The UCI Press Release on the Contador verdict

So there you have it. Contador has been stripped of his 2010 TdF win which goes to Andy Schleck. Contador’s 2011 Giro win goes to Michele Scarponi (who was implicated in the Operación Puerto and suspended). His sanction is a two-year period of ineligibility starting retroactively on 25 January 2011, minus the period of provisional suspension served in 2010-2011 (5 months, 19 days). The suspension will therefore come to an end on August 5, 2012. Just in time to race the Vuelta.

The Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) has ruled that the probability of Contador’s contaminated meat defence is very low. So he was not convicted for doping, he was convicted of traces of an illegal substance being found in his body. Is there a difference?

CAS Ruling:

The Panel found that there were no established facts that would elevate the possibility of meat contamination to an event that could have occurred on a balance of probabilities. Unlike certain other countries, notably outside Europe, Spain is not known to have a contamination problem with clenbuterol in meat. Furthermore, no other cases of athletes having tested positive to clenbuterol allegedly in connection with the consumption of Spanish meat are known.

You can read the CAS ruling here.

This brings up the principle of “Strict Liability” in the WADA code. Just like when you get a speeding fine, it’s up to you to prove your innocence when adverse results are found.

From the WADA Code Q&A:

It means that each athlete is strictly liable for the substances found in his or her bodily specimen, and that an anti-doping rule violation occurs whenever a prohibited substance (or
its metabolites or markers) is found in bodily specimen, whether or not the athlete intentionally or unintentionally used a prohibited substance or was negligent or otherwise at fault.

Where does this principle come from?
Prior to the January 1, 2004, implementation of the World Anti-Doping Code (Code)—the core document that provides the framework for harmonized anti-doping policies, rules, and
regulations within sports organizations and among public authorities—, the principle of strict liability had been applied by the International Olympic Committee in its Anti-Doping Code as well as by the vast majority of pre-Code anti-doping sports rules. In accordance with WADA’s stakeholders’ wishes, the Code continues to apply the same principle.

This rule sounds severe. Is there any flexibility to take into consideration the circumstances or intention of the athlete?

Yes, there is flexibility when a sanction is being considered.The rule is the starting point so that, while an anti-doping rule violation occurs regardless of
the athlete’s intention, there is flexibility in the sanctioning process to consider the circumstances.

Reactions

Perhaps because Contador is one of the more affable blokes in the peloton he’s getting a fair amount of sympathy and understanding. The case was not cut and dry like so many others, so it was always going to be a contentious outcome.

Andy Schleck:

“There is no reason to be happy now”, commented Andy Schleck. “First of all I feel sad for Alberto. I always believed in his innocence. This is just a very sad day for cycling. The only positive news is that there is a verdict after 566 days of uncertainty. Now, we can move on.”

“I trust that the CAS judges took all things into consideration after reading the 4,000 page file. If now I am declared overall winner of the 2010 Tour de France it will not make me happy. I battled with Contador in that race and I lost. My goal is to win the Tour de France in a sportive way, being the best of all competitors, not in court. If I succeed this year, I will consider it as my first Tour de France victory.”

Eddy Merckx (via Velonation)

“It’s a sad day for Alberto Contador; it’s a sad day for cycling, I think people want to kill off cycling”

Oscar Pereiro (translated via Twitter)

“Two years of sanctions and the judgment provides that the doping is not tested. That sons of a …. “. “Now go and celebrate with the gold visa so calm, ” “Two years of punishing Alberto Contador and the judgment provides that the doping is not proven. Then? That children of the great ….” “We already have two Spanish without the UCI sanctioned or have it proven SAD. Shame I should give you are gaining on us . ”

“You know I think? That is innocent, you know. Would go to the end and sink to the gang that we pay and do their work like crap . If not for what I like and why work would fail to see the bike. always said and will say, hopefully one day treat us equally. ”

“And clearer yet. What really is rotten in cycling are your leaders, who become millionaires with our sweat and effort. HP “, “And for this wait two years and not have the balls to say at the time ? You will see the duster Mr. McQuaid and company.”

“I’m screwed as rarely . Maybe it’s because I know these characters. Now go celebrate with the gold visa and so quiet! I really do not know is that Albert will be two years standing. But the shame that given and the mediocrity of his work has been discovered. It is true that you can compete in August for the two-year ban has since August 2010. But why do you have left to run until yesterday?

