Stradalli-Bike Aid Heads Into The Tour du Cameroun

The Stradalli – Bike Aid Conti team begins the Tour du Cameroun today as the defending champions of the race. It's a race rich in history where the team has had major success in the past.

Last year Bike Aid racer Dan Craven, formerly Team Europcar, led the team to a general classification win in the Tour du Cameroun which was one of the biggest wins in team history. Craven is one of several success stories of Stradalli –Bike Aid who will be looking to match that result this year.

The Tour du Cameroun is a UCI 2.2 race and has been a part of the UCI Africa Tour since 2005. UCI Africa is contested by the top cyclists in all of Africa and attracts many pro continental and World Tour teams as well.

Daniel Bichlmann, Joschka Beck and Jean Bosco Nsengimana of Stradalli Bike Aid are all racers who have had a great amount of success so far this season and will be racing the Tour du Cameroun in hopes of continuing that trend.

Bichlmann, who was continuously present in breakaways at the Challenge Mallorca is looking for a repeat performance at Cameroun.

"The goal for each race is to improve as a team. I am off to a good start this year but we are not a team that is top heavy. Every race someone else will have a big day, we are only as strong as the last guy on our roster but that's the team you want to be on. We all pull for each other and do anything we can to help our teammate." Bichlmann 

Beck had the most impressive outing of the year for Stradalli – Bike Aid at the La Tropicale Amissa Bongo, the biggest race of the year in the UCI Africa Tour. 

“We have a great group of guys here and we battle each and every week. It's always special for us to race in Africa because we spend so much time here. The competition is always tough but we love these races and hope to represent the team well." Joschka Beck

Stradalli Cycle – Bike Aid Add 2016 Rio Olympics Bound Janvier Hadi To Roster

If you were curious whether the Stradalli Cycle – Bike Aid Conti Team from Germany would be lacking depth and talent for the upcoming UCI racing season due to the loss of Mekseb Debesay who signed with the Dimension Data World Tour Team last month. Well there is nothing to be concerned about as the team has rounded out its field of African riders with Janvier Hadi who will be representing Rwanda in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janiero and the 2015 Tour of Rwanda winner Jean Bosco Nsengimana.

“When Mekseb left there was a gap but we knew there was an abundance of talent waiting for an opportunity.  There are world-class athletes looking for a chance to race in Europe. We have guys who are going to the Olympics and are winning the Tour of Rwanda yet they have a hard time getting on a conti team. That doesn’t make any sense and it shows why the Stradalli Cycle – Bike Aid cause is so important. It gives these outstanding cyclists the chance to compete at the top levels of cycling.” Stradalli Cycle CEO Tom Steinbacher

The story of Hadi and Nsengimana is truly inspirational as they come from Rwanda, a country devastated by genocide, poverty and war. While many wonderful charities have sent food, money, medicine and other methods of assistance there is one thing that is desperately needed as well, opportunity. The people of Africa are in desperate need of a chance to better their lives and that is what the goal of Bike Aid is all about, giving young African cyclists the chance at a better life.

“For years if you won a big race in Africa it was nice but it didn’t mean you would even get an interview with a conti team because of the cost it requires to get you into Europe to race. We are changing that but we haven’t reached our goal yet. If our roster has 1 or 2 success stories this year there are people who would think that we succeeded. We want multiple success stories each year to show continued progress and this year we are proud to announce we will have 6 riders from Africa on the roster. That is a huge leap forward for us and we are excited about the progress we are making in such a short period of time.” Eric Haus (Founder and CEO of Bike Aid)

Ruben Companioni Leaving Stradalli-Safetti For 2016 Season

Stradalli-Safetti, US based pro men’s criterium team, has granted Ruben Companioni a release from his contract to join Jamis Professional Cycling Team for the 2016 season.

Companioni was under contract for 2016 but Stradalli-Safetti decided for Companioni’s career, the best thing would be a change of focus. There was interest in Companioni joining the newly formed Stradalli-Bike Aid Germany Continental cycling team but the level of racing in Europe is a huge step up, not necessarily the step up Companioni is looking for at this time.

Stradalli Cycle CEO Tom Steinbacher said Companioni is still and always will be a part of the Stradalli family, but Jamis was the better fit for him for 2016 and wanted him to race road not just

criteriums. “Ruben is a great criterium racer, but he is an even better road racer. He has been great for our team, but I want him to be in the best possible situation for next year.

Stradalli Cycle currently sponsors several teams around the world including a European Continental Team, a United States Professional Criterium Team, a Women’s Domestic Elite Team (with Papa John’s), and a junior development team(Wizard Racing Development Team). Stradalli Cycle uses all its avenues to develop riders and bring them to the next level which is what attracted them to Bike Aid in the first place.

