155. George Hincapie: Paris-Roubaix, elbows out racing and his Modern Adventure

This week, James and Will chat to George Hincapie, the super-est of domestiques, double 'ard Classics man and erstwhile lieutenant to Lance Armstrong.

George was born in Queens, New York City, on 29th June 1973, to cycling-mad Colombian dad, Ricardo. By twelve he was throwing elbows racing adults in Central Park, and by his teens he was showing the talent that would take him to the Olympics in 1992 and his first pro season, with Motorola, in 1994.

At first a self-confessed bunch of American upstarts, Motorola morphed into one of the most formidable teams of the 90s and 2000s, US Postal. There, George forged his status as one of cycling’s strongest and most dependable riders, supporting team leader Lance Armstrong as road captain and lieutenant across all seven of Armstrong’s Tour wins – though of course that’s wins in inverted commas.

George retired from the pro peloton in 2012 after 19 seasons in which he started the Tour de France 17 consecutive times, finishing it 16 times and winning one team-time-trial stage. He also rode 50 Monuments including finishing second at Paris Roubaix and third at Tour of Flanders; he won Gent-Wevelgem in 2001; and was three-time US National Champ.

Today, George is bringing all that experience to his new team, Modern Adventure Pro Cycling, with the express intention of giving young riders a shot at the big time while becoming 'the next great American team', who might one day compete in the Grand Tours. We spoke to George ahead of Paris-Roubaix, where Modern Adventure had the first big wildcard entry of its inaugural season.

Our chat begins at 10.24

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This episode is also brought to you by the Maserati Grecale SUV car. For more information, go to maserati.com

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