10 mins with... @BritishCycling

It can be difficult to develop new content on a daily basis for a blog. Especially when its of such high quality and chock full of devastating insight. Frankly, I don't know how some of those blogger do it! 
I, on the other hand, write any old rubbish which springs to mind: the rain, falling off, puncturing, the rain etc.
So, in a bid to bring some new dynamism to these virtual pages, I offer to you the first Outstanding Natural Cycling interview.
I recently had the pleasure of catching up with Scott Dougal who is the Grande Fromage at British Cycling's communications department. He kindly agreed to answer a few questions.
I know this isn't critical interviewing but this blog is supposed to be a celebration of being on two wheels rather than a misery fest. Enjoy.

What was your first and what is your current bike(s)?

First bike was a Grifter, although I think I’d have rather had a Chopper. I've got a Trek mountain bike which is perfect for trails near where I live.

What’s the biggest challenge facing cycling in the UK?

Sustainability. Cycling has come a very long way in the last 10 years – a good indicator of which is the membership of British Cycling. Having rattled around 15-20,000 for much of our history, we shot past the 80,000 mark recently and we've seen 50% year on year growth since Brad won the Tour  last year. But the challenge is to make the gains sustainable – both in terms of popular interest in cycling as a sport as well as people using their bikes for fun or to get around.

Will cycling ever become as mainstream here in Britain as it is in the Netherlands or Denmark?

It’s certainly possible. I've been professionally involved in the sport for just over 10 years and where we are now is extraordinary compared to where we were then. And at British Cycling we remain very ambitious and I think the key thing will be to create a better environment for people on bikes out there on the roads.

We've been consistently successful in meeting our targets for elite success and increasing participation – what will make both of those sustainable is that once we've done our job of getting people on bikes, the habit sticks because using a bike is as easy as possible. British Cycling has significantly stepped up its campaigning work in the last two years and we’re seeing real dividends already, particularly because the growth in our membership means we have real clout.

Should we expect Britain to produce more star Olympic and pro cyclists in the coming years or are we living through a golden age?

The talent pathways are there and just this year we've seen significant success for Becky James, Simon Yates and Liam Phillips among others. But, again, key to sustainability of elite success is having as many people on bikes as possible, whatever their ability.

2014 should be spectacular for UK cycling with le Tour and Giro both visiting our shores. How much of an opportunity for the sport is this in your view?

Next year will be huge but this year, which you might have expected to be quiet compared to 2012 and 2014, has been pretty lively too. In 2014, we've got an international stage race for women, the Tour de France in England, Glasgow 2014 and the Tour of Britain. In amongst that, there is the national road race championships which broke new ground this year in terms of the spectators it attracted. So taken as a whole, there is a four-month period when cycling will really capture mainstream attention again. Can’t wait.