Photo by Caro Paulette

For my 1st interview, I couldn’t not start without my sweet sister from another mother, Fleur Faure.
She’s well known for winning her first ever crit, the NMC2 in 2014 and stole 1st place from the race favorite, Stefania Baldi .

Floriane Ferrero

 Hi Fleur, can you introduce yourself for those who don’t know you?

Hi, I’m Fleur Faure, I’m 23 and i’m french from Aix-En-Provence (South East)!! Currently i’m studying and doing an internship program at Thales SESO.

I have been riding since I was 9 years old.

Photo by Mario Cranks

How did you start riding bikes and how did you start racing fixed gear crit races?

I was sick when I was a kid and because of some treatments I was a bit chubby. So my dad started making me do a lot of sports like cycling, which he practised himself to get ready for the ski season.

I got to the fixed gear crit pretty randomly after some track training at the Vitrolles velodrome (near to Aix-en-Provence) where Paul Vanotti used to be. He talked to me about it and I got curious so I tried it out at the NMC2.

I won and stole 1st place from the favorite Stefania Baldi

Photo by GingerBeard PHOTO 

Thanks to this victory, everything became super fast for you. You got into the spanish Polo & Bike Team straight afterward!!! How have things been going since 2014?

David Gomez, P&B manager, contacted me straight after the race. Some other teams asked me to join them but I chose the 1st guys that gave me a chance.
I raced Gijon Crit, HQ of P&B. I finished 2nd behind Baldi because I didn’t make a right gear choice. Finally i did my 1st RHC in Barcelona, where I came 2nd once again behind Ainara Elbusto who had also started racing these kind of races.
I discovered a new kind of race and I enjoyed it from the very start and I wanted to go further.
In Milan, I ended up with a 3rd place which got me to the 3rd place of the Red Hook Criterium Series Championship 2014.
The new season (2015) starts with RHC Brooklyn where I came 2nd going up the inside of Kacey Lloyd but i couldn’t make it to Ainara.

In Gijon, Ainara beat me on the final sprint after a long breakaway together. In London, I made it to the Top 15 and for that I got the Top Antagonist* prize.

I ended the season with a 3rd place in Milan and again got 3rd place for the Red Hook Criterium Series Championship.
The 2 years with P&B taught me lot and I have only good memories of my time spent with them.

Photo by GingerBeard PHOTO 

We all noticed your sponsor La Classica let you down before the end of the season (we aren’t concerned about the reasons!!), you got the RHC Milan without the whole team and with new bikes built the morning’s race.

This certainly made up your mind to join a new Team for the upcoming season, what’s happening for 2017?

I’ve no comment about the sponsor, they really supported us. I’m changing team that’s for sure, I don’t want to quit the crit scene and I can’t afford it all on my own.

I can’t say too much about it but I’m still with my sweet friend Kelli Samuelson who has been my discovery of this season.

Let’s be clear, I still get along with all my ex teammates from La Classica.

Photo by Caro Paulette

If I’m right, you were also riding on road for the italian team Cipollini while in your 2nd year with P&B, Are we going to see you again on some road races this year? Alone, new team, or only focused on fixed gear crit?

That’s a tricky one!!!

I keep practising road bikes and fixed gear as I can’t do one without the other, they complement one another.

Photo by GingerBeard PHOTO 

Do you have any training tips to give to crit newbies who would like to try?

Cycling is easy but riding a fixed gear is not!!The most important thing to learn is knowing how to slow down your bike.

If you’re already used to riding curves it’s simple. You just need to not be afraid of touching your pedal because it won’t happen, the BB is higher on track frame (maybe not ahah).

Priority to the technique rather than tactics to make a safe race.

If you want to run this kind of race, you’ve got to train with a fixed gear bike, some people enter races without knowing how to break/slow down.

We race with a lot of people who are bad technically and it gets dangerous.

Photo by K.Franklyn 

And for the end it’s up to you  , you say anything you want like I’m pretty or you wanna make bad things to me ahah or just thanks and hi to our french mates!

A big kiss on Floriane’s butt  also to all our FG french friends without exception.

I alway enjoy meeting you at the crits.

Thanks to FHTN for your interest on French riders and also to David Trimble (RHC Founder/Owner) for your sick organization!!
A big thanks to those who turn these competitions into PARTIES!!!

INTERVIEW

BY

FLORIANE FERRERO 

 FHTN REPORTER