Sam Lowe is eyeing an Eddie Soens confidence-booster for BIKE Channel Canyon.
The 23-year-old, from Derby, will line up with his team-mates for the first time in the 80km tear-up around Aintree on Saturday (9.30am).
He was delighted to see the team start with a win as Chris Opie sprinted to glory in the Perfs Pedal in Portsmouth on February 12.
The early-season skirmishes are coming thick and fast for the new UCI Continental outfit, with a trip to Holland for Ronde van Drenthe and the Rabobank Dorpenomloop Rucphen next week.
And while morale is high in the camp, Lowe knows there is nothing like a good performance to keep the feelgood factor going. He said:
“I’m really looking forward to meeting up with the guys again and I’m hoping for a good result, whether that is on a personal level or working for one of the other lads.
“You always go into a race aiming to win. JLT have a strong team in there, they have to be the favourites but we have a good squad, too.
“We may be on different programmes, to peak at different times during the season but if we can work together we can get a good result.
“It will be great for morale. It is only the start of a long season but a good performance will be a great boost to confidence in the team.”
Lowe has enjoyed a solid winter, including a camp in Girona before Christmas and regular sessions in the gym.
But it is some extra work on the track which the former Team Wiggins rider is hoping will help him get up to race speed again. He added:
“It always seems to take me one or two races to get back into it. My winter has been good, pretty much the same old, same old really.
“I have been doing some local track league to try to keep a bit of top end, though. So hopefully that will help me make a good start to the season.”
Lowe has raced Eddie Soens twice before. In 2012, while still a junior, he finished 13th and then in 2015 he was 10th in the colours of Raleigh.
He will be joined on the start line by Jack Pullar, who was third last season, Matt Nowell, who finished sixth, Harry Tanfield, George Atkins and Jake Womersley.
