Will Routley announces his retirement

Winner of the polka dot jersey at the 2014 Tour of California commits to kombucha brewery after closing out 12-year career

Philippe Tremblay December 2, 2016

Stage 4 of the 2014 Amgen Tour of California, Monterey to Cambria, CA — Routley wins Stage 4 of the 2014 Tour of California

Whistler, B.C. native Will Routley has announced his retired from professional cycling. A veteran of twelve years, Routley took several high profile victories including a stage and the king of the mountains at the 2014 Tour of California, the Canadian national road race title in 2010, and a victory at the 20176 GP Liberty Seguros finishing second overall at the Portuguese race.

“I have thought about retiring a little bit every year I raced bikes, and was pretty much certain I would stop on a number of occasions,” said the 33-year-old who most recently raced in 2016 with Rally Cycling. “I love the lifestyle, making sure you are healthy and feeling strong, well rested, and just going out and hammering the hell out of your body. I love that, but I am also wise after so many years of racing. I have no interest in getting hurt, and was starting to race cautiously the past couple of seasons. It is time to move on from racing and accomplish other goals.”

Routley began cycling at the age of 10 as a mountain biker in Whistler. At the age of 21, he made the switch to the road and began his career with Langley, B.C. based team Symmetrics. There he raced with future Rally staff members Eric Walhberg and Zach Bell, Svein Tuft, Ryan Anderson, and recently retired Christian Meier.

Routley distinguished himself as a teammate during his time in the professional peloton which included stints with Jelly Belly Cycling, Canadian UCI Pro continental team Spidertech Powered by C10, Accent.jobs Wanty and finally with Optum powered by Kelly Benefits Strategies which chaged names to Rally in 2015.

“I got to travel the world with guys that became my best friends,” said Routley. “There were so many experiences one couldn’t get as a tourist. I drank tea with yak’s milk on the Tibetan plateau after not finishing in a race in China. I lived in an ice-cold stone apartment in the Pyrenees in southern France. I rode up a volcano to a tiny village in El Salvador, in the dark, and in a cloud of diesel fumes and wood smoke from people cooking on open fires.

“As a cyclist one pretty much lives out of a suitcase, and I was very fortunate to have so much family time. Shoshauna was also racing and we didn’t spend nearly as much time apart as other couples. Together we have traveled and spent winters in California, Belgium, Spain and France. Off the bike, I am proud of how I became a voice for clean sport. I never had a problem with telling it like it is and people respect that.”

Routley and his wife Shoshana now focus on a new phase of their lives. Living on a farm outside Vancouver they have launched Healthy Hooch Kombucha.

“We have done a total conversion of our workshop and it is now a brewery,” said Routley of his latest project. “We have spent every spare minute in the past three months building the project.”