Scarponi (via Velonation)

“For what concerns the human aspect, I’m very sorry for Alberto; for what concerns the professional aspect, this decision doesn’t change the value of the results I obtained and the targets for the future.”

UCI President Pat McQuaid

“This is a sad day for our sport. Some may think of it as a victory, but that is not at all the case. There are no winners when it comes to the issue of doping: Every case, irrespective of its characteristics, is always a case too many.”

Tour de France Director Christian Prudhomme

At last an answer after a process that never ended. It is here now, that’s a good thing, but it is obviously very late, too late. It is fundamental that there be less time between sports’ justice and sports and media events. Alberto Contador kept cycling for 18 months. He was cycling everywhere. … As for the winner of the Tour de France 2010, it needs to be confirmed by the UCI. But logically, it will be Andy Schleck as soon as the UCI tells us.”

Mark Cavendish (via Twitter)

“Regardless of the outcome for Contador, I just wish, for the sake of our sport and everyone in it, that a decision had been made sooner.”

Thor Hushovd

“If he didn’t follow the rules, it’s normal that there is a suspension. We work hard against doping because we don’t want cheaters and that’s probably why he got such a heavy suspension.”

Just as we spoke about yesterday, “Those who are connected to the right power centers in cycling are going to continue to get away with doping. The ones who are dispensable will fall.”.

What’s your reaction? Are you still a cycling fan after the past few days? Don’t worry – if you’re new to the sport you’ll see that these things will come up time and time again. Just love it for what it is…

Martin Hardie was never involved in case and is often just as polarising to people as Lance Armstrong is, but he has a wealth of knowledge about the law and anti-doping. I truly believe his head and heart are in the right place, so I value his opinions. The first thing that Martin teaches his students is that the law is not justice. I think we’ve all seen enough evidence of that throughout our lives.

I’m not going to try to convince you that Lance did or didn’t use PED’s to win seven TdF’s. You most likely already have your mind made up and I won’t change that. I too have my mind made up and I’m afraid that you’ll find this post tainted with bias.

What Happened?

First thing to understand is that federal prosecutors have closed their investigation of Lance Armstrong without filing charges. There was no ruling. Authorities are under no legal obligation to explain themselves and the news caught everyone involved in the case by surprise. Announcing the decision on the eve of the Super Bowl was convenient timing for the news to be pushed to the back pages of the papers.

People can only speculate as to why the Federal prosecutors chose to close the investigation. Mr. Hardie understands from people close to the case, “there was an enormous breadth and depth of crushing evidence. The doping evidence was clear cut.”

It’s important to understand that the prosecutors did not build a case around doping charges. Doping in sport is not federal crime in the US and the case was built around tax fraud and other charges related to the violation of the USPS sponsorship contract which prohibited doping.

Unlike Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens who testified before a federal grand jury and were accused of lying under oath, Armstrong was not called to testify. However, Yaroslav Popovych, Tyler Hamilton, George Hincapie, Levi Leipheimer were subpoenaed to testify under oath and according to Martin Hardy who has spoken to people close to the case, they all “spilled the beans”. They also had Dr. Ferrari’s computer records which were damning.

Too Big To Fail?

Like Goldman Sachs and Citibank, is Lance and Livestrong too big to fail? Are too many hearts and wallets at stake? There will be speculation that there was pressure put on the attorney general’s department from high up and outside to make this investigation go away. Lance is no stranger to the world of politics. Armstrong’s lawyer is Mark Fabiani who was Bill Clinton’s counsel for the Whitewater scandal. Lance golfs with Bill Clinton, goes mountain biking with George Bush, gets on well with Mike Rann, and has announced his political aspirations himself.

Lance has far more political power than Barry Bonds or Roger Clemens. If you put together all the difficulty they had with those cases, the potential of this drawing out forever and the amount of money that Lance would throw at it, plus the political connections and pressure Lance could put behind it, the Federal Prosecutor may have concluded that this is just too hard.

What’s Next?

The USADA has formally announced their intentions to continue their investigation into the doping allegations. Although USADA does not subpoena power, they have seen some of the evidence in the federal investigation and try to bring out more. Will previous testimonies go public? It depends how the USADA goes about it. If they have a public hearing it may all come about.

