The other day I went to Lyon to do my fitness test. I have been going to this sports center for the past 4 years, ever since I started training with Benoit. They do a standard VO2 max test, measuring the HR, Power and Lung Volume. There machine is quite special in one way, as it can precisely analyses the O2 vs. CO2 expiration every few seconds throughout the test. With this information we can accurately find the zones where I am efficient, and where I still need to work on. They also always give me a full health check, and measure all my fat!

The test came out really positive as I had gained 40W at my anaerobic threshold, my explosive power had also gained. My fat level was also good at 6,48... which means I can start to eat some chocolate again :)

13 March - Gaerne Trophie

Every now and then while traveling you come across a great new place and you start to think to yourself, "it wouldn't be bad living here!" Thomas, Emil and I spent this week in the small town of Maser, and we were all super impressed. Firstly, all the people were so friendly. Like our hosts at the Agri-tourismo (like a bed and breakfast, but 80% of the food they serve comes from there own land), who are very keen MTBer's. Sidi, who is one of our teams biggest sponsors this year, had there headquarters just 2km away, and we spent a lot of time, both checking out the factory (i have some cool photos, which i will put up soon!), inviting us for dinner, and then taking us out to eat pizza in Trento, one more amazing city.

The riding is another thing we were shaking our heads at. Everyday we would head off through the ancient town of Asolo, and into windy roads through the vineyards, passing by fantastic castles, churches and royal mansions.
After our rides we would eat at a small restaurant “de Bastians” he would serve simple, but great food. My favorite was the giant ravioli with pumpkin inside. Perfect recovery food!

It was a great find, so great that we have all decided to use this place as our Italian base from now on to stay at between events. For anyone thinking of coming to Italy as a tourist, I would highly recommend it.

So, with another great weeks training with my team-mates, I was feeling good for the weekends event. Although it is just an E2 categorized race, it is still a big event for our team, and I wanted to do well. The first two laps Marco Bui and Roul Paulissen put on a strong pace, dragging my self and Fredik Kessiakoff along. The course had a terrific amount of climbing, totally 300m each of the 6 laps. In the en Bui had another amazing race, and won with ease. Roul and Fredrik blew up pretty bad, and I got stronger as the race went on to finish 2nd.



Related articles:
http://www.bianchi.com/en/news/introDetail.aspx?idmaster=6938&area=highlights

05 March - Liquigas, Brescia

The first race of the season was the Liquigas cup in Brescia, and just like last year we had a huge snowfall the days before the race! Take a look at some of the new photos, and you will see all the fresh powder we were riding in! Great fun. Of course with all the riders training on the course, it was all melted for the race. So we were left with slippery cobble stones and muddy sections to race in. This event is held in the huge castle in Brescia, a fantastic city just east from Bergamo/Milano.
This was the first big race of the year, and many of the top riders turned up to test the legs. Everyone knows that its very early in the year, so its not important to have form yet.. none the less, its always nice to have good sensations.

From the start three riders made a gap, Marco Bui, Migual Martinez and Zoli (last years winner). I was happy to hang onto the chase group, although after 4 laps I was starting to feel all the small accelerations. With such slippery cobbles, the course had become extremely technical. Finally our pack shattered with a lap to go as Julian put down the pace. I finished 6th, with was much better then last year, when I completely hit the wall at this race!

3rd March – TEAM CAMP, Terricina, Italy.

Hotel Fjordaliso is well known in Italian cycling culture, as it has played host to most of the biggest road teams in the world, both for training camps and also for major races, such as the Tirreno-Adritico (Pro-Tour stage race) It’s a three star hotel, which doesn’t look spectacular from the outside. But once you get to know the place and the people, you get to understand why it is so popular. As well as the standard nice hotel rooms and Italian cuisine, there is also a indoor and outdoor swimming pool, gym, sauna and sunbed. The family that run the business are fanatic cyclists, and really make us feel at home. It’s a nice feeling, and it’s a great environment to train hard in!

The weather this year was not great, but considering most of Europe was under snow, we were happy to be able to get the kilometers we needed. For me, I knew it would be a tough week. Normally my training speed is not too high, or slower then Thomas and Julian anyway! But the season is approaching fast, so it’s a good time to step up the pace, and force the body into a new rhythm. During the week we were there, we did 23hrs on the bike, and a lot of that was at a very decent tempo. Two rides were on the MTB, which included a test day on some new Michelin tires for 2006.

