US PRO...UNDER WATER

My apologies for the recent lack of blog entries. Unfortunately one of my great friends lost his father some 2 weeks ago and for some reason cycling didn't seem significant. It has been a hard time for him and his family and i want to express my sympathy to them all. The world is a colder place with his passing and may he rest in peace.

It is an unfortunate fact, but life does go on for the rest of us and my life saw me in the windy.....and wet, wet, wet.....city of Chicago. It was a miserable weekend of racing.....in terms of the weather. I didnt fair overly well, with little motivation for pushing my limits and being involved in one of the 60 odd crashes that took place over the 100km race. That is nearly 1 crash per lap. We had 7 of our 9 riders crash during the main event and some of them on more than 1 occasion. Unfortunately for the team one of those crashes included Emile and Teddy on the last corner, which cost them both a top 10 position. Somehow i managed to finish, but race like a Pansie......so that was the story of my weekend.

The only reason i welcomed the rain, was to cover the tears when Kate had to fly out on Sunday. It was the beginning of what will be a month of phone calls and no physical contact, which will be the longest we have gone for nearly the entirety of our relationship. We spent a great week together in Michigan and then the following week in Milwaukee...the 2 places that feel most like home to me in this foreign country.

Out riding with one of my American families in Milwaukee.....Simon and Tif can be seen in the back ground on their cruisers.






The picturesque lake Michigan from the Milwaukee side. Its quite a view and on the right day, there is a lot of eye candy...hence me and Karl riding there each year



But now comes the countdown....i am officially 1 month from leaving for home. With 3 big races remaining i am planning on going out on a high. Training will continue to pick up and the motivation is now beginning to regrow as the crits are behind me and i will again be focusing on the longer road.

I can now announce that I am officially on board for next year and we have some very exciting additions to our list. I cant break the news of who until it becomes official, but needless to say, i am very excited about our prospects for the 08 season and where my abilities will squeeze into the talent.

So thats it.....see all my home buddies soon as the countdown continues......