In the pre-social media age, professional cyclists were untouchable masters of endurance with superhuman physiology who rode in a higher realm. The juggernauts of the noughties racing broke records on TV and in newspapers. A world away, amateurs went on coffee rides, the same sport but so different from the elite ranks.
Aspiring riders watched the early feats of stars like Mark Cavendish and Alberto Contador in awe, but through a layer of separation. As Tadej Pogačar’s 2.4 million followers on Instagram can attest, nothing has changed in that sense – cycling’s heroes are still adored and idolised.
Earlier this year, Pogačar responded to an Instagram reel by British cycling influencer Dan Jones, who had attempted to beat the four-time Tour de France winner’s Strava KOM on the infamous Coll de Rates.
“Close the jersey and you go under 20 min,” quipped the world champion in the comments section – whose own record is a full eight minutes faster.
Five Grand Tour titles, two World Championship victories, and an FTP of 400 watts lie between Jones and Pogačar. But, if an ‘influencer’, in the literal sense, is a person capable of guiding others to follow in their actions, what they wear, the products they use through online social networks, then the two riders are akin.
Thirty-one-year-old Jones, or @daaaanjj as he is known to his 118,000-strong following, only has three years of riding experience to his name, but you wouldn’t know it from his impressive list of sponsors – Van Rysel, Garmin, Wahoo, Rapha. He rides bikes for enjoyment, and encourages his audience to do the same.
Jones, who brands himself as a “professional amateur” across his platforms, is aiming to create something that fans might not see by following only the sport’s professionals.
“A page like mine, where it’s obviously a little more relatable than the pros, might be something to inspire people to get into the sport,” he told Cyclingnews.
“People might go, ‘okay, that looks fun’….
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