What can come out of this? If the USADA concludes that Lance used PED’s, then it’s up to the UCI to decide whether or not to take away his victories. You can already see that they’ve set the ground with statements about “let’s not live in the past.” Whatever conclusion the USADA comes to, it will largely be symbolic.

There could still be a civil whistleblower case brought under the False Claims Act that goes forward (possibly by Floyd Landis with the claim of past fraud committed against the federal government). This will again bring up the question of whether or not the $32 million in sponsorship contracts towards the USPS cycling team was spent on systematic doping.

What this signals is that there will be more of the same. Those who are connected to the right power centers in cycling are going to continue to get away with doping. The ones who are dispensable will fall.

My Thoughts

You might think that from what I’ve said in this post that I’m a Lance Armstrong hater. The truth is that he doesn’t polarize me in the same way he does to many.

I suppose for me it’s a bit like when I was a kid and the slow realisation that Santa Claus wasn’t true. My parents didn’t need to pull me aside and tell me. Over the years I put 2+2 together, figured it out something wasn’t right, kept my mouth shut to my younger sister, and know that the truth doesn’t hurt anyone. If you’ve been a cyclist and a fan for a long time you’ll be able to put 2+2 together as well. I have a lot to thank Lance Armstrong for. He inspired my obsession in road racing which has given me a tremendous amount of joy. He helped bring road racing to the level of popularity we enjoy to this day. He has done a lot for cancer, even though it’s debatable if the money is put to good use. I don’t lose any sleep over what I think the truth is. It is what it is, and we’re not going to turn back time if anything is revealed. No matter what the truth is, I cannot deny the excitement that Lance brought to the sport which had me fixated on the Tour for seven years and on the edge of my seat. Whatever happens, my memories of that will not diminish.

That said, I believe the USADA still needs to proceed with their investigation so the people who still work inside the sport from the U.S. Postal era are exposed. They are the future which harm the sport.

One of the significant moments in my blogging career was helping out the Rapha Condor team as a lackey in the 2009 Sun Tour. I was unemployed and happy to help out the team as I knew most of them already. It was actually a big turning point for this blog because the posts that I generated from this experience made me realise how hungry people were for behind the scenes content. Little did I know that this would be the start of a longstanding relationship with Rapha which eventually attracted me to working with them.

Andy Verrall giving the Condors a wash during the 2009 Sun Tour. Andy now works with Team SKY at their service course.

A very talented rider named Ben Greenwood had a nasty crash on stage 2 which put him out of the race. He was bruised and battered and his bike was a mess. The frame was cracked on the toptube, but not beyond repair. Team Manager, John Herety gave me the frame after the race as it was no use to them since their season was over.

Ben Greenwood looking like he got in a fight after stage 2 of the 2009 Sun Tour

The Frame
The frame sat in a pike of junk in my storage room for a couple years before I got off my backside and had it repaired. It’s nothing special, but it looked like it would fit me okay and it didn’t cost me anything. Plus, I loved the headbadge. I bumped into a gentleman named Raoul Luescher who repairs carbon frames and I convinced him to help me out with my little bike project. Raoul generously fixed my battered up frame for no cost and inspected the rest of it using ultrasound to ensure that it was structurally sound.

Raoul Luescher from Luescher Teknik

The Paintjob
I’ve long admired the work of Steve Munyard from Sun Graphics. Steve and I caught up for a coffee and I told him what I’d like to do. I was working on a new CT kit design and had a couple concepts to show him. He drew something up on photoshop which I liked and within a couple weeks he had the frame cleaned up, painted, and looking like new.

The Condor headbadge is one of the finer details of this frame

The Groupset
A good friend of mine was hit by a car up in the Dandenongs last year where his bike was written off. It was sitting in his garage collecting dust. He was able to claim a new bike on insurance and they told him to keep the damanged bike as it was no good to them. Lucky for me most of the Shimano Di2 was still intact and he simply gave it to me. The only thing I had to do was buy a new brake lever.

