Sean Yates: Bernard Hinault. I did not like the sun, and this was before proper sunglasses came back in, I wore Ray Bans, the aviatore ones, that curl round the bak of the ear. In my first tour in the finale of one of the stages I accidentally bumped into him. He turned and told me to take them of so I could see were I was going. Twat! He is cool now though.

SOTP: Evidence left that Hinault is quite partial to sunglasses himself. Fair play to him - one of the coolest ex-pros around

SOTP: As a rider but now a DS, you’re someone who is able to command respect within the sphere of professional cycling to a level that most never achieve. What do you think have been some of the key factors in you obtaining this respect?

Sean Yates: They all know I have been there and done that, and was pretty hard, and now I'm even harder! But the main thing is that I respect them, and their individual situations and circumstances. I give them a certain amount of rope, but there is a line, and that line cannot be crossed.

SOTP: In your opinion, does the current peloton have a ‘patron’?

Sean Yates: No patron really. I think that the guy who commands the most respect in the peloton is George Hincapie. Paulo Bettini could make a song and dance which he does now and then, but he is not a true patron. On the other hand he is a superb rider.

SOTP: could Big George command the same respect in his pants as shown right in Procycling Magazine

SOTP: You were lucky enough to wear the legendary black & white checkerboard Peugeot jerseys during your career. What in your opinion have been the greatest team jersey(s) to ever grace the peloton?

Sean Yates: Jerseys? Moltini?

SOTP : If you were having a drink in a pub and Julian Clark came up next to you and offered to buy you a drink – what would your reaction be? (Julian Clark managed the ill fated Lind McCartney team after it turned out that there was no money and none of the sponsors had actually agreed to find the team. It was all in Clark's overly vivid imagination)

Sean Yates: I would tell him to f-off, I suppose now I'll have to stick with that. SOTP "Leave it Sean, he ain't worth it!"

SOTP: If you could offer a young neo-pro one piece of advice before joining his / her new team – what would it be?

Sean Yates: Keep your head down, do as you are told, and give it 100%

Sean Yates: No

SOTP: Out of all the days on a bike during your pro career, looking back, what was the day you think you suffered the most? Is a morning on the Q10/19 (a amatuer time trial course in Southern England) when the form isn't there tougher than hanging onto the bus up a boiling Mt Ventoux?

Sean Yates: In the 89 TDF, the stage to the Alpe, we did Tourmelet (click for a live webcam link) and I was dropped halfway up, I felt bad, managed to get back on in the valley before the Croix de Fer, but on that I got lashed straight away, maybe 3 guys behind me, no team cars, throwing up, dodgy lasagne the night before, drink water, throw up and repeat. My parents were waiting on the Alpe, and I am thinking I have to make it. The Croix de Fer is 27kms long, halfway up after like a valley section you come out of a village, I looked up and saw the groupetto 4 hairpins up, I think, if I am going to make it today, I have to catch them up, and at the same time I suddenly felt better, relativly speaking. So, I gave it hell and got on just as we went over the top, down the other side, in the valley, 50 guys swapping off, Walter Planckart comes along side and says we are 30 mins down, i think f-ck! We hit the bottom of the Alpe and its every man for himself so I just go as hard as I can. I pass half the team who have come down with the same prob as me and end up finishing just 5 mins behind Andy Hampten (right). I finally crossed the line and just collapsed pouring water over my head. Made it! The next day i was pinging, and two of my team mates got eliminated, same prob, no sante as they say in French.

SOTP: Allan Pieper, in his book ‘A Piepers Tale’ recounts how you managed to lose 8 kilos over the winter between ’86 – ’87. For the readers whose aero position is being compromised by a paunch, apart from riding 6 hours a day, have you got any top-tips for beating the bulge that you learned during your time as a pro?

Sean Yates: Eat less, as simple as that! SOTP: There you have it - bins those Dr Atkin's books, GI nonsense and all that other stuff and simply eat childs portions and ride for 7 hrs + every day. Easy.

And thats it! Cheers to Sean for taking the time to answer these questions - he didn't bother with the really inane ones like "campag or Shimano?" and who can blame him?

Sean's will be a DS with the Astana team. Here's there website: Astana

Sean himself has his own site that can be found here: Sean Yates