STRENGTH IN NUMBERS
A roller-coaster 2020 may have changed the way we ride our bikes, but it certainly didn’t stop us from cycling, if Strava’s Year in Sport review is any measure. The report, from the world’s leading social community for cyclists, delves into the activities of its global 73 million athletes and looks for trends, and its 2020 figures show how the pandemic has shaped and defined our active lives. Numbers, which scratched the surface of our new routines and ways to stay motivated, can only tell you so much, however, so we wanted to speak to the people behind the headline figures to try and tell the story of a difficult year.
THE DATA
Vying for the top spots on Strava’s leaderboards was as heated as ever with 36 PER CENT MORE QOM AND 32 PER CENT MORE KOM crowns changing hands this year
“WE’D HAD SOME BIG AMBITIONS FOR 2020, AND LOCKDOWN MOST DEFINITELY IMPACTED THESE. BUT WE’VE BEEN KEEN TO NOT LET THE REGULATIONS TOTALLY DESTROY THE CLUB SPIRIT, AND SO USED THEM TO OUR ADVANTAGE”
BENJAMIN GARDNER
CHALLENGE STORIES
“Covid-19 didn’t stop the drive for collecting KOMs,” says Benjamin Gardner, founder and organiser of the Trash Mile Cycle Club in London. After making it through the first few months of the pandemic, Gardner introduced Trash Mile Challenges. “Initially, almost accidentally, within the team
