Savannah Morgan 5 Minute Q&A

Redchilli Supported Rider – Savannah Morgan

Savannah Morgan recently joined Redchilli Bikes through our ‘Supported Rider Program’ and 2020 will see her racing for a her new team, Isorex NoAqua Ladies Cycling Team (Belgium) where she will be racing our Redchilli FR2. Savannah will be spending her second season racing in Belgium and faces a tough start to her 2020 campaign with no less than 3 UCI races from 29th February to 3rd March: Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Omloop van Het Hageland and Le Samyn des Dames. So, before Sav heads back out to Belgium, we caught up with her for a quick 5 minute Q&A.

RB: How did you first get involved in cycling?
SM: I first started cycling 5 years ago when I started doing triathlon. My bike was always my strongest discipline even though I didn’t train that much on it. Eventually I stopped enjoying the running and swimming, and so switched to racing on my bike.

RB: How would you describe your racing style?
SM: I’d say I’m a aggressive racer. I like to be in moves and I don’t like boring races where you end up just waiting for the bunch kick.

RB: 2019 saw your first season racing in Belgium. How would you compare racing in Belgium to that in the UK?
SM: Belgium is just a whole new level for racing. There’s a lot more races in the year and there’s a lot more support for women’s racing. You can have 150 riders just at a Kermesse while in the UK you don’t even get that many at Nationals. There’s also a lot more UCI races actually in Belgium, while the UK is lacking. Everyone from all over the world comes to race in Belgium.

RB: If there was one thing you could have changed about your 2019 race season, what would it have been?
SM: Just to put less pressure on myself, I started riding a lot better at the end of the year when I was more settled and just having fun. It was my first year but now I know what I need to do this year.

RB: What what you say was your best achievement during 2019?
SM: Honestly my best achievement isn’t a result. It was just the fact I did the full season in Belgium. I had never lived away before and I just went and did it. I’m pretty proud of that.

RB: How is your winter training progressing and are there are any specific areas of your riding that you will concentrate on?
SM: My training is going well. At the moment balancing work and training is getting harder as I’ve been doing that for almost 4 months now. But luckily I’ll be stopping work in a a few weeks to solely focus on training and the season ahead. At the moment there’s been a lot of base miles.

RB: Do you eat more chocolate during the off season?
SM: I eat a lot of chocolate all season. However I prefer Cadbury’s over any of the Belgian stuff.

RB: You have joined a strong and established Belgian team for 2020. What are your main goals and do you have your eyes on any particular races?
SM: My goals are still to be confirmed. I just want to be pretty consistent over the season. I know which Kermesses suit me now so I’ll aim to do well in those. But there’s also a few UCI races that I think I can do well in!

RB: You’ve been riding our Redchilli FR2 for a good few weeks now. How have you found the bike and how has the bike helped you?
SM: The bike is great. The look of it is fab, too! But it just feels really solid which is going to come in handy as the roads aren’t the best in Belgium. Getting the bike through Redchilli has helped me massively; my previous race bike was almost 4 years old, so I was due an upgrade and can’t wait to ride it all season!

RB: If you could ride with any Pro rider (past or present) who would it be and why?
SM: (Marianne) Vos. I mean, she’s just so good at everything and I’d love to get advice off her.

RB: Women’s cycling has grown dramatically over the past few years (which is great to see) but how would you like to see women’s cycling progress over the next 5 years?
SM: I think there just needs to be more of a fan base and more coverage. There’s very little women’s cycling on TV, if that could improve then there’s more chance of more money being brought into it.

RB: What advice would you give to younger cyclists looking to get involved with bike racing?
SM: Just enjoy it. Don’t stress about having the best equipment and winning everything. Plus give racing in Belgium a go they have youth and junior races on closed roads!