Red Walters Interview - Representing Grenada
24-year-old speaks to Global Peloton about what it means to represent Grenada, the progression of cycling in the Caribbean, taking his first UCI win and pro contract dreams.
In the second in a Global Peloton series of off-season interviews, I chatted with Red Walters, Grenada’s first elite cyclist.
The 24-year-old sprinter races for UCI Continental team X-Speed United. It’s been a season that has taken him from high profile Belgian semi-classics, to taking his first UCI win in Bulgaria and finished with trips to the Caribbean and Hong Kong.
Through it all, he’s worn the Grenadian flag on his chest with pride.
Born in the UK, Walters began his cycling career as a British-registered rider, but always felt a pull towards Grenada, the birthplace of his mother. He made the decision in early 2021 to make the switch to represent the Caribbean island nation.
“I've always been dual nationality, but living in the UK, it just automatically meant I was registered as British,” Walters told Global Peloton. “I'd looked into switching nationality to Grenada a good two or three years beforehand, but didn't really know how to do it and at the time it didn't really make a difference anyway because I wasn't really going to be competing on an international level.”
“One of the things being dual nationality, it's like which one do you want to support? Which one do you want to represent? I've probably got more in touch with [the Grenadian] side of my family more recently.”
“And obviously, I'd be lying if I said there weren't opportunities there that are helpful in my cycling career. So that came together I was like, yeah, that's that's definitely something I want to do. And I'm glad I did. There's just a lot of enjoyment representing the Caribbean, representing Grenada.”
Being registered Grenadian has enabled Walters to compete at the Commonwealth Games and other high-profile events. Representing Grenada also allows him to honour his mother’s side of the family, something which is a source of joy for him.
“My mum, she was obviously super super proud. And my grandma and that entire that entire side of the family, my grandma really loves it. She'll watch my YouTube videos and stuff, and then she'll call me up and say, ‘oh, I love the music in that video.’ So that's always really cool.”
Grenada is a nation with little history in the sport of cycling, but steadily Grenadians have been getting behind in support of Walters.
“It's a tricky one because when you’re dual nationality, you're not seen as 100% of one or the other. So it can sometimes be difficult to fit in, especially culturally. But over time, I think it’s got really good to the point that I know everyone over there is supporting me, not that they weren't before, but everyone over there is really on board. It's not like, oh, who's this guy from England trying to represent Grenada now everyone sees me as Grenadian as well.”
“It's just really nice to be able to represent a country and see the support. For example, at my most recent race in Hong Kong a Grenadian guy out there got in touch. He said he’d come and support and I didn't see him until halfway into the race and then I see on this corner his Grenadian flag and this guy was just yelling my name. It's just unreal. Really, really cool.”
Racing on the “Isle of Spice”
If nothing else, Walters may be best known for having one of the nicest looking kits in the peloton. Thanks to his victories in the last two national championships of Grenada, Walters has spent the last season-and-a-half wearing the red, green and yellow.
Walters’ national championships winning escapades were also a chance to reconnect with the place of his heritage.
“Before last year's national champs, I hadn't actually been to Grenada since I started cycling. So to go there as a cyclist, as opposed to just being there, it's definitely really different. It's cool to actually meet the people who I've been talking to.”
His two national championship wins have been far from competitive, the gap between the Grenadian cycling scene and the elite ranks is vast. But Walters is pleased to see the sport growing on the island and hopes to play a part in that going forward.
“The [cycling] community is a lot smaller than the UK. It really is. It's pretty small. But it's a strong group of guys who really just love cycling. They don't have the exposure to the same level of racing that I do, which obviously gives me an advantage.”
“I do think that going over there, I hope at least it gives some sort of inspiration for those guys to keep training. And you know, hopefully trying to get some of the guys to move up to something maybe in the US and abroad to help, just to help give them more opportunities.”
“It really is a small group of guys, you know. We're talking maybe ten guys with a few youngsters. The youngsters do have a couple of coaches who help out, try and give them plans that they can try and stick to and train with. But yeah, like I said, it is small, but it's hopefully growing. It's definitely probably growing a bit since since I started riding there.”
“It's just one of the things I think, it's slow. It's a slow burner in terms of growth, but there's a lot of effort being put in.”
And if Grenada does produce a future Grenadian-born professional, they are likely to enjoy the climbs due to the tough terrain on the island.
“There are flat parts. There’s sort of one main highway; the road is fairly good and that's more or less flat. But everywhere else is just really, really hilly, like short sharp climbs. I can't remember the exact elevation numbers for the national championships, but it was just…there was no flat. It was pretty much just all up or down.”
The Grenadian cycling story is echoed round the Caribbean, as the growth of cycling ripples across the islands. Walters has experienced first-hand the growth of the sport when racing the Caribbean Championships in 2021 and 2023, finishing third in the road race on both occasions.
“I would definitely say even in the last two years since I first did the Caribbean Champs in 2021, the level has definitely gone up more than I would expect was possible for two years.”
