Former pro George Hincapie’s long-term ambition of building an American team capable of racing the Tour de France has taken another step forward. At a time when there are fewer and fewer races stateside, it’s welcome news for the pro squad.
On Tuesday, Factor Bikes announced that it has expanded its partnership with Modern Adventure Pro Cycling. The bike brand will become co-title sponsor of the program, which will now compete as Modern Adventure Factor Racing. The increased investment comes as the organization continues working toward its stated goal of reaching the Tour de France within the next five years.
Hincapie, who rode a whopping 17 Tours de France in his long career, founded the team with his brother Rich (who also raced, just not at the same level as his little bro.)
Streamlining devo squad with ProTeam
The agreement goes well beyond supplying bikes. Factor said it will play a larger role in rider recruitment, athlete development and performance support, while also bringing its own Factor Racing development team under the Modern Adventure Factor Racing umbrella.
The move is intended to give promising riders a more defined pathway from development racing toward the top level of the sport.
For Hincapie, the deeper partnership strengthens the foundations of a project that has always been about more than results.
The goal of racing the Tour
“This is not just about putting great bikes under our riders, although that matters at this level,” Hincapie said. “It is about surrounding the team with people who understand racing, development and equipment. It’s about the long road it takes to reach the Tour de France. Factor is becoming part of the team in a much deeper way.”
In his long career, Hincapie rode exclusively for American pro teams, including Motorola, where he first turned pro, US Postal Service (later Discovery Channel), Team Columbia-HTC and BMC Racing Team. BMC was run by Jim Ochowicz, founder of the OG American pro team, 7-Eleven.
Factor founder Rob Gitelis said the company shares that vision. Having come through the American racing scene himself before heading to Europe, he believes the sport still lacks a clear progression for many talented riders.
“I know what it feels like to be a young American rider looking toward Europe and trying to understand how to get there,” Gitelis said.
On Factor’s expansion
Factor has been involved with the program since its launch, but the expanded deal will see the company give even more. That means engineering expertise, product development and performance resources alongside simply the bikes..
There is currently one Canuck on the team, Riley Pickrell, who joine this winter leaving the team then known as Israel-Premier Tech (now NSN Cycling.)
The Victoria native has had a great debut with the American team, with some top results. He’s also a big fan of the environment on the squad.
“It feels like a team run by former riders, and they understand what it’s like to be a pro,” the 22-year-old pro said. “The management understands we’re not just names on a spreadsheet — we’re people. Our requests are heard, and even when the answer is no, they’re understood. That’s more than you get on a lot of teams.”
His best result this year was Stage 4 of the Tour of Turkiye, where he was very close to a win, taking second.