Sam Fitzgerald only took up cycling during his undergraduate degree, and yet he’s now President of Oxford University Cycling Club. He first joined the cycling club at Cambridge, where he studied engineering, before moving to Oxford to pursue a DPhil in Renewable Energy.
Cycling at both Oxford and Cambridge offers the opportunity to explore the surrounding countryside – the club’s weekly cycle rides take place between the Cotswolds and the Chiltern Hills. Cyclists enjoy venturing out into the countryside and exploring nearby villages.
Alongside these leisurely weekend rides, Fitzgerald tells me that the club trains for more serious competition. For the first time, it now has a club coach and is moving towards a more formalised training plan to prepare for competitions.
Fitzgerald’s cycling journey has seen its fair share of unforgettable experiences. “I have been hit by a car crossing the road in Spain,” Fitzgerald recalls when I ask if there are times things went wrong. “I had to try to explain to the police what had happened in broken Spanish.”
A highlight for Fitzgerald was the Lincolnshire BUCS race last year. “In Lincolnshire you race with hundreds of people by the side of the road, playing music, like a party by the side of the road,” he tells me. “Oxford was fourth overall – we came very close to getting a BUCS medal together.”
But cycling races rarely have that festive feel. They often take place deep in the countryside, and while there might be people from nearby villages watching on, often “it is just you and the countryside”, Fitzgerald says. He describes races as a mental struggle as much as a physical one. “You’ve got to be aware of who to follow, who to chase. You’re also aware of the pain in your own legs as you catch up with those ahead.” “Having the crowd there distracts you and allows you to push to a level that you didn’t think you could,” he adds. “In the Lincolnshire race, my power levels were higher than they have ever been before or since. That can only be attributable to the crowd support.”
Oxford University Cycling Club was founded in 1873, making it one of the oldest student cycling clubs in the world. At the time, cycling was a new sport and a novel, exciting mode of transport: a technological invention which opened up new worlds for its intrepid adventurers. From novel Victorian invention to modern university sport, Oxford’s Cycling Club has endured. Fitzgerald is excited about what is to come.