Coming home from the rides we would leave the dirty bikes with Gabrielle, give the muddy clothes to Silvano, take a quick shower and then lunch would be waiting for us. Having a team like this sure makes life easier! Each afternoon Silvano would give us massage, and the rest of the time we could do as we want… Internet, watch a movie etc…

We all had talks with Massimo about our objectives and the race calendar. For me, I am determined to return to the world cup podium, and allow myself the chance to possibly win a round at some point. I think in the past few years I have spread myself around too much, aiming for wins in the small races, and not focusing clearly on the big goals.

Overall I have come out of this years training camp with a good feeling. I am starting to learn how to relax in this family, and trust that I will be taken care of. Its hard for an individual like me, but it’s coming slowly. If I can save this energy and put it into the races, I know I will have a great season.

Winter 04-05

Christmas in Sweden, Training holiday in Spain, Cyclocross in Belgium, Skiing in Annecy and Road racing in south France… All the things one can do when they don’t return to NZ for the summer!

I know I should have updated my website since November, but sometimes my motivation for these things slips. Add to this that my hard drive failed on my computer, and you could say I was no longer in any mood for doing anything related to the computer anymore! Now I’m feeling a little guilty, so I figured I better get something online, and some new photos too. Jeff will be working on a new photo album, which will allow me to update the photos myself, so hopefully that will make life easier in the future!

So, Christmas in Sweden was great once again. We had only a little snow, but Helena's family put on a cozy day with wonderful food. Two days later we all flew together to Spain to inaugurate their new vacation house in the small coastal town of Nerja, on the Costa del Sol. While the others were busy installing radiators and making curtains, I was out training in the 20dC sun together with Johan. We did some great rides in the steep mountains, exploring the small villages. One of my favorite things is to find crazy places to stop for espresso. I usually like the local bars in the small authentic looking villages. I speak no Spanish, but the expression on the old men’s faces is unforgettable as I walk in wearing my celeste lycra.

Back to Sweden, and a temperature drop of about 30d! I was not going to risk illness, so training there consists of gym work and the indoor bike. I am a member of the CK Uni club in Uppsala, and they have two indoor club training sessions per week. This year the club has gained strength and currently there are around 10-15 riders turning up at each session. There are structured intervals and pumping music to keep everyone motivated, so in the end, its really not too bad.

In January I finally got the courage to pack the car and head north to the land of cyclo-cross (Begium of course!) My friend Michel had mapped out the weekend for me with 2 good races. Normally when I race around France, most people only use one bike... but in Belgium even the kids ride with 2 bikes! So, Michel organized a second bike for me, 2 sets of spare wheels with mud tires, and we were off to the Kastellcross Zonnebeke, an international level race with some of the best crossers in the world. It was an impressive scene... the whole course was contained in a small park, and all spectators paid 5Euro entrance. There must have been 3-5000 spectators, and the atmosphere was buzzing despite the negative temperature. It felt pretty cool lining up with the likes of Sven Vanthurenhout (finished 3rd at worlds one week later!), Neils Albert (had his own fan club that arrived in a bus, and all wore identical tshirts saying "I support Neils Albert"!), and Johnathen Page (3x US national champ). The race start was a 1km flat road stretch, then an all out elbow fight for the first piece of single track. The pace was impressive. I held on for a lap, but then the lactate took over, and I slipped pack through the field. The course was pretty much flat, but with lots of tight corners. With 3 laps left Sven lapped me and I got to see how impressive he rode. My final place was 28th. The next day I did a slightly smaller race, yet it was still an awesome level. My big achievement was just not getting lapped! One thing I really did not expect though was to see a big team from Zimbabwe! They went on to race at the worlds the next week, which made me think I could have done the same. Maybe one day!




To attempt to get some speed in the legs I went down south to compete in the first road events of the year. As expected the level was really high, and the excitement of the first races meant a lot of attacks. I was happy to hang on for just 2hrs during the first two races, as I didn’t want to shock the body too much too fast. I then spent the week in Limoux, checking out where the NZ Cycling team are setting up there international center. It’s a nice place, but the house I was staying in was not in any healthy living condition, so I ended up staying in a hotel anyway! It’s a nice set up they have there, with a bunch of houses, and riders from all over the world coming to stay and race. At that time there was a group of track riders from Canada, and one English guy that lives there permanently.
I was meant to be getting support from them for the weekends racing, but as it turned out, there was none! Luckily for me, my friend Michel Bajorek was free to come and help me out. He’s a great mechanic, and managed the weekend’s races perfectly. We had two races, one from France into Spain, then back again the next day! They were mostly flat and windy, so tough for a little mountain biker like me. I was very happy to finish the races both days in the group, especially the second day when the wind was horrific.