Siena’s Via Santa Caterina is most famous for its role in Strade Bianche. The 500m climb sits in the final, brutal kilometre of the race, and has often decided the Italian one-day Classic.
In 2021, Mathieu van der Poel accelerated to its summit with a 1,300-watt attack to secure one of his – and road cycling’s – most memorable victories. This year, Tadej Pogačar smiled up the 12% incline, the race won not in the last kilometre, but in the final 78.
Then, after the weekend’s thunderous crowd had dimmed to silence, after the fences had been carted away and the advertising banners cleared, another rider took aim at the famous climb.
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(Image credit: Strava)
KOM hunting isn’t new to Lewis-Follows. A Girona local, he routinely takes to the surrounding hills on quests for the most coveted Strava kudos; it is, for him, the best part about cycling.
“If KOM hunting could be a profession, I would much prefer to do that than race,” says the Huesca La Magia Renault Auto 4 development rider. “I love racing, but there’s something about just ploughing up a hill or on a segment.”
Lewis-Follows came to Spain four years ago set on crafting a professional road racing career. But a diagnosis of coeliac disease set the Brit back, as his body battled the food he was fuelling with.
“I’m glad I figured out what the problem was now and not a few years down the line,” he said, “but I wish it happened a few years earlier because I feel like I could have had a really good first couple of years as an U23. It’s a shame, but you can only move forwards.
“Now I’m kind of finding my own thing again. I’m racing part time and trying to build a name for myself on social media, but it’s still very early doors,” he explained. “Age is very much against you in this sport.”
Lewis-Fellows’ cycling content is already gaining traction. His Santa Caterina KOM attempt came after a spur-of-the-moment decision to join his friends and social-media content creators Couch View CC in Italy. This summer, they’re aiming to bag as many KOMs as they can across as the routes of the Belgian Classics, documenting as they go.
“The best thing about cycling is, for me, KOM hunting,” Lewis-Follows stressed. “The amount of dopamine I personally get from planning out the pacing strategy, the time to work out what power I need to do and really get into the nerdy side of things is just so enjoyable, and the dopamine hit you get if you get a pretty prestigious one is just unmatched for me.”
To conquer Siena’s Santa Caterina, he had to average in excess of 500 watts, hitting a maximum power of 719 watts.
Now he’s got the KOM, is he worried about being ousted by another hungry hill-climber? “I think the fact that I’ve now got it, and there’s proof that I have been up there, it’s like, OK, cool. It’s fun. And if someone takes it, that’s completely fine,” he said.
“That’s kind of the fun of the game. Especially with the KOMs around Girona, I’ve got a few friends [whose KOMs] I’ll go for, and I’ll take it, and then the next day they’ll go and take it off me, and then I’ll go back and get it back off them.
“It’s just kind of like a less serious, friendly competition. There’s no risk and only reward, whereas with racing, I feel like there’s a lot more risk. So it’s just something that’s kind of light-hearted and fun you know. It’s great, I love it.”
While Lewis-Follows holds the current best time on Strava on the official ‘San Caterina’ segment, this does not mean he necessarily holds the fastest time ever on the climb. Riders must upload their effort to Strava to be in contention for the KOM.
That said, Van der Poel’s segment time from his Strade Bianche victory 2021 was still 12 seconds short of Lewis-Follows – a testament of how impressive the Brit’s feat is.
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