2024 Otley CC Race Team

In its 9th year after being set up by Ian Cullen as a team within Otley Cycle Club, after a successful 2023, the race team’s focus this year is primarily national series events for road and circuit

2024 Otley CC Race Team
News presented by Santini Cycle Clothing (UK Contact Jon: 0789 6810 839) | Feature by Jonathan Hodgkins

In its 9th year after being set up by Ian Cullen as a team within Otley Cycle Club, the race team’s focus this year is primarily national series events for road and circuit. The teams is backed by a number of fantastic sponsors, some of which have changed over this time but are currently Chevin Cycles (Otley’s fantastic local bike shop), MAS Design Consultants (whose MD Mark Scatchard is a former Otley rider), Santini UK, Nuffield Health, and Ian Cullen’s own business, Bike Futures, which does fantastic work promoting kids’ cycling participation in schools across the Yorkshire region.

Tom Cullen amassed 11 wins last season including the support race at the Colne Grand Prix

Our biggest single financial backer though is Otley Cycle Club itself, one of the oldest clubs in the country that has a massive membership who are committed to supporting young riders wanting the maximise their potential. The financial support provided by these backers means that we can support all team riders with race entries, travel expenses, kit subsidy, subsidized Nuffield gym membership and coaching support. Financially speaking, this is a level of support most teams can’t offer, let alone teams within traditional club structures like us. This is all administered and managed by our current team manager Peter Middlebrooke who is a rider parent, coach, and lifelong OCC member.

As a team, we have had some nationally renowned riders pass through our ranks over the years, most recently perhaps Robyn Clay, winner of the Lincoln Grand Prix last year  (2023) in her first year after moving on from Otley, Lucy Ellmore (now with Pro-Noctis 200 Degrees Coffee Hargreaves Contracting), and at least half a dozen other riders currently racing in and/or based in Europe.

Perhaps our longest standing member however was also our most successful rider in 2023. Tom Cullen amassed 11 wins last season, most notably a fantastic win at the Colne Grand Prix events. Tom is also coach to a number of our junior riders. Last year saw top five results in the youth national circuit series by Matt Peace (now with Tofauti in 2024) and Daniel Middlebrooke. Alex Hodgkins won the White Rose Youth League series, Emily Middlebrooke twice guested on other teams in Belgium, and all our juniors achieved their 2nd cat licences.

The team’s focus this year is primarily national series events for road and circuit, with some local and regional races also, especially high-profile events that are close to home in Otley and Ilkley, the latter of which was won by Emily Middlebrooke in 2022. The youth riders will also target the national omnium series on the track, some CX targets thrown in as well. We also have a strong international track presence with Archie Gill who has already successfully represented GB in the track sprint at Apeldoorn so far this year.

Here is the full squad:

Youth A Riders:
Daniel Middlebrooke
Oscar Hall
Thomas Nabb

Junior Riders:
Alex Hodgkins
Archie Gill
Zack Miles
James Luxton
Jacques Goetz
Emily Middlebrooke
Lottie Phillipson

U23/Over 23 Riders:
Tom Cullen
Tom Sparkes
Will Jowett
James Marston
JC Goetz
Christos Tzelis

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