Bike Aid most recently brought African rider Mekseb Debesay into the international scene and helped him to elevate his career. It was recently announced that Debesay will move on to Team Dimension Data to ride along side Mark Cavendish in the UCI World Tour. Stradalli-Bike Aid has two U23 stagiaire roles left to fill for 2016.

Stradalli-Safetti will continue its focus on United States criterium racing in 2016 while Stradalli-Bike Aid will compete at the top level road races in Europe. For Companioni, a United States based road racing team will allow him to continue his progress and will allow him to stay close to family as well.

“Stradalli is my family and without them I wouldn’t have all these wonderful kinds of opportunities. I also have my family here in Miami to care for first and foremost. With Jamis I can travel to the biggest races and have the best opportunities, but still be close to home and my friends.” Companioni said.

“Stradalli-Safetti is all about opportunity and giving young racers the chance to reach their dreams. We keep a tight family here because that is the best environment for racers to develop. Ruben had great success with us and he will have great success with Jamis. Now another up and coming racer will have the opportunity to race for Stradalli-Safetti. In a year or so, if Ruben keeps developing the way he has, then maybe we will talk about bringing him to our European team. For now, we wish him the best of luck in 2016 and always will stay in close contact.” Steinbacher said.

Stradalli Cycle - Bike Aid Will Continue Inspiring Charity Work In Africa

You may not know the difference between a Wal-Mart bicycle and a full carbon road bike but you do know about the devastation and poverty that is day to day life in many countries of Africa. There are hundreds of charitable organizations trying to help and a great example is Bike Aid, a German cycling club with over 600 members who help to bring aspiring cyclists to Europe.

The Conti Team has races all over the globe in hopes to raise awareness of their cause and in only two years they have real success stories they can be proud of. Mekseb Debesay, one of the young cyclists from Africa who was given an opportunity to race in Europe because of Bike Aid has signed on to be a teammate of Mark Cavendish for team Dimension Data in the World Tour.

“The story of Debesay is a great success for him as well as for our cause. It is always a challenge to try and educate people on what you are doing and why they should support you but when you have true success stories you can start showing them results for their efforts. With the success of the program we are getting more attention and help than we ever thought possible in such a short period of time and we are excited that 2016 is expected to be our biggest season yet with more African cyclist on the team than before and we will also have the help of our new title and bike sponsor Stradalli Cycle from America.” Bike Aid Racer Spokesman Matthias Schnapka

The full carbon bike manufacturer from Florida has been looking to sponsor a Conti Team for a while but took a special interest in Bike Aid because of what they represent. 

You can read more about the Stradalli Cycle - Bike Aid Conti Team as well as their cause and updates during the 2016 racing season. 

Bike Aid Concept Showing Results In Their Second Year

Mekseb Debesay is officially a teammate of Mark Cavendish in the World Tour.

After 2 years of hard work, the most successful rider of the Conti team will now be riding side by side with Mark Cavendish in team Dimension Data, formerly known as MTN-Qhubeka, for the 2016 racing season.

Eric Haus, President of Bike Aid, said that this proves the teams goals are being accomplished exactly as they hoped for. 

“This is truly a success story that has turned out just as we have hoped it would. Mekseb is well respected and one of the most popular cyclists on the African continent. He has won many victories for our team. We used our media work and our racing calendar as a platform for our successes. The leap from our team to the highest class of cycling is exactly what we want to achieve in our project for African riders,” Haus said.

Bike Aid has has had similar success last year with Dan Craven, who successfully completed the Vuelta a Espana in 2014 with Team Europcar.

Timo Schafer, Team Coordinator for Bike Aid, is looking forward to working with the new riders for 2016.

“Mekseb leaving does create a big gap for the team, but this also creates an oppurtunity for the young racers looking to have a shot next year. We have a number of new African talents for 2016 and we are excited to see how it will evolve in the team, and hopefully we will see more success stories.” Shafer said.

The Stradalli-Bike Aid Continental Cycling Team is the first professional cycling team in Saarland, Germany. Stradalli Bike-Aid promotes and stands for fresh, honest cycling with a socially sustainable background. The team competes annually in more than 100 races on all continents and has already achieved considerable international success with multiple podium appearances.

The Stradalli-Bike Aid Continental Team promotes talented athletes from Africa by helping them to fulfill their lifelong dreams of racing in Europe. They assist with sports training, education and internship offers as a cultural exchange program. Stradalli-Bike Aid plans to make cycling a fascinating experience for as many individuals as possible, regardless of their social and cultural backgrounds.

Photo Shoot For Stradalli Cycle - Bike Aid Conti Team

Fun day of riding and photo shoots with The Stradalli Cycle – Bike Aid Conti Team and The Wizard Racing Development Team in Florida