Great to see Raleigh aiming for the big time

I don't want this short post to read like an advert for Procycling magazine, but the feature on the Raleigh team for 2011 is a really positive sign for one of the big names in UK cycling.

There is sad news as it appears that both riders and management from last seasons Kuota/Road.cc team have jumped across but putting that aside we can enjoy seeing the Raleigh name heading back towards cyclings top table.

The last time I remember seeing it in proper pro road racing as a marque was the late great Laurent Fignon's desperate attempts to get around the Paris streets in pursuit of Greg LeMond.

There was a pro team led by David Baker in the 1990's but that was domestically based and (if I remember rightly) moved over to focus on the offroad scene. The famous Banana squad too to riding Falcon frames at around the same time.

I have already nailed my colours to the Raleigh mast by investing in a retro jersey from Prendas and am looking at the latest bikes on Wiggle.

My Grandfather used to cycle from his home in Woollaton to the factory in Nottingham to work and I can think of no better way to remember him that by cheering on a pro team riding in his old employees colours.

You can find out more about the team in this months Procycling magazine of from their website by clicking here.