“I guess it's just a mix of there's a lot of guys who are able to go to America and get racing in there. And then from the French teams like Guadeloupe and Martinique, they've got guys going to France so they can get high level racing there.”
“Overall the level is just coming up, and this Caribbean Champs was definitely a lot harder than the one a couple of years ago. It's really cool to see.”
2023 - A step-up season
This season has been one of breakthrough for Walters with a first UCI win in September at the Tour of Bulgaria. Speaking to him, Walters cuts a determined figure. Although this was his best year to date, he still wanted more.
“It was my first year doing a full calendar of UCI Racing, which is what what I wanted, what I needed to really step up.”
“The first part of the year was maybe slightly…disappointing isn't the word, but maybe I wanted a bit more, but also I couldn't really ask for much more considering the whole experience and just learning everything.”
“If I had to sum it up then like: good, I still wanted maybe a bit more if you'd asked me at the start of the season, but that's just how I am. I'm always unrealistically hopeful in what I can do. But I think you have to aim for the absolute top end of what's possible, just to to give yourself the best shot.”
The win in Bulgaria was the biggest moment of Walters’ season. He skilfully dodged a pile up just in front of him going into the final bend and sprinted hard for the win. It was the fulfilment of a long held goal.
“It definitely was on the wish list at the start of the year to get a UCI win.”
“It's a weird one because in the moment, I don't think I got to appreciate it as much as I'd like to because of the nature of a stage race, you're always just focusing on the next stage. You're so focused of all the things you have to do. But afterwards I could chill out a bit and see the videos and it was really special.”
His season included several other results which evidenced an improvement. Walters had taken several steps over the previous off-season to ensure that 2023 was his best year yet.
“I had a new coach since last winter as well and that changed a few things. I think that's really benefitted me. More than anything, it's good to change coaches every so often. Just to change things up and have a different way of looking at things, new set of eyes and that kind of thing.”
“The main difference would probably be just loading up the efforts and really accumulating time in zone. So I'll have a threshold session and I'll do it X amount of times over a course of a month and it really is just banging out that that same session and that's probably been the main thing that's seen that improvement, I think.”
“The goal is to step up to pro-conti or World Tour.”
In 2024, Walters will once again ride for the X-Speed Continental squad. The squad has an eclectic mix of riders from eleven different nations.
“The team is registered in Canada and based in Belgium - at least it was this year. It’s riders from all over, which I think is really cool because it's not like it's not the clique of riders like in some British teams. Not to name names or call it negatively, but there's always like the sort of pre-established group of friends who are closer and then you've got people who come in…it's just a different dynamic.”
“Whereas this team it's like everyone's come from all over and we've all come together. We're all more or less meeting each other for the first time…It's like a fresh start in that sense. So we've ended up making great friendships and actually working really well together.”
X-Speed is a relatively unknown team, but Walters has enjoyed his time there. His determination has him pushing for more though, as always. He’s hoping that a big 2024 will propel him towards the higher rungs of the pro cycling ladder.
“Next season, as was the goal of this season, the goal is to step up to pro-conti or World Tour.”
Cycling has a strange concept of meritocracy. A rider may have everything required to ride at a higher level in terms of numbers and race-craft, but there are so many other factors which come into play for teams as they draft their rosters. Walters is all too aware of this strange phenomenon.
“You can't really put a number on what it takes to get there, to impress the right people, but it's definitely going to need a good handful of wins at least at the .2 level and then some really good performances at the .1 level.”
“There are some riders with insane results and you say he's definitely gonna go up next year and they don't. And then there's some riders, not to criticise, you think that's a surprise. But yeah, it's just the way it goes. I think it's just there's so many, so many factors.”
Diversity in the peloton
The closest Walters has come to a professional team so far came in 2021 when he was sponsored by soon-to-be Lidl-Trek rider Tao Geoghegan Hart to race as a stagiaire for Hagens Berman Axeon - one of the best development teams of recent times.
Geoghegan Hart’s generosity came out of a time of public recognition of racial inequality in society. Cycling as a sport was reflecting on its own failings in diversity.
Walters was delighted with the opportunity at the time, but since then, has anything really changed?
“It was a really cool opportunity that that he gave to me. Unfortunately, I did two races and then got ill. So that just ended my season right there and it was my last year as an under-23, so there wasn't really any scope to continue further, which is a bit frustrating, but it was still cool that they let me have the opportunity.”
“In terms of progress in the overall cycling scene I think that, looking at the top level, there is not really any change that I can see. I guess it's one of those things that the change has to happen at all levels sort of simultaneously.”
“It is a tricky one to sort of analyse how much change. If I'm being completely honest, overall, there's still probably a similar, maybe even fewer, number of black riders in Pro Conti and World Tour teams.”
“Even at the Conti level there's not many I've raced with. I could probably think of two or three who I've raced with in UCI races discounting the Caribbean Championships - which is just another reason that Caribbean Champs is so cool, we're seeing a lot of other black riders who are actually really strong and coming up and developing well.”
“But overall, I don't think it's changed.”
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