 Classic, second in the Danum Trophy, and the mountains classification at the Ràs Mumhan in Ireland. Young barely finished outside the top five until the Rapha Lincoln Grand Prix in May.
“I had a biggish period of rest after the ‘cross [season],” he explains. “I started a bit from scratch, turning up for the road, but I started the rest pretty fit, so it probably did help. I had a good first half of the road season.
“I was targeting the CiCLE Classic, but after that, I went to Ireland and then to the Lincoln GP. Lincoln was a bit of a goal, once I found some decent form. I think I was the first rider after the ten up the road.”
Young impressed on the cobblestones of Michaelgate, winning the bunch sprint for 11th, and in doing so revealing himself as a potential winner of future editions. “Out of the Prems, I think Lincoln is up there. It probably does suit me, to be fair, it’s the one with the best chance of getting a win. I’m good at a hard course, where the hills aren’t too steep, or like Lincoln, where it’s a fairly short one.”
Unfortunately for Young, a persistent knee injury, which flared up in the week prior to the Lincoln GP, derailed his fine start to the season; a podium in the third round of the Proper Northern Road Road Series, a National B at the end of July, the highlight before the switch back to cyclocross in September. “Over the period of about six weeks, I had to have three of them off the bike. It kind of set me back loads, I had to get back fit, and I’d get the injury back. I sort of ruined the second half of my season, I never really got back to where I was, which was a shame,” he explains.
The 2023 season was to be Young’s only one with the ROKiT-SRCT squad. The team announced in October of the year that it would close after struggling to find a sponsor. It was a surprising and disappointing turn of events for Young. “It was a quality set up and to say it was Adam’s first year as a DS, he did a mega job really, organising all the races abroad, it’s something we need more of in the UK,” he says.
The team’s near-closure was a blow to Young, who had agreed to continue with Redding’s outfit into 2024 as they looked to move up to UCI Continental level. “When I joined I thought it was a bit of a project, like, this could be good, build up with these. Before the team [made the announcement that it would stop], I got my place [at the team] sorted for next season, so when it was said ‘we’re not going to be a road team’ it was a bit of a shock. Because I didn’t expect it, I had nothing else lined up. It came out of nowhere and was a bit of a blow really.”
The team’s sponsorship fortunes have subsequently changed, with new sponsors first enabling a gravel-only focused set-up, followed by funding which will allow its riders to race on the road too. However, in the midst of all the uncertainty, Young and the other riders needed to look elsewhere for 2024 team.
He was one of the first ROKiT-SRCT riders to get picked up, and although it is not the step up to UCI Continental level he was hoping for, Young is optimistic for the season ahead, with his race programme not dissimilar to this 2023. “Luckily, when ROKiT-SRCT [nearly] shut down, I got asked straight away. I couldn’t have really gotten a better offer from a better team when I was told which riders would be on it. There should be opportunities to go abroad, maybe not as much as ROKiT, and there’s an option to go ride kermesses, guesting with other teams. Obviously, we’ll do all the Prems as a team. It’s not really a step up, but it’s not a step down, so I’ll see what I can get out if it,” he explains.
In the longer term, Young has his sights set on following in the footsteps of a number of young British riders, moving to France and taking on the highly competitive French amateur scene, which has seen riders such as Harrison Wood and Oliver Knight turn professional over the past couple of years. It was a move Young may have made coming into 2024, had circumstances been different.
“Long term, I think it would be good to get abroad and get in a decent team there,” he muses. “I feel like I potentially could have done that after this season, but obviously having ROKiT and their plans, that step up cancelled last minute, [it] ruined that. I think I just need another solid year. I want to be at the level where I can be competitive at those races. I don’t want to go there and get my head kicked in, I want to go there and win races at a good level, like riders like Adam Mitchell has done.”
Young was unfortunate to miss out on a trip organised by his coach, Loughborough-based Phill Maddocks, to France, where riders such as Ben Chilton and Dexter Leeming-Sykes put in eye-catching performances to earn contracts with the Team U Charente Maritime squad for 2024. “I missed out on that opportunity with my knee injury, I was meant to be going over there with Chilton and Dexter. My coach did that trip and he’s keen to take riders over to France. He’s got contacts, he knows the races to do that can get you on big teams.”
Young knows the difference a team can make to a rider, reflecting on his time with Saint Piran as a missed opportunity during his under-23 years. Lightly raced in 2022 as new riders were brought into the fold mid-season, Young found himself outside of the team’s plans later in the year, leading to him looking for new opportunities.
“I started messaging around teams,” he explains. “At the last minute, when I was speaking to a few other teams, I had Adam [Ellis] from SRCT message me, as well as Scott [Redding].
“Scott messaged me the year before, but [Saint] Piran were like ‘we want to give you another year’, and I was like, ‘it’s Conti, hopefully I can get some good opportunities’, so I turned SRCT down because I didn’t know what it was going to be. The year after, Adam messaged, and it sounded good. The calendar which he was telling me about sounded good, and I was like, I might actually get some decent opportunities, I will definitely be more motivated, I’ll enjoy it more. When I didn’t enjoy it with [Saint] Piran, it just wasn’t fun, I didn’t really want to ride my bike, there was nothing to train for. So that helped, I couldn’t really say no.”