The Rest
I asked Echelon Sports if they’d help me out with the 3T handlebars, stem, seatpost. I had a mish mash these parts laying around, but if there’s one rule on a bike build, it’s that these three items must always match. I had used 3T components on my last bike and loved the handlebars. After that decision was made it was obvious that I needed the matching stem and seatpost. I had an old San Marco Replica saddle laying around which is the comfiest thing saddle on the market. I adds a lot of character to a bike like this as well. I also ordered a couple Elite bidon cages because of their elegance and simplicity.

The Build
This wasn’t as easy as you might think. The Di2 was my biggest concern. I’ve build lots of bikes before but I’ve never installed Di2 and I was certain that there would be issues that I couldn’t resolve with my spare parts laying around the house. I took the frame and box of components over to Hampton Cycles and asked them to build it up for me. And I was right – it wasn’t straightforward. They had to get an external Di2 kit to run the wires and many other parts weren’t an ideal fit. Many hours later the guys at Hampton Cycles managed to get everything working properly and riding like a dream. They did a fine job at getting the Di2 looking very clean despite the frame not being designed for it.

The Wheels
Okay, these weren’t cheap, but they were a “necessity”. Out of all the wheels I’ve ever ridden, one of my favorites are the ENVE 25′s with DT Swiss 240 hubs. I decided that a bike like this needed a low profile set of wheels and I got a line of a set of demos that were hardly used. I put on a nice set of Vittoria Corsa Evo CX tubulars (not shown here) and they ride like a dream.

What Would I Change?
Steve’s workmanship on the paintjob is absolutely stunning, however since the new kit design has changed (coming very soon, I promise) I would probably paint it differently. Also, aside from the exceptional front derailleur shifting, I don’t really rate the Di2. There’s no “feel” or “snap” to the rear shifting and I cannot say that I’ve ever had much of a problem with mechanical shifting. The only thing that would change my mind however is if there was just a simple “click” to let me know how hard I need to push on the lever. Maybe I’m just having trouble getting used to it.

Alright, let me have it. What would you change?

SLAM THAT STEM!

Thank you to Ben Greenwood, Raoul Luescher (for fixing the frame), Steve Munyard (Sun Graphics for the paintjob), Leigh De Luca (Echelon Sports for the 3T parts), Hampton Cycles (for the build), and Monza Imports (for the ENVE Wheels), and a good friend (you know who you are) for the Di2

Click here for the Tour of Qatar startlist.

The first day started out in Cradle Mountain, which in its own right is breathtaking. Anyone who has been there to hike would be well versed with the beauty and ruggedness of the terrain. Wildside is a bi-annual event and run by a team of people who work for the department of forestry and tourism. Thus allowing the race to go through areas which are off-limits and remote locations to reach the west coast. For the first three days of the event, there are two competition stages, plus transit stages to get you back to your support crew. The final day was completed with a single stage on the signatory Strahan beach.

The epitomy of mountain biking racing; wet, dirt, hard, and dark tunnels

The initial stage traversed the plateau from the cradle mountain accommodation area, to the Iris river and back again. The course was generally open four wheel drive tracks implying very bumpy sections of trails that made it difficult to maintain a decent rhythm. The waves of riders began with fastest elite first through to age group ranked riders. The pace was on from the start. The race intensified even further as the course went through sections of gravel roads, creek crossings and alpine trails.

After the finish and a quick re-fuel, everyone started on the transition stage to the lunch-stop. In the middle of the national park, lunch was provided for 450 riders and their support crew. A great example of the high level of planning and effort put in by the crew! This went on for all 4 days of the event, so needless to say we never went hungry. The lunch-stop was a perfect opportunity to discuss with fellow riders how you went, how you crashed or how you kept it upright. This was the natural catalyst to fuel the excitement and build camaraderie with everyone.

A dip in the pool, to seek refuge from the soaring temperature.

The second stage started in the Que River mining area, one of the highest mining areas in Tasmania. The mercury hovering near 30 degrees centigrade, the race went through a narrow single track in a lush rainforest. The majority of the course was staged through undulating mining roads that were perfectly suited for those coming from a road racing background. The pace was fast and luckily most went through unscathed. The transition stage to Tullah, allowed everyone to regroup and recuperate before we jumped in the dam.

