page 14 The best Steve Saunders Interview ever 2013
I know you had translation problems, but what else was there?
Well my Italian got pretty good so I was able to speak with them in Italian so that side of things wasn’t really an issue but I’d come into that team later on and Michaud was very much a part of that team, a major part of that team and I was always going to struggle to break into the team properley
So this was the biggest problem you had?
Sarah says “the biggest problem that riders had back then was that riders just didn’t have someone managing them and looking after the rider. The factory had all control over you. You’re talking about some youngish chaps really that weren’t business men. They were sports people who want to be the best at their sport. In a lot of sports you have people that look after the well fare of the sports person. This is probably were a lot of factories took advantage.
How did this happen?
Back to Steve…
Just with how quickly one rider could get things done. One rider would be able to get things done a lot quicker. There were little barriers in the way all of the time. When you are supposed to be working together. I would go to the mechanic and say I needed this for my bike and he said yes I will get back to you in a minute, 2 and a half hours later, I’d still need the parts.
So they didn’t have the sense of urgency around you that they had around others ?
Yes, certainly Michaud. Michaud had been there a long time and had sown a few seeds there.
Good riders were already in place at Fantic when you joined. Were they less interested in your input that your previous teams ?
Yes, they were unless you agreed with the engineers opinion as sometimes you will think differently to the other rider and you wanted something different to the other rider. So if the other rider is saying they don’t like such and such and you say you like it, the engineers would go along with you more.
You did not have the full power like you would have done at Armstrong ?
No, no, no, nothing like.
If you wanted something done there it would be done ?
Yes, absolutely
Well my Italian got pretty good so I was able to speak with them in Italian so that side of things wasn’t really an issue but I’d come into that team later on and Michaud was very much a part of that team, a major part of that team and I was always going to struggle to break into the team properley
So this was the biggest problem you had?
Sarah says “the biggest problem that riders had back then was that riders just didn’t have someone managing them and looking after the rider. The factory had all control over you. You’re talking about some youngish chaps really that weren’t business men. They were sports people who want to be the best at their sport. In a lot of sports you have people that look after the well fare of the sports person. This is probably were a lot of factories took advantage.
How did this happen?
Back to Steve…
Just with how quickly one rider could get things done. One rider would be able to get things done a lot quicker. There were little barriers in the way all of the time. When you are supposed to be working together. I would go to the mechanic and say I needed this for my bike and he said yes I will get back to you in a minute, 2 and a half hours later, I’d still need the parts.
So they didn’t have the sense of urgency around you that they had around others ?
Yes, certainly Michaud. Michaud had been there a long time and had sown a few seeds there.
Good riders were already in place at Fantic when you joined. Were they less interested in your input that your previous teams ?
Yes, they were unless you agreed with the engineers opinion as sometimes you will think differently to the other rider and you wanted something different to the other rider. So if the other rider is saying they don’t like such and such and you say you like it, the engineers would go along with you more.
You did not have the full power like you would have done at Armstrong ?
No, no, no, nothing like.
If you wanted something done there it would be done ?
Yes, absolutely
Was the deal through Roy Carey or direct to the factory?
It was direct with the factory. I had dealings with Roy obviously as he was the UK importer. Did you go to the factory at all? Yes, we virtually lived at the factory How come? We always used to go back there between rounds, we were just always there. We stayed in a caravan in the car park and ate in their canteen. It wasn’t a bad life. It doesn’t probably sound that glamorous but it wasn’t a bad life. It was a good life and if everybody had pulled together a bit more it would have been a much much better life. |
Was the overall experience with fantic a little frought?
It was stressful and hard work.
Where did that emminate from ?
I think a lot of it was about fear from Michaud that a younger guy was coming into the team that potentially could actually unseat him from his no 1 position, so I think he put his back into it and put the barriers up as quickly as he could so I couldn’t get my feet under the table. I don’t blame him for doing this really. It was defensive. Once you have got this and that fact that I really didn’t want to ride the bike either I wasn’t really the right pshycological position, the results weren’t quite there and the new bike when we were first given it was crap.
Which one was this?
The 303. We went to the first world round and it was a horrendous piece of kit
What was up with it?
Everything, absolutely everything, yes it was awful. The 301 that it had superseded was a pretty good bike, but this 303, myself and Michaud were pulling our hairs out.
It was stressful and hard work.
Where did that emminate from ?
I think a lot of it was about fear from Michaud that a younger guy was coming into the team that potentially could actually unseat him from his no 1 position, so I think he put his back into it and put the barriers up as quickly as he could so I couldn’t get my feet under the table. I don’t blame him for doing this really. It was defensive. Once you have got this and that fact that I really didn’t want to ride the bike either I wasn’t really the right pshycological position, the results weren’t quite there and the new bike when we were first given it was crap.
Which one was this?
The 303. We went to the first world round and it was a horrendous piece of kit
What was up with it?
Everything, absolutely everything, yes it was awful. The 301 that it had superseded was a pretty good bike, but this 303, myself and Michaud were pulling our hairs out.
You then had the first world round in spain and you were all excluded.
What happened there? (A wonderful day for the tiny Catalan company Mecatecno as Lluis Gallach won on the Dragonfly 325)
What happened there? (A wonderful day for the tiny Catalan company Mecatecno as Lluis Gallach won on the Dragonfly 325)
Friends Joan Freixas and Gabino Renales congratulate Lluis Gallach on winning the Spanish round of the 87 World Championship
From my personal point of view we got late on time obviously. I was in front of all the top riders and somehow, they used to be 25 mile laps in those days. I came out of one piece of woodland and I turned left when I should have turned right. This was primarily because I was going too fast trying to pick up a bit of time. I got lost and yes that was a bummer. The reason I got lost was because my rear shock blew up and we had to stop to change the rear shock and then I was last on the road behind all of the guys and I overtook all of the guys and then I got lost, so double whammy. It was the shock and then I got lost .
Did the riding gear come through the factory?
Yes
Where did the Ilford deal come from?
From Ilford, in Italy, but again that was direct with the factory. They were a photographic equipment company, you weren’t allowed any of your own sponsors. Everything was sponsorship through the factory.
Did the riding gear come through the factory?
Yes
Where did the Ilford deal come from?
From Ilford, in Italy, but again that was direct with the factory. They were a photographic equipment company, you weren’t allowed any of your own sponsors. Everything was sponsorship through the factory.
A sponsor for a rider is a major source of his income and yet they were stopping you from having individual sponsors?.
They were stopping you from having individual sponsors but putting it into the contract and the theory was that riders would have less hassle organising sponsor ship deals. Of course, we all know that putting all of your eggs into one basket isn’t a clever idea is it. Its great while the factory is all running well and you are running well and they can pay you and they want to pay you.
They were stopping you from having individual sponsors but putting it into the contract and the theory was that riders would have less hassle organising sponsor ship deals. Of course, we all know that putting all of your eggs into one basket isn’t a clever idea is it. Its great while the factory is all running well and you are running well and they can pay you and they want to pay you.
Steve Saunders original Fantic Trials clothing
Did they end up not paying you then?
There were issues at the end
There were issues at the end