Young is no stranger to team dynamics and the effect they can have, finding himself in the role of team manager and rider of the Ribble-Verge Cyclocross team, becoming sole owner last year.
“We go for a mix of riders, so we’re spread out in all the categories so everyone can get their opportunity,” he outlines, with Toby Barnes finishing second overall in the elite National Trophy and Leon Atkins taking the spoils in the U16 Boys Trophy, winning five of the rounds.
At only 22, Young is in the unique position of managing and riding for a team simultaneously, noting, “Sometimes it can be a bit weird, telling riders things when I’m actually racing myself”. It also gives him a unique experience in the financial difficulties teams are facing across the board. “It’s just hassle, trying to sort sponsors out. Every other team seems to be having the same problems, really. Verge have been sponsoring the team since day one, their sponsorship has just gotten better having stuck with the team.
“It would be good to get a few extra sponsors, to help improve the team, give the riders a bit more support, get them abroad a bit easier. With the help of Garden Shed last year, that really helped,” says Young, with the team sending junior Joel Hurt to race in Belgium and Toby Barnes recording a top-20 in the Dublin World Cup over the winter.
On a personal level, Young endured a difficult season, a torn ligament in his ankle sustained in September derailing his plans. “It wasn’t as good as 2022-2023, but it wasn’t a write off,” he explains, with his injury hampering him throughout.
“I lost a bit of fitness through not training for about a week or so, but I did a couple of races and did alright,” he says. “[I] got third in Ireland in a UCI [C2 Race], not on great fitness, then Derby [National Trophy], with the running, it ruined my ankle.” Young was forced to miss the Torbay round of the National Trophy, a competition he was targeting after winning the under-23 series and finishing second in the elite category last season. “It was sort of a big goal to win the senior one this year. But obviously, after missing the first one and a DNF in the second because of my ankle, it wrote off any chance of that straight away,” he admitted.
The Barnsley rider did manage to pick up a win at the North of England regional championships at the start of December, where he dominated proceedings to win by a number of minutes, and he finished a strong 5th at the final round of the National Trophy in Tong, dropping out of a podium place due to mechanical issues. Hoping for a strong display at the National Championships in Falkirk, Young’s injury hampered him to a 14th place finish on an unusually dry course. “It didn’t feel like the Nationals!” He points out with the tough course running dryer than usual for January. “It’s just the nature of some courses. When I get back on the bike after a tough run, the ankle can still be very painful.”
This campaign has been a far cry from Young’s usual consistency, his all-round ability on a cyclocross bike allowing him to challenge on almost any course.
“The real hard courses suit me a fair bit.” He says, discussing his strengths. “I’m not bad at the fast ones because I’m alright on the road, but when it gets to deep mud, I quite like that. Like for example, [the] Dublin World Cup last year. Most of that was just deep, slow going mud and that was one of the best races I’ve had.” He noted.
Young’s performance in the World Cup in Dublin, where he finished just outside of the top-20 in a race dominated by Wout van Aert, was one of a number of overseas races he competed in last season, spending a lot of time in the sport’s Benelux heartlands. “It’s really good fun, especially with the fans over there. It feels a lot different with the atmosphere, it gets the adrenaline going a lot more than the UK races, that’s for sure,” reflects Young, noting that the style of racing is very different from in the UK.
“You’re not on the front row and racing it from the front. Usually, in the first couple of laps I’m up there and dictating the pace, I’m not stuck behind people. But, you set off there, I’m like third or fourth row at best, and you can’t push on the first lap. You’re always on catch up, you have to race completely differently.
“[In the] UK, I don’t know what it is, if it’s the courses or what, but everyone goes as fast as they can [for] the first couple of laps and sort of slows down as the laps go on. But races there seem to speed up, if anything, as it goes on. If you ever see van der Poel’s lap times, he’ll stick in a lap 20 seconds quicker when he attacks. In the UK, that’s not going to happen because everyone’s flat out pretty much. You think they’re riding 100%, but they’re not. You’re with someone in the race and all of a sudden they’ve left you.”
Young says that despite this, the National Trophy is a good preparation for these races with the level being higher than the regional leagues, although there are multiple aspects you can’t prepare for, especially on some of the iconic sand based courses. “I don’t think anything can prepare you for those races to be fair, the only way you’re going to get better at those races is to do them and keep doing them,” he explains.
“I’ve raced Koksidje three times now. You can’t practice for it, you can’t prepare for it. There’s literally nothing you can do. I mean you can find bits of sand in the UK, and in Belgium they’ve got quite a bit. When I went there my practice laps were literally learning how to ride the sand. It’s like doing a new sport, I felt like a road rider cross for the first time.”
Young attributes a large part of his success on the road to his winters spent racing cyclocross. “No matter what people say, if I didn’t race cross in the winter, I wouldn’t be as good on the road,” he asserts , pointing to two main benefits: bike handling and fitness.
“Every year when I get on the cross bike and the first race and I’m all over the place, when I get on the road bike in January it feels nice, I’m good on the corners and things like that. And just sort of fitness going through the winter, fair enough I’m not getting as much rest, but it’s sort of fun through the winter – I’m not really thinking at weekends I’ve got to do a massive block next week. Normally, in the early part of the road season I’m doing pretty well.”
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