John Archibald is keen to make the most of his time on home soil when he completes his Tour Series double-header in Aberdeen tomorrow.
The Scottish Commonwealth Games medalist admits opportunities to ride in his homeland are few and far between these days and after making his return in Motherwell last night, wants to round off in style when he competes in the Granite City.
Archibald only raced in the Durham event last year but has been impressed by the popularity of the Tour Series, which returns to Aberdeen for the third year in a row.
He said: “I always enjoy racing at home. I get recognised more and more when I come home and get a lot of crowd support.
“For sure, I’ve not done a lot of racing here recently but I enjoy doing it. When I first started out I did a lot of local Scottish races, which I don’t seem to touch at all now. But with the support races, I’m sure I’ll see some friends and other Scottish competitors.
“I’m sure I did the Dragon Ride in Aberdeen before and it’s a nice prospect to see these places while you’re out and about. It will continue to grow and the emphasis on the Tour Series means it’s competitive – every team is trying to win.”
His sister Katie, who picked up a gold and silver medal on the Gold Coast last year, will also compete in Aberdeen, as part of a Scottish Cycling team entering as a guest squad in the two races in Scotland.
Archibald (28), who rides for Ribble Pro Cycling, feels he comes into the event in good form, having been crowned national indoor pursuit champion at the British Track Cycling Championships earlier this year. He set the sea-level world record time of 4:09.584 in the process.
He added: “It’s another experience racing against the best in Britain. There’s Tour of Britain qualification points at stake and the UCI squad are keen to qualify for that.
“It’s a very different format in terms of your normal day-to-day racing, being on a closed circuit with big crowds. It suits a different physiology as there’s no long climbs and it’s a punchy circuit. I feel like I should be able to do well.
“I’m optimistic I can be involved towards the finish of the race. At the moment I’d just be guessing but my form is good and hopefully that pays off.”