Spring Into Action.

Down here in the Springs at the moment working with the Rocky Mtn USAC Junior Devo Camp. Weather has been great and the riding even better, getting to revisit some places that haven't seen since the bro and I landed here in 2007. Feeling fresh and motivated after a nice mid-season break last week post Nature Valley. That race sure zapped a bunch of mental and physical energy outta the tank and it was nice to slot in a little break after racing since 1st Jan. So its been a good introduction back on the bike with the juniors, although participating in the TT efforts they need to do has been a little painful....perks of the job I suppose....

Good to read the other day the BMC have finally been allowed to enter some NRC stuff for the rest of the season here. I know Garcia was understandably bummed out not knowing what was coming up on the schedule, so it will be rad to race those guys out at Cascade next month. So that's the next big objective for me and the motivator right now, and I'm looking forward to a solid block of training over the next week in preparation. Feels like the first time in awhile I wont be bouncing from race to race with a bunch of car miles in between. Ok, I'm out, my laundry is done and then it's back to the lecture hall for the afternoon...lators....cw

Go Forth And Read On.

So my NVGP team-mate and good buddy Parnesy has just started blogging. That's all I'm gonna write for today, so perhaps you can check out his site for some better material instead. He's rippin' it up at Tour Of America's Dairyland at the moment....lator y'all....cw.

www.ryanparnes.blogpsot.com

Back Into Gear.

Time has slipped away and it's already long overdue for an update, especially post Nature Valley GP last week. Well, in short, it was a great week for me, coming out with the best NRC result to date, with a 24rd GC spot (5th amateur) and sneaking into the top 20 on the Stillwater crit. And right now, almost a week later I'm still in the box. Plans were to head out to St Louis for Tour de Winghaven this weekend but I'm pretty toasted right now so its a good as time as any to schedule in a little mid season break.

First day TT warm up with Keck..

Out on it. Didn't have a super TT, but only having done a handful I still enjoy the novelty of all the kick ass go-fast gear....thanks Tucker!

The lads warming up pre downtown St. Paul criterium.

Rocking the green and gold...ahhhh

First things first, the whole Nature Valley Pro Ride experience was fantastic. Great people to work with from the managerial side of things, and a great bunch of team-mates to race with also. It sure was a tough week of racing, really coming down to the final two stages for a major GC shake up. The Makato road stage was pretty sweet. It was tame most of the day with a break up the road, and once we got into the finishing circuits all hell broke loose. Only four circuits but my word, a nasty climb in there that shattered the field to pieces. I hung in there and minized the damage as best I could.

Another TT shot. This one should have gone with the other pics above, but for whatever reason this site is being a turkey this morning.

First time up the hill for Stillwater. The pic doesn't do the hill justice.

The final stage at Stillwater was insane. Probably the nastiest crit circuit I have ever ridden, with a huge steep hill maxing out at 24% and an average gradient of 18%. And then there was another rise further along. Not as bad, but still a kick in the pants before the fast decent back to the finish. And speaking of the finish, the final corner into the home straight featured a sweet lump in the road that kicked you fwd into the gutter side of the off camber straight away. So in other words, it was rad to the max, and we had 20 laps to throw down and make it happen.

Top part of the hill. The crowd was unreal!

As the week progressed the legs felt better and better, so being of the lighter side of things, I was looking forward to giving Stillwater a crack, and gaining some time on the GC. From the gun I knew I had some semi-decent legs going on, and I lasted with the lead group until the final two laps. It was pretty crazy coming into the hill each lap, with the crowd pushing you into a narrow funnel of the road, and trying to avoid guys mis-shifting or simply blowing up. In the end I came home 20th which gave my GC a nice boost.

Overall I'd like to give a big shout of of thanks to Matt A and Josh R, Pat and Ty @ Penn Cycle and all those who were associated with the team. It was a great week and I can't thank you guys enough for the rockstar treatment everyday. Cheers guys!

Also it was awesome to have my best personal support crew out there, being Kat and of course the bro (who did and awesome effort after we literally shoved him in the car from DIA and drove straight to Minneapolis). Yes readers, the Green is back in Colorado!

Hitting Up The Valley.

Here we are. Night before Nature Valley Grand Prix and we are set to go. Feet are up and bikes are prepped and ready to rock. Cam has arrived and with Kat here too makes the perfect support crew for a great week of racing ahead. Rode the TT course tmw and its gonna be a quick one, finishing with a nice climb up through the streets. The Nature Valley Team met up today and every one is keen to do the event sponsor proud

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Our team kit for the week is pretty sweet...not bad for an Aussie!

Not much else to report really. Minneapolis is a pretty neat city, reminds me of Melbourne town and its hard not to smile seeing town names like Montrose and Lilydale Park. Stay tuned, hopefully some good news to report tmw from the TT and then downtown crit at night. Cheers, cw.

Eye Of The Tiger.

I won't lie. I'm watching Rocky IV as I write this post. It's the 11th hour before we leave for Nature Valley next week. Training has been solid this week, busting out some PB's in sprint work and generally feeling super good. Now it's time for a little inspiration in the form of an Ivan Drago crushing by Balboa. Can't wait for the part where Drago is in the 'lab' doing his training and Rocky is, well, doing it Rocky style lifting logs and stuff. Ahhh, thats what it's all about.

So we pick up the bro-ski from DIA soon, not without a Chipotle stop on the way....life is good...cheers...cw

Tulsa Revisted.

I guess I never finished the report on the last two stages of Tulsa. Well, to be honest there was not much great to report. Second stage Tucker busted his collarbone. That sucks. Big time. I stuck to the plan to save the legs for the final day. The last stage is incredible. A tough little neighbourhood course with a short, steep climb and a funky little downhill off-camber corner on the long finishing straight. Not to mention the C-R-A-Z-Y fans deafening and in you face every lap through the neighbourhood. It was pretty wild with all sorts or freaks and weirdo's jumping up and down and in your face with voodoo dolls, spraying with hoses and banging on trash can lids. I suppose you just had to be there! So I went with the first break of the day which I thought would pay off after the same thing happened last year and they stayed away. Plus is was close to 100deg out there and featured J-Belly, Ouch and Fly V so I figured most bases were covered. Not so unfortunately. We got brought back and I still managed to finish the stage (close to 70 dnf'ed) but no where in the top stack where I'd hoped to be.

The newest Flight Of The Conchords fan.


In the early break day three...

Reflecting on the weekend I know I didn't have a great one. But, the more I think about it, the plan never was to tear it apart there. it was just a nice hard weekend of racing in prep for Nature Valley next week. And boy that has come around quick. The bro flies in Sunday night and we hit the road Monday. Can't wait. Okay, I'm out...much to do...lator...cw.

The Wait Is Over. Backspacer.

Good things come to those who wait! New album out Sept. sometime...named after a leatherback turtle they sponsored...I like it!