An interview with NeXT eSport pb Enshored elite racer and British cyclist Thomas Perren.
Hey there! Thanks for the chance to get to know you a bit better. Let's kick things off with a little intro. Can you share a bit about your background—where you're from, what you do, and what lights your fire outside of cycling?
My name is Thomas Perren, and I am from Surrey in the United Kingdom, just outside of London. I am currently working as the Global Lead of Apparel Design at Specialized Bicycle Components, where I have been for the past three and a half years. Prior to this, I worked in Product Development and then Product Design at Rapha Performance Roadwear and was with them for just over eight years.
Outside of cycling, I love to get out walking in the Surrey Hills and surrounding areas with my wife and our dog, spend time with friends, and cook together or explore new places with family.
That's awesome! Now, let's dive into your cycling journey. When did you first hop on a bike competitively, and what's been your proudest moment on the road?
I studied in London at the University of the Arts, London College of Fashion, back in 2009. During this time, I managed to get a job in a local bike shop, which was originally just a way to earn a bit of money and to be able to buy a bike at a better cost for me to get around on. Little did I know that over this time at university, I would not only get hooked on seeing the city by bike but also on the mechanics, engineering and tech within cycling, bikes, and kit. Out of university, my two paths collided, and I found myself working at Rapha. While working at Rapha, I moved from just commuting to riding road bikes with a bit more intent, exploring and pushing my ability, and enjoying longer rides with friends, going to new places, and exploring new roads and routes. I was lucky to be surrounded by some amazing people who were both very talented on the bike and very involved in the sport. I learned a lot from these people about the history and beauty of the sport, the depth of culture, and the stories that surround cycling, and I have a lot to thank them for.
I had been riding road bikes for probably six years before I decided to pin on a number to race. I had always wanted to and had been encouraged by other riding friends, but I was anxious actually to race as I didn’t back myself, and the idea of racing felt slightly intimidating. Initially, I did a few Hill Climbs, which I did fairly well in the year before taking up racing on the road. My first race was a 4th Cat Crit at the infamous Hog Hill Circuit in Redbridge, on the opposite side of London to me, so it was a 2-hour ride out for an hour-long crit in the depths of winter, but all good training. I had terrible luck in the race, puncturing twice, getting two wheel changes, no laps out, but I still managed to take the win. Having initially attacked solo early, I lost my lead in the first puncture change and then had enough time to chase back on after the second puncture.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BtGftfuF_DH/?igsh=MWhucjc2bXdlaGIwbg%3D%3D
https://eastlondonvelo.com/2019/01/27/elv-winter-series-2019-week-4-26th-january/
A few months in, I jumped into my first Road Races, which I much preferred to Crit racing. In a couple of months, I went from 4th to 2nd Cat, with my proudest moment being winning one of the first road races I entered with a 90-minute breakaway on a hilly circuit. I also jumped into National level racing shortly after that, which, for me at the time, was a baptism of fire with regard to positioning and race tactics.
Sadly, I had to pull out of my main targeted stage races midway through the year due to an accident that resulted in breaking the tendons in my wrist just a few weeks before those races. This was pretty much my year done, and then the pandemic hit.
Fascinating! Switching gears a bit—tell us about your transition into the world of virtual cycling esports. What got you hooked, and what's the crowning achievement of your indoor career?
I bet you hear this a lot, but I got into riding indoors throughout the pandemic in 2020. My coach, Joe Staunton of Ceyreste Performance, suggested I get the turbo out and try some Zwift racing. Originally, I was obsessed with just completing structured workouts, and I quickly realized how effective and efficient workouts on the turbo were, having not enjoyed riding on the turbo in the past. Looking back, I guess it didn’t help that I didn’t use any form of cooling, so no fans or air conditioning in a hot room. From the first lockdown, I did a solid 14 full weeks purely on the turbo and was riding up to 18 hours per week just training indoors.
In terms of indoor racing, it wasn’t until a friend of mine, James Jenkins, asked if I wanted to join a team that he was setting up for fun to race in the Thursday night WTRL TTTs. That team was the ‘Plastic Cockneys’. Although just for fun, the team was made up of friends, all local London elite-level road racers and time trialists, also including former WT Pro, Alex Dowsett. My first Zwift race was straight in at the deep end in a WTRL Premier League TTT and was actually streamed by Alex at the time.
Beyond the WTRL TTTs, we then started racing in the ZRL, where I think we were quite competitive, managing to qualify for the Premier Division Playoffs, where we raced against NeXT and BZR before they got their upgrades into the Premier Division.
That was it for me; there was no turning back, and I knew this was now something that I wanted to and could focus on, with my other commitments around work and travel.
My best result at the elite esports level was at the most recent Zwift Games, with 5th overall and 3rd in the Climb Championships. But I am definitely proud to be racing at the level I am and have been really happy with some of the physical performances that I have been able to put down over this last year, with everything that I have gone through. During the Zwift Games, I actually only rode my bike nine times in total, three of which were the Zwift Games races, and had over 50 hours of travel with work within those three weeks, a lot of the time without my bike also.
Sounds like a wild ride! Speaking of rides, you're part of a Zwift Grand Prix esports team, right? How has being on a team shaped you, and is there something unique about your team that's led to its success?
I am with NeXT eSports p/b Enshored. The team has been very supportive of me over the last few years, having joined the team at the end of March 2022, aiming to race with the team for the 22/23 ZGP and the 23 World Championships.
