Date: Wednesday, 8 December 2010

Nic White’s victory in the 2010 Momentum 94.7 Cycle Challenge – his final race as   full-time pro – couldn’t have been scripted better by a best-selling novelist. That he won the inaugural edition of one of South Africa’s most iconic races back in 1997, just before turning professional, created an appropriate bookend to an illustrious pro racing career.

But that’s far from the end of the story and the next chapter will see the 36-year-old White stay within the sport he knows so well and move on to new challenges.

From January 2011, White will begin a full-time job as Retail Sales Manager at Cycle Lab, South Africa’s largest cycling retailer. He will be based in the Fourways branch just north of Johannesburg and will also be responsible for identifying and nurturing future professionals through the club’s established Under-23 team.

“Retail is obviously going to be new for me, but a big part of retail is knowledge of your product and/or service and being able to deal with people. I believe I have much to offer in both of those areas,” said White.

Of his knowledge of cycling, there can be no question. Without the natural physical attributes to be a sprinter, White developed into a superb time triallist and climber, winning a number of local and international stage races during his career. But his strongest asset is his ability to read a race and manage the outcome in his favour. Or more specifically, in his team’s favour.

A wingman for legendary sprinter, Malcolm Lange, for most of his career, White was instrumental in helping set up many of Lange’s hundreds of race wins. He races as much with his brain has does with his body and has an exceptionally high success rate in spotting, or instigating a race-winning move.

It is this knowledge and experience that he will share with the next generation of young racers, who either have raw talent or heaps of desire. He will continue to race at Elite level as an on-the-bike mentor and there is no doubt that he will be a great teacher.

“I am looking forward to the next stage of my life with Cycle Lab. I will ride with a young team, and pass on some of my knowledge to the youth. I can help them avoid making costly mistakes and can guide them where they may not see opportunities. Along with Cycle Lab, I feel a responsibility to help ensure continuity in a sport that’s given me so much.”

Although a pro road cyclist, White has done some mountain bike racing and counts among his off-road successes, victory in the Mixed category (with Anke Erlank) at the 2005 Cape Epic. He understands that mountain biking and road cycling are similar, but different and will use this in his new role to add depth to Cycle Lab’s status as a one-stop expert shop for all levels of rider.

“Cycle Lab is busy embarking on an aggressive expansion project, with branches in Pietermaritzburg and Boksburg opening recently. Nic will be involved in the rollout of the Cycle Lab brand. He is honest and a genuine guy with lots of experience. I sincerely believe he will add value to our customers and club members,” said Andrew McLean, Cycle Lab founder.

“Nic has all the attributes of a real leader and we see him fulfilling an important role in both the retail and the racing divisions of Cycle Lab. There’s a gap in the current system to support top junior racers that move into the Under-23 category and Nic is the perfect person to help us plug this gap,” added McLean.