Bruno Langlois looking to the Canadian national championship road race

Bruno Langlois’s goal for Canadian national championship road race is pretty clear. “Well, I’d really like to win,” he said with a laugh. “I was second in 2008 and third in 2010. Most time, I’m in the 10.”

The 5-hour Energy presented by Kenda rider is looking forward to the race on June 29 because it will be hard. The route starts in Lac-Mégantic, Que., and heads north to Mont Morne. Langlois’s group of elite men, and the under-23 riders who will be in the mix as well, will face Mont Morne nine times on a 15-km circuit. Then, it’s back to Lac-Mégantic, Que.

“The course is similar as 2012’s,” said Langlois. “We do a steep climb every lap. It’s a tough race because it’s up and down. It’s a long day. By the end of the day, guys are tired. Usually I’m good when it’s like that: a climb with a circuit. The harder is the better it is if you have the legs. You don’t have to deal so much with guys who sit in and wait. If it’s hard, the tactics are less important. If it’s hard, you go hard and destroy the guys following.”

Langlois is just coming off a stretch of tough races. He was 66th at the Philly Cycling Classic. After the U.S. race, Langlois headed to his home province for the new Grand Prix Cycliste de Saguenay, in which he finished 13th in the GC. Then, it was Tour de Beauce where he finished 44th overall in race dominated by bad weather.  He’s taking the gap between Beauce and nationals to recover.

In 2013, Langlois took on the national road race with his team Garneau-Quebecor and finished 12th. “I missed the breakaway and I chased all day with François Parisien and Dominique Rollin,” Langlois said. “We had bad luck and the wrong tactics from the team. This year, I have to be an opportunist and smart. If I have legs, why not? I want to be there for sure. I think it’s a good course for me.”