The trip nearly ended before it even began.

At 6pm on a Wednesday, the Ribble van was stranded on the A1 with a shredded front tyre, tilted at an awkward angle as traffic screamed past. Not exactly the dream start to a race weekend.

Six and a half hours later, with the wheel finally fixed and the clock ticking, the only option was to drive — and keep driving. No detours. No delays. No breathing room.

Steve Wright, Sophie’s dad, had waited patiently en route. Once onboard, both Rich (the Outliers team manager) and Steve powered through the night — bikes, kit and caffeine packed tight — heading for the tunnel, then down through France. Against the odds, they rolled into Geneva bang on time to scoop up Sophie and Metheven from the airport, finally reaching base camp in Aigle.

A chaotic start, but somehow... they were in Switzerland. Game on.

With the team finally assembled, the next phase kicked in — full race-weekend mode. Sophie and Metheven touched down in Geneva, fresh from the airport. Steve and the van (now minus puncture drama) were there right on cue. The crew was complete.

Destination: Aigle. Basecamp for the weekend. Bikes unpacked, rooms sorted, and a nervous buzz in the air. Switzerland doesn’t do average. Towering peaks, mirror-flat lakes, postcard villages — it’s straight out of a cycling highlight reel. And for the Ribble Outliers, this was their backdrop for one of the toughest races on the calendar.

UCI Summit Suisse. Gravel. Altitude. And a finish line at the top of the Col de la Croix.

No pressure, then.

It’s hard to beat Switzerland. And frankly, it wasn’t even trying.

Driving past Lausanne and Montreux, Lac Léman shimmering to the right and the high Alps rising ahead, it hit them — this was the real deal. Proper mountain territory. The kind you usually only see on TV during the most iconic stages of the Tour or the Giro.

But this wasn’t road racing. This was gravel. And the Outliers were here to make a mark.

Their playground for the weekend? Vaud. Their battleground? The Col de la Croix — but not the polished tarmac version the pros ride. This one was looser. Rougher. Steeper. Switzerland had turned it on. Now it was time to see who could turn up.

By Friday, recon rides were in the bag. The team had a clearer idea of what they were up against — and it wasn’t pretty. The climbs were brutal, the gravel unforgiving, and even the feed zones were perched halfway up the side of a mountain. This wasn’t just going to be a hard day. It was going to be one they’d never forget.

Dinner was heavy. Sleep was short. Race day mornings start painfully early. If you’re rolling out at 7.45am, you’re eating by 4.45. No exceptions.

By sunrise, Sophie and Metheven were already fuelling up, checking pressures, and pinning on numbers. The start line? Just the UCI HQ and its iconic velodrome. Casual.

Meanwhile, Steve and the crew loaded up the cool bags — bottles, ice, Red Bull, Coca-Cola, water. A fully mobile feed station on four wheels.

The race started with a bang. A mass elite rollout — men and women together — neutralised only until the gravel hit. Then all hell broke loose.

The first 38km were fast and frantic, a flat-out charge to the base of the first climb. After that, it was basically all uphill. Continuously. Welcome to Summit Suisse.

As the support crew leapfrogged between feed zones, they caught glimpses of both riders. Sophie and Meth had started smart — steady pacing, fuelling well, staying composed.

By the time they reached the climb into Gryon, the race had begun to stretch out. Metheven had pushed into the top 40. Sophie? She was climbing through the pack. First 5th. Then 4th.

Suddenly, it wasn’t just going to be a solid result — it looked like a proper fight for the podium.

Temperatures hit 30°C with barely a cloud in sight. The only relief came with elevation — a degree cooler for every 100 metres climbed. Thankfully, there was plenty of climbing on the menu.

By Feed Zone 3, right at the base of the final ascent to the Col de la Croix, both riders still looked strong. Metheven was clinging to a top-50 finish. Sophie, though — she was flying. Easily her best day of the year.

She shouted for time gaps. She was 2nd. And closing in.

Game on.

The final climb wasn’t the silky tarmac the Tour de France shows off on TV. This was raw, steep, loose gravel — with a 30% gradient thrown in for fun. Most riders were off their bikes and pushing.

Not Sophie.

She stayed in the saddle, surged past the leader, and cleaned the steepest sector while others stumbled. It was the kind of ride that doesn’t happen by accident — nutrition nailed, bike handling dialled, tactics executed perfectly.

While others cracked, she climbed.

With the mountain behind her, Sophie hit the final checkpoint in the lead — 7 minutes and 15 seconds clear of second place.

Down in Villars-sur-Ollon, Steve and the team waited at the finish zone. The UCI arch was up. The timing app lit up. Sophie Wright had done it.

Not just a podium. A win.

Twenty minutes later, she rolled in — all smiles — hugged her dad, and celebrated with Metheven and the team. A huge moment. Not just for Sophie, but for the entire Ribble Outliers setup.

Their first UCI Gravel Series win. History made.

This wasn’t just a race. It was a statement.

Sophie’s ride captured everything the Outliers stand for — guts, grit, planning, execution. Meth delivered a top-50 on one of the hardest courses on the calendar. The entire team played their part — support crew, mechanics, everyone behind the scenes who believed in this from the start.

Next up? UCI Singen in Germany — the next big target.

But for now, this moment belongs to Sophie Wright. A champion in every sense.