Team Jayco AlUla

So he was thereabouts.

Number two, we go closer to home here with Jaco Alula.

Dylan Brunewagen makes his way to Jaco Alula and then makes his way to Unibet Rockets.

And he takes Elmar Reindeers every single place he goes.

Yep.

She's yet to announce officially where she's going but those in the know are saying it's going to be the Spanish team Movistar and of course it makes a lot of sense for them because she's Spanish as well.

Another rider reported by Dan Benson to be breaking his contract is Sam Welsford, as the Australian still has one year left at net company INEOS, but is apparently in final talks to move over to Jayco Alula.

Right, on to some confirmed signings now then.

Sergio Higuita is moving away from Exia Sistana and over to Cajarola.

And we are as harsh on them on their lows because we pump up their highs more than anyone.

But Jayco-AlUla, yeah, I've got nothing, I've got nothing more to say.

They, they started...

Day one, Koen Bowman was in the breakaway, they had the polka dots.

Paul Double, AKA The Boss or The Winchester Rambo, would incidentally not finish the stage.

The Jayco-AlUla rider had been having a rough ride over the last few days and had started the day in second to last position on GC.

We had plenty of attacks in the first hour, but no break that really stuck until Steven Kruijswijk, riding his last Grand Tour for Visma-Lease a Bike, got away with week one stage winner Andreas Leknessund of Uno-X and Jasha Sütterlin of Jayco-AlUla.

The three never established a big gap, and indeed they were vulnerable to counterattacks bridging across, which Bastien Troncho, Kevin Vermaerke, Thomas Johannessen, and...

Tobias Johann- Johannessen, sorry, and Ivo Oliveira did after 70 kilometers.

Now Matt White, of course, is a regular contributor to the Cycling Podcast.

He was for many years the head sports director, Orica-GreenEDGE, uh, that organization, Jayco-AlUla.

But since the start of the year, he's been the head of racing or co-head of racing-

Yep

Rob, we're gonna hear first in our sort of visit back in time, journey back in time to the start from Wout van Aert talking about the heat and what, um, the route change, what that was going to change, and also whether this is something we're gonna see more of in the future, shorter stages when it gets very hot.

And then we're also gonna have a curious little conversation, curious little interview with Finlay Pickering of Jayco-AlUla, who's been going pretty well in this Vuelta a España.

He's one of the, the few riders who seems to be getting better in this race and may yet sort of sneak into the top 10.

And the reason I s- I summoned Finlay Pickering this morning, well, this wasn't the only reason.

As was the case yesterday, a group of riders was able to detach itself fairly early, in fact this time within the first 10 kilometres.

Without too much resistance from the main bunch, Ethan Hayter of Soudal, Sinue Fernandes of Burgos Biace, Dominovac UAE and Alessandro Covi of Jayco Alula made up that quartet.

Corvi, of course, had enjoyed success in these parts before, having won the Vuelta a Murcia, a stone's throw from the stage start today in 2022.

The gap never got above two minutes as the race skirted the Sierra Espuña, a rare green expanse in the beige baked desert of the Murcian landscape.

Larry and Ethan were mopped up like the sweat from our soaking brows today.

Sadly for Larry's countryman, Kevin Famarca, he was also involved in a crash just as the peloton accelerated towards the foot of the Alto de Aledo.

Wermacher got up quickly, while Hamish McKenzie of Jayco Alula lay on the tarmac, clearly in pain.

Happily, McKenzie would finish the stage, albeit in last position.