Michael Hepburn is an original.
The 32-year-old Australian is one of just two riders, along with Luke Durbridge, who have raced with the team since its opening season in 2012. Indeed, the pair are the only members of that inaugural roster still racing, having turned professional with the team 12 years ago.
‘Heppy’ has been a core part of the squad, now called Team Jayco AlUla, since its inception. That was demonstrated by the decision to extend his contract by two more years at the end of 2023.
“There are some really good people in this team. Cycling has given me a lot of great experiences but the thing that sticks with me is the people I’ve met and been lucky enough to work with,” Hepburn says. “Gerry [Ryan – team owner] has supported me my whole career. I owe a lot to him and his family.
“There’s always been a good culture, and good people in the team and that creates a nice atmosphere where people can have fun, but do their job well, and act professionally. That has always been a special part of this team.”
Cycling wasn’t Hepburn’s first sporting love, far from it. The Brisbane native tried out a string of other sports, from AFL to athletics, and plenty in between, before he was hooked by the cycling bug.
By his own admission, he wasn’t a natural at the sport but there was something about it he loved, and he kept plugging away at it.
“Sport’s been a pretty big part of my life, for as long as I can remember. Back in Brisbane, I played soccer for 10 years, I played cricket for 10 years, I even played AFL for year, as well as athletics, track and field, everything,” he explains. “At around 12, or 13, I got introduced into triathlon through someone at school. That was the first time I picked up a bike properly. I competed in triathlons for a few years, and I noticed I started to enjoy the cycling a lot more and I was getting better.
“Funnily enough, cycling was the one sport I sort of struggled with at first. I had talent for other sports and did quite well, quite quickly. But cycling took me a little bit longer.”
Joining the GreenEDGE Cycling family
His determination with cycling paid off as Hepburn’s talents grew and he started to shine on the track and road. In 2008, aged 16, he donned the green and gold of Australia for the first time when he raced at the junior road world championships in the road race, later that season he won a stage of the Tour of Tasmania.
He debuted for the national track team the following season, taking the junior pursuit world title in August before riding with the elite team at the Melbourne round of the world cup.
Hepburn’s first introduction to what would become the GreenEDGE Cycling family came in 2010 when he was signed up to the Jayco-Skins Continental team. The squad, which was backed by GreenEDGE Cycling owner Gerry Ryan at the time, was set up a few years earlier to develop young riders from Australia. When the WorldTour team was announced for 2012, Hepburn was ready to take the next step.
“For me, it was it was just great timing that I was ready to step up to the professional ranks, you know, at the exact moment that this team was starting,” Hepburn explains. “In that first year, we had 31 riders on the roster, and 17 were Australians, plus the management and staff. That certainly helped guide young guys like me fit in straightaway and the atmosphere has always been special in this team.”
The best of friends
Separated in age by only a few months, Hepburn and fellow original Durbridge had been transitioning through the ranks at the same time. Unsurprisingly, they made the jump to the professional ranks in the same season, too.
They’ve been practically inseparable since.
“Durbo is one of my best mates,” he says. “I guess we’ve known each other for probably 17 or 18 years now. Funnily enough, we both used to compete in in triathlons and we went to the same national championships in Penrith back in the day. We didn’t know each other then but we competed against each other there. And then what we sort of first met as under 17s and rode junior worlds together.
“We live in the same town and our families are really close. Having someone to go through that whole period with has been really special. He’s a good friend of mine and I always enjoy racing with him.”
Still fight in the old dog
Now in his 13th season with the team, with a 14th on the horizon, Hepburn has seen how the squad has changed over the years. While the heart of the squad has remained the same throughout, it has developed just like the riders and staff who have made it what it is.
“When I turned professional, there was there were guys like Stewart O’Grady, Robbie McEwan, and Baden Cooke. All these guys I’d watched on the Tour de France DVDs when I was a kid and, all of a sudden, I was teammates with them,” Hepburn says. “A year or two later Mat Hayman came on, and he was a really big influence for me in my early days.
“Back then the team was built around stage success in races and the classics. That changed a few years later and we saw a real push with GC guys with the Yates brothers [Adam and Simon] coming on board with Esteban Chaves. I was quite happy about that, because supporting them it a job I enjoy doing.
“A lot has happened in 13 years. The goals of the of the team are always changing to adapt to the rosters changing and a lot of those changes are just things that need to be done. Racing is also changing from what it was 10 years ago.”
Despite the changes in the team and the sport, Hepburn has been a solid constant for the team to rely on. Having been the new kid on the block guided by his more experienced counterparts, he can now pass on his wealth of experience to the next generation and he’s looking forward to seeing the next chapters in the team’s development.
“The sport’s certainly changing to a younger man sport, and you’ll probably see shorter careers in the future. But it’s also it’s also exciting. I think we’ve made some great signings in the last couple of years and guys like Luke Plapp have got a bright future ahead of them. But, you know, hopefully there’s still room for a few old dogs like myself.”
Top photo: Michael Hepburn modelling all GreenEDGE cycling racing jerseys from 2012 to the present day, May 2024