However, 2023 turned out to be a tough year for me, having had a near-fatal accident while out on a training ride. I wouldn’t have gotten back to the level that I am now if it weren’t for the enthusiasm, support, and encouragement of the team. I was proud and happy to be able to race three rounds of the ZGP, the ERL, and the Zwift Games with them this season and help the team with some great results.
The team is made up of a real solid group of athletes, all with different styles of racing, and we work extremely well together, it is great fun and a privilege to be a part of such a great group.
Great insights! For context, could you share some of your physical stats, like your indoor personal bests for various power intervals?
I am between 53kg – 56kg, depending on the time of the year and training period, and am 172cm. Currently, my FTP is 335w at 53.5kg.
These are some power PBs, and are a mix of Indoor and Outdoor:
10 Seconds – 1011w – 18.7w/kg
30 Seconds – 828w – 15.5w/kg
1 Minute – 591w – 11.1w/kg
3 Minutes – 449w – 8.4w/kg
5 Minutes – 409w – 7.6w/kg
32 Minutes – 342w – 6.4w/kg
Impressive numbers! Looking ahead, what are your esports goals, both short-term and long-term? Is becoming the UCI Cycling Esports World Champion on your radar, and what does it mean to you?
I only really like setting personal goals that I can have a direct influence on, whether that is hitting a power goal or achieving a personal best on a favorite local climb.
I do have races that I like to focus on more, for which my coach will align training, whether they are key for me to try and perform in or if I have a team role to play. However, I never go into any race with any expectations.
I guess the next real goal is just to make it to the World Championships.
That's ambitious! How do you feel about the current multi-platform landscape of esports championships, both nationally and internationally?
I am a bit disappointed that there is no National Championship in the UK; it’s just one less elite-level race that I am sadly not able to take part in. Seeing how other countries have adopted esports and even put on really amazing in-real-life events, like what Australia and Sweden did recently, and even what the US had with the ERL Series and National Championship platform, was fantastic.
Interesting perspective. There are skeptics who question the legitimacy of esports. What's your take on the challenges esports faces in gaining recognition and trust?
I think there are legitimacy questions in all cycling and in all sports, honestly.
At the elite level of cycling esports, all we can do as athletes currently is follow the best practices around racing and transparency, both with power data and weight transparency. I also think it’s important to replicate these practices and be an example, even in community races. I don’t think a lot of people know what standards and protocols are put in place for elite races, and I think it would be great to educate people on this.
Personally, I like to use what I would say is the gold standard power meter to train with and record my data, and I have done so since 2017. However, there are always problems with comparing one person’s data to another’s due to potential unit-to-unit discrepancies, let alone brand-to-brand manufacturing discrepancies. I am very interested to see what the UCI standardization will bring.
I would also love to take part in and advocate for wider in-person verification testing for athletes’ performance.
Well said! With multiple platforms available for esports, where do you see yourself fitting in? Do you race on more than one platform? Are there features on one platform that you prefer over others?
At the moment, I am just racing and riding exclusively on Zwift, but I do plan to explore other platforms in the near future. MyWhoosh and indieVelo are definitely on my radar.
Good to know! What do you think could make virtual cycling more engaging for spectators?
ZRL combining with Premier Division/Zwift Grand Prix like it used to, having a wider league basis that provides more of a pathway to the highest level for other, newer teams, is something I look forward to.
I also think in-real-life esports events can be incredible for both spectators and athletes.
If you could only win one more title and had to choose between the UCI Cycling Esports World Championship and the Zwift Games Overall Championship, what would it be and why?
Being able to wear the World Champs Stripes would be a dream. The heritage that surrounds the jersey and its recognition spans far beyond just esports.
It was just the first year of the Zwift Games, and I felt privileged to be a part of it, so who knows, in a few year’s time, maybe my decision will change. Currently, the Zwift Games does fall at a better time for esports vs the World Champs being in October.. safe to say I’ll be trying to target both!
Intriguing! Now, for a fun twist—give us an exclusive. What's something about you that even your mates don't know?
One of the things I am most proud of is how I bounced back from breaking my jaw and my back in an accident in August 2022. It was a life-changing injury, both physically and mentally, that I am still working through. I was out on a training ride when a car pulled out from a driveway, running me over, with my face smashing through the front windscreen of the car. Amazingly, I managed to get married just three weeks later.
My coach, Joe, from Ceyreste Performance, is one of the main reasons I have built up to the level I am at. His mental guidance, along with his knowledge of sports performance, is unparalleled. He manages to always get the best out of me, no matter how time-crunched I am.
Fantastic! Thanks for this enlightening conversation. Wishing you all the best!
Semi-retired after more than 20 years as the owner and director of a private Orthopedic Physical Therapy practice, Chris now enjoys the freedom to dedicate himself to his passions—virtual cycling and writing.
Driven to give back to the sport that has enriched his life with countless experiences and relationships, he founded a non-profit organization, TheDIRTDadFund. In the summer of 2022, he rode 3,900 miles from San Francisco to his “Gain Cave” on Long Island, New York, raising support for his charity.
His passion for cycling shines through in his writing, which has been featured in prominent publications like Cycling Weekly, Cycling News, road.cc, Zwift Insider, Endurance.biz, and Bicycling. In 2024, he was on-site in Abu Dhabi, covering the first live, in-person UCI Cycling Esports World Championship.
His contributions to cycling esports have not gone unnoticed, with his work cited in multiple research papers exploring this evolving discipline. He sits alongside esteemed esports scientists as a member of the Virtual Sports Research Network and contributes to groundbreaking research exploring the new frontier of virtual physical sport. Chris co-hosts The Virtual Velo Podcast, too.
