Fort William, Scotland, 19 May
At the race site the conditions were horrendous, as it had not really stopped raining since we arrived. On the start line everyone was huddled under umbrella's as cold winds swept buckets of rain onto us. After all of the running in last weeks race I had some pain in my groin area. This proceeded to get worse throughout the week and in the end was too painful, so I pulled out of the race after 1km.

It was the first time in a while that I got to watch a race - sitting on the home trainer under our team tents, then running over to the track to cheer everyone on. The race stayed in big groups, because of all the wind I guess. The big surprise up front was Jeremy Horgan Kabalski leading the way after a few laps! He ended up 5th, but still a great effort. Peter and Jakob finished the race in 35th/20th... Freddy pulled out, so we were both feeling a little low afterwards.

Jan had fixed us an awesome house to stay in... although a bit far from the course, it really was something else. We had our own private valley with no other houses in sight... Harry Potter book receipts up on the wall showed that we were not the first VIPs to stay ;) Also, just down the private road was the big viaduct which can be seen in the films as they fly their magic car over and through (it was also on the DVD covers, we noticed, at the grocery store!). All very nice... but Jan preferred the fact that he had his own private fishing pond, bringing home 2 nice trout.

My legs are SO sore right now! With all the mud, we had to push our bikes up almost every climb. Then I also punctured twice, meaning I ended up running/walking/cursing for about half the course. At the end my legs were completely broken... I could hardly walk! It was a shame, because they were feeling very good when I was pedalling! I was in 19th position when I had my first puncture with 2 laps to go, but as I had no tube I lost a huge amount of time, and killed my legs running. Puncturing on the last lap didn't help either! I ended up 53rd. The whole team was a little down.. Peter and Jakob pulled out and Freddy also punctured twice, although didn't lose too much time, still finishing 14th. We made up for it at dinner with some nice salty chips and ketchup :)

So, Julian won again.. what a surprise. Well, perhaps Frishy could have challenged him, but he got taken out on the start by some crazy punter. Too bad. Its been great to see all the kiwi riders at the past two races as well... Rosara, Annika, Clinton and Marcus are all travelling around all these three races. Its valuable experience for them all. Rosara did amazingly well in Madrid finishing 9th! Today they all struggled a bit I think... like everyone else I guess!!! We are staying in Belgium until Tuesday then we will take the overnight ferry to Scotland. Now that we've done the race, the sun has finally come out, so tomorrow we look forward to a nice ride and Fika.
After the race with my favourite Belgian fan, Christal. I stayed with her family the first time I came to Houfallize back in 97!

We're now in Spa Francorchamp, and took our first practice on the course today. Although different, its just as rough and raw as before. It was also raining cats and dogs today, so it was definitely some full on, hard core mtbing. Even while it was raining the course was very sticky, so looks like it could be a real power course. I've got the #11 plate, which might be front row if I'm lucky. But it doesn't make much difference, as the wide open start will allow for lots of passing so it's going to be an anaerobic lactate-legged scramble for that first single-track!

We have a huge team this weekend as the development team guys are all here too. These guys are mostly from Holland and race just a few world cups each year. The best rider, René, is from Germany and has had some great results already, finishing top 10 in a few German cups. Peter will come tomorrow, as he's had 2 major university exams this week... he's our team professor :) Will be cool to see if he can still race well.

The bikes are starting to shape up pretty nicely. This week some super sexy six13 scalpel frames arrived. Fredrik and Jakob will race on them from now on, but I'll wait until next week. Fredrik's bike now weighs in at 9.4kgs, not bad for a fully! I have only been back on the Scalpel for 2 weeks, (due to those buggers who stole my bikes!), but are adapting pretty quick. The best thing is definitely the lefty fork, which is seriously way better then anything else out there, and the extra travel will be super this weekend, as there are lots of deep ruts and holes forming!

Its World Cup time again and like the last few years we have 3 Euro legs in a row. The team is coming along well, despite a cRazy period of bad luck. Ok, I admit I was somewhat guilty of stupidity for leaving bikes overnight in our van in Italy, but since that nightmare, we've had a car break down on the way to Heubach, our truck break down on the way to Madrid, then 2 nights ago some mongrels broke into the team van again, stealing parts, tires, almost everything inside. Still, credit to our team management as everyone is still positive and racing well. And hey, we're number one on the team rankings so that's the most important thing, right!

Actually it was the first outing for the team truck, as it was only just finished last Monday! They have made an awesome job building a nice living area with a small kitchen, flat-screen tv... all the bling. With everything so new in the team, there are still lots of bugs to sort out, which is frustrating at times. But it also means that we can do things a lot how we like it. I'm really happy to be able to eat lunch at the truck, as I hate to eat restaurant food the whole time. Allan is taking charge of this, buying good food and cooking it up for us so that after training we can relax and eat the perfect stuff. Fredrik and I eat very similarly, and Peter and Jakob are not fussy, so its working perfect.

I have felt tired for the past month, and was starting to wonder if I could wake up in time for the world cups... but I think my body sensed something and I started feeling better already on Tuesday. Another thing that probably helped was a big adjustment from Benoit. He treats me on a regular basis when I am in Annecy, but as most osteopaths, he prefers to work gently and does not force things too much. This can mean that he doesn't always resolve problems immediately... but then sometimes I have a treatment when everything just clicks into place.. like this Tuesday. After a session like this I feel completely different on the bike, a little weak, but after a few days its amazing how much it helps.

So finally I had good feelings during the race. I felt smooth and had OK power. Madrid is always fun with so many passionate spectators and a flattish course that keeps the riders in big groups. I stayed in a group and around the same general place throughout the race, finishing 17th. It was hot and the short climbs took there toll as always, making the last lap super tough. Julian and Susi have shown that once again they are the best in the world... nice for Specialized who put a lot on the line to bring Susi in. We need to get Cannondale up there again. I'm sure Fredrik can win one soon, but he just needs a little luck. He had a small mechanical this week and finished 7th.

In the evening we hit the hustle bustle of the big city and a tapas bar for some new food experience and nice wine. Peter had obviously done this before, as he navigated his way through the menu like a local. Basically tapas are simple... small toasted sandwiches with different fillings. Its kind of snack food, costing just 1 euro each, but with 100 options on the menu, and all in Spanish so I had no clue! Finally we had a great mix of hams, local cheese, salmon, gambas, patatis tortilla , which were super tasty with a glass of Rioja. Great to be on a team that enjoys being cRazy.. as Allan says :)

Ok, guess i've ignored my webpage a little too long now. I'm just not really in the best of moods for the moment. Our team van got broken into last weekend and I lost my 3 race bikes. Sure, they will be replaced, but this has really got me down. I guess mostly because I feel responsible.. it was really very stupid to leave the bikes in the van, especially in Italy.

On a more positive note, I have to boost a little now because it could be the only time I get the chance. Due to my racing in NZ I'm right now the #1 in the uci rankings! ok, I know its very unfair, but hey, life's unfair! Its also made the team happy, as we are first in team rankings as well.. and they love to make a big deal out of it :)

The team's website has ton's of new photos.. good as i'm being very slack i know. www.cannondale-vredestein.com

On a different note, my big brother has some art works at the Salamander Gallery in Christchurch... It seems to be going really well for him, so take a look on http://www.salamandergallery.co.nz/