TRAINING IS ALMOST OVER

We are finally into the last couple of days training before we embark on a hard month of racing. We have had to keep our legs pumping around and heads on straight after nearly an entire month with no racing. There are no garentees as to how Tommy and I will race when we hit the road at the Athens Twilight Criterium this Saturday, but if hunger is any measure then we should be fine.

Since arriving back in the USA, after my brief stint in Europe, we have been well looked after by one of our team mates, Eddy Hilger and his family. He lives atop a range of mountains just on the Georgia and Tennessee. It is a fantastic training venue but we have had to suffer the insult of seeing the Tour of Georgia come nearly straight past our front door. As fun as it was to ride down the street and watch some of the best riders in the world time trial by us, it was equally as hard, feeling that we too should have been part of the race. We have, however, covered plenty of quality km's and had as resanoable preparation for racing as is possible....without actually racing. One of the greatest thing about spending time at Eddy and Carlee's is getting to spend time playing with and looking after their two fantastic kids. Jackson and Kenzie are 2 of the best behaved and coolest kids I've ever come across and it has been so much fun seeing them again, this time 8 months on from when i was last here.

The training here is a nice change to the roads we were battling in Michigan. Don't get me wrong, Michigan has its charm and also its benefits, but the winter has not been kind to poor old Grand Rapids. Tommy and i were forced to point out the holes in the roads on a regular basis, at certain times during a ride, our hands barely touched the bars.....not the way you want to train, not to mention that it doesnt have any climbs over 1km long within 100miles and its not ideal for a big training block.

But now we are in the run to racing. We have done all the hard miles we can handle....we are pumped and ready to show this country and some of its teams what we can put together and how we can get the job done. I am really looking forward to throwing my leg back over the bike in anger and winning some races. In 2 weeks time Kate will also be here to make the season go a little smoother for me. After some great team performances in the races she has done since getting off the track she will be in the USA leading up to the womens Libery Classic in Philly, which coincides with our Philly race....i guess it was meant to be.

Hope everyone is well, where ever you are. Peace out (hahahaha)

LATEST TECH: AUSSIE CRIT CHAMPION RIDLEY

Introducing the latest and greatest bike to come from the Ridley factory, the Australian Criterium Championship bike. With all the bells and whistles you would expect from these sweet looking machines.

The complete bike with its custom paint job is sure to turn some heads.

The Priority Health Cycling Team choose to ride full carbon Record from Campag. It is a sweet groupie and the carbon cranks are a great asset to any bike, especially a full carbon ride.

The carbon Easton's are a fantastic peforming wheel, but lets face it, it is more the look that impresses the ladies.

The thing that makes me most happy about the bike is the personal touches that were designed by my manager and Lance "The Ridley Man". The paint job and the little labels that give it a personal touch that i will forever be able to reflect upon.

So the big question is, how does it race? Well that remains to be seen, it wont get its first run until Athens Twilight Criterium this coming Sunday. But if looks are anything to go by, I guess i should win by a clear margin. I took it for its first outing today, i want to pretend its special but up the hills of Georgia it felt just like the regualar team issue. Oh well, crits are a different story. My rating is 5 / 5. A fantastic bike.

BONJOUR EUROPE, GOODBYE US

So I have just returned from my whirl wind trip across the world to France where i was able to catch 3 days of the Track World Championships. The primary reason for the trip was to support Kate in her quest for a world title but it was also an opportunity for me to learn a little about a country and continent i know nothing about.

The city for the worlds was Bordeaux. A beautiful town south west of Paris which is based along a river. The city itself is highly famous for its wine and while that is one such pleasure i passed on, i did get to soak up the atmosphere of some of the little villages where the production is at its peak. I flew in on Friday and was able to spend an afternoon with Kate before here points race. She was a bit down after a less than perfect day in the pursuit and i took it upon myself to try and repair some of the damage. Though she is not one to make excuses, she was suffering from a pretty nasty case of the flu. Despite this her performance in the points was one she should have been happy with. Despite missing a medal she put in a solid ride to finish in 5th. The scratch was equally as frustrating for her as the pursuit and also frustrating to watch as a spectator. Eventually it was just agreed that it would be put down as a bad week and something to improve on for next year. The remainder of the Australian team also struggled to back up from their efforts at the Comm Games, with exception to the teams pursuit who put in, what i considered to be, the best race of the meet to win the world title. Awesome effort boys.

Monday was a day i got to spend looking around town with my girl. We had a great day, despite the fact that the town was lacking its usual atmosphere due to the public holiday. It was however a fantastic day of sight seeing and just general wandering. It was a great finish to a short trip which also included a nice river side dinner with Kate and her parents following the racing on the Sunday night. The following morning we had to tear ourselves away from one yet again and go our seperate ways. It is only 3 weeks, however, until we are reunited when Kate flys into the US to spend some time with me and the team. It is a trip that i am looking forward to with great anticipation because it should serve as a good filling to the middle of both of our seasons.

So now i have returned to Georgia to continue my preparations for the upcoming criterium series. Its still 10 days away, however and the team is suffering from a severe lack of racing. We are considering a 6hr drive this weekend just to get in a race before we start in Athens Twilight next weekend. The tour of Georgia TT comes within 1km of where we are staying here tomorrow, so i have scheduled in some time to cheer on Menzies as he passes by. Looking forward to getting back into my stride and hitting the racing scene again.

I hope everyone is well at home and all around places that i have been. Keep in touch and hopefully keep an eye out for some good results in the coming weeks.

Rich