FINISHING ON A HIGH

It has been some time since my last update. Although i have been a busy boy, it was more by design than an attempt at being lazy. I wanted everyone who visited my site to see the post related to Scott. I dont want this to be an issue that fades into the back ground and then is forgotten about. I want to try, in some small way, to make a difference. Alas....my efforts have not worked so far, with another Australian Cyclist in hospital after being hit by his friend driving a car after a night of celebration.....will we ever learn??? My thoughts go out to Mat Rex and his family.

Now for a quick catch up.....I spent my first Christmas away from home and was up in Sydney with Kate's family. They do a good job of making me feel like i belong, so i enjoyed it very much, despite missing seeing my parents and sister while opening the pressies.

New years....i was asleep before midnight.....

yada....yada....yada... bay crits were good, two top 10's and a crash...standard stuff really.

I have just finished, what will most likely be my final nationals campaign. It was far more successful then i could have imagined after the lead up that i have had. I raced 3 times and had 2 great rides and 1 i was disappointed with. But finally....finally i was able to win back the National Teams pursuit crown. It is one that over the last 3 years i have wanted back and has now added a third national title to my resume.

here is a pic of me driving the team during the final. Despite being unable to wear aero helmets, we only missed the championship time by 0.3 seconds.....i felt a little ripped off.

The night before i was able to lead my team mate to a victory in the scratch race. It was something i wanted to do after he missed selection on to the national squad despite riding a 4:26 in the individual pusuit and taking the silver medal. He deserved a spot after that and i was happy to help him achieve that goal after ruining my chances in LA (at the world cup).

me saying goodbye to the track....look at how full the seats are....i think my parents were the only ones there.

So my track career is starting to wind down.....which will come as music to the ears of my road manager i think, who has been waiting for me to start getting to the USA earlier. The one thing i will always take with me is to know that the last time i took the boards at the nationals, that it was a successful outing. The Vicotiran team dominated the competition and came out well on top in the overall standings. It has been great to be a part of this team for the past 6 years. I leave this part of my career with many fond memories and am now looking forward to the challenges that the road will provide for me over the next few years.

So whats next??? I have now gone into full road mode. Although i still have a couple of track events left for the season, they will not come at the peril of my road preparation for Tour of Georgia and what then follows.

Kate goes into camp soon to prepare for the World Track champs, where i will be track side to support her and watch her win her first World Championship. Despite a nasty fall and shoulder injury, she has been working very hard of late and will be hard to beat with the preparation that we have been doing over the past few months. Im excited to see how it all pans out for her this year in preparation for the Olympics in 08. She dominated the Bay Crit series here in Jan and that was only at 80%....i think she will be scary to come up against at worlds.

MENZIES....what can i say....let the first mention of him for the year be......what a freak!!! No one can stop this man.

DONT FORGET....TAKE CARE OF EACH OTHER ON THE ROAD.....IF WE DONT THEN WHO WILL.

LATER