News: Lucas Towers Signs for Caja Rural-Alea

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News: Lucas Towers Signs for Caja Rural-Alea

Britain’s Lucas Towers, who has been racing in Spain as a junior and Under 23, has signed for Caja Rural-Alea and unsurprisingly he’s super happy! Lucas says of it on twitter: “I’m looking forward to stepping up a level and experiencing some bigger races. Achieving this (signing for the team) of course would not have been possible without the support from Team Previley Maglia Coforma Bembibre (his 2022 team in Spain) and the Dave Rayner Fund this year”

The new team for Lucas says of him: “For his part, Lucas was one of the revelations of the season in his debut in the senior races. Not only did a victory come in Anadia (Portugal), it was in Spain where he showed his skills as a climber, linking a 5th place in the Valencia Memorial and a 6th in the Santikutz Klasika, two of the most demanding Spanish Cup events. He was also seen in several stage races, especially in Vuelta Madrid (6th and winner of the best youngster’s jersey) and Vuelta a Toledo (5th).

Prior to that success in Spain, Lucas had won the queen stage in the Junior Tour of Wales last year (2021) and was third overall in that prestigous stage race. This on top senior stage race wins as a junior in Britain. No surprise then that Lucas has had such an awesome year in 2022 in his first as senior rider. The victory in Portugal and top drawer performances in Spain had many a team taking notice of Lucas including teams in Spain and some World Tour development teams.

Lucas though decided that signing for Caja Rural-Alea suited him down to the ground and up the hills! “For me, as soon as I started my year in Spain and seeing the set up at Caja and the way they raced, it really appealed to me from the off! I had contact from the team in the spring and spoke to them through out the year, so for me, it was really nice to have a team like that wanting me to ride for them.”

Lucas has raced in Spain for three seasons but in 2022, with help from the Dave Rayner Fund, he was able to race in Spain on a full time basis. “I really enjoy the style of racing as well as of course the terrain. There is a lot of control in the peloton from the bigger teams so the races seem to be predictable in the sense that you know when the race will explode and when the attacks will start to fly! Having experienced a lot of the races there already that I will do next year, and having alot of knowledge of the Spanish scene, it was a definitely a key factor in why I wanted to stay in Spain”.

“My race calendar will be mainly Spanish based with the Copa Espana and Basque one day races at the start of the year, followed by the Tours in the summer. I think too there are plans to race outside Spain more this year in big Under 23 races like the Under 23 Giro for example”.

Looking ahead to being ready for those early season races, Lucas is looking forward to the training camps which should be taking place in January closely followed by some racing in France. “Hopefully the legs will be ready to go that early in the year” adds Lucas!

Looking at the 2023 season as a whole and asked what he feels his goals will be, Lucas replies “I think my first main goal of the year will be Memorial Valenciaga. It is a Spanish Cup race with so much prestige and history, it is a race I would absolutely love to win! From then on, I think the goal would be building towards the stage races later in the year including international ones if selected of course!”

Lucas and Devin who have raced for the same team in 2022 and shared an apartment as well.

Looking back at 2022, Lucas was racing for Team Previley Maglia Coforma Bembibre and he was based in Ponferrada. “It’s a town in Castille y Leon that actually hosted the 2014 World championships” explains Lucas. “I was staying in an apartment with a teammate and good friend Devin so it was a perfect place to train with hour long climbs starting 15 mins from the doorstep.

Asked how was his year in Spain, performance and results wise was, Lucas replied “Overall, I was super happy with my year in Spain”.

“I feel as though I progressed well throughout the year and learnt lots that should help me push on a bit more next year. I was quite consistent across the year with thirteen top 10s in top level races. My overall highlight was definitely 5th at Valencia in the spring. It was the biggest amateur race in Spain with a super hard last hour with 1000m of elevation in 35km, so it was a real nice feeling to still be strong right into the final kilometres on the summit finish.

On the subject of other highlights, Lucas explains; “I really enjoyed the whole experience of living abroad and to have mountains to train on daily. Another highlight was getting my hands in the air with a win in Portugal in August too!

Lucas winning the Queen stage in the Junior of Wales in 2021 in the colours of Cycle Division

Lucas, who has worked in the Cycle Division shop which is a VERY valued sponsor of VeloUK as well as racing for the Cycle Divison shop team, was racing this year on a Cannondale Supersix evo, with Cero RC50D wheels which he says was the perfect combination of aero and lightweight for the fast racing and mountain terrain in Spain. Those wanting to follow in his wheelmarks, get along to the Cycle Division shop to look at those bikes and wheels.

Thanks to Lucas for the interview and good luck in 2023!!

 

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