The weather during the third stage was hotter than the previous with two incredible stages ahead of us. We departed from Tullah to the start of the third stage in Zeehan. The 4wd track was starting to get loose and with each pedal stroke we ascended through the lush green forest, with roots zigzagging across the tight single track that had you working hard all the way. The decent during this part of the race was the highlight of the whole event; it was a white knuckle ride with plenty of speed through tight shoots, and lose mud and rock. The only exception being the few mud bogs that flipped a few people including myself.

A mass start, indicating how big the Wildside Mountain Biking race has become.

Upon completing lunch and adorning a fresh kit with a clean bike to go, stage four was the memorable Montezuma falls stage. While it didn’t suit everyone the initial 6kms (bitumen climb) blew the group apart. From the top we descended down to some gravel roads and then rode up and along the old tramways track to the Montezuma Falls. The Montezuma Falls being the highest falls in Tasmania, the track crossing involved a suspended bridge 140 meters above the water. Unfortunately it allows only five riders at a time to cross so it was prevalent to get in front of the group to ensure a quick time on the course.

After the crossing the course continued on with tenacious climbing followed by a decent halfway through the stage to Melba flats. This was an unrelenting decent albeit not super fast but with enough deep holes and technical lines to slow down some riders. After reaching Melba flats the trail turned to rolling with fast sections, finishing off with deep thick mud bogs that prevented you from picking a good line. This resulted in many of us coming off and unstuck. The final two kilometers was a straight fire road. Everyone had spun out of gears!! At the end of the stage you could see some were hurting due to the punishing terrain.

Exhaustion kicking in after a long day in the saddle.

Time trails are a painful way to start the day and when the rain started, it added insult to an already tough discipline. You started in pairs with your next closest grand classification rider. It was an interesting technical start to the spray tunnel stage in the wind and rain. These two elements were a constant reminder of Tasmania’s ever-changing weather. Upon the completion of the stage most of the participants had turned to a dark color of red and black. We transferred from Trial harbour to Granville harbour.

Contemplating on the time trial stage in the rain and cold.

The next stage was described as a dangerous fast trail with sharp rocks , flowing decent and brutal climb out of the harbour. Everyone was warned to stay within their limits and I cordially happened to miss that warning. After bridging across multiple groups on the climb, I thought that changing my riding line across a large granite slab would be a clever maneuver. How wrong was I!!!

After a few fish tails with the rear end, I went over the bars, and an introduction was made to the granite with my shoulder. Luckily, the medical crew was staggered along the path and a paramedic quickly intervened to pull me off the trail. In a split second my first Wildside event was over. I was induced with Methoxyflurane, the infamous green whistle, to alleviate the discomfort as we drove out to the finish stage to meet my support crew and teammates. I later found out that the rest of the stage was an incredible journey along the cliff tops, a picturesque moment I didn’t get to see.

The only thing on my mind was the desire to start the final two stages but with my arm in a sling, I was relegated to watching the competitors start on Strahan beach. As the wind gathered momentum, the stage was put into a reverse start. Thus allowing all the riders to finish along the beach with a tail wind. This was a roadies stage and that was seen by the guys who finished at the top of their category. It was great to see everyone hang around and congratulate each other, pat on the backs and regale stories of the event.

With the wind on your back and cruising along the beach with your competitors in tow, could this be utopia ?

Although I did not finish this race, I am happy to say that the event was extremely well executed but the kitchen sink was thrown at you to ensure that you experienced the Tasmanian wilderness at its absolute best. I would like to thank Nik Deka and all the event crew for putting on a great event over the four days and 200 kilometers. This experience has spurred me on to come back and discover Tasmania as part of the Wildside event in 2014, but also to go and explore the area on foot and on a road bike over the coming years.

For full daily results of the Wildside Mountain Biking Race can be found here:
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4

Nathan Haas

Nathan Haas debuted in the Tour of Down Under with Garmin-Barracuda, a partnership that formed back in October. Riding for third division team Genesys, the 22-year-old Australian sealed his switch to the road by winning the Herald Sun Tour and the Japan Cup. The month became even sweeter when he inked his first professional contract.

Nathan Haas leading the charge up Willunga Hill on stage 5 of the 2012 Tour Down Under

“To say I expect anything out of my first season, it’s probably a little self-indulgent. It’s more about the questions I ask and the lessons I learn this year,” Haas explained. “You only get one chance to have a neo-pro year, it’s quite important for me to get it right. The only thing I expect out of the year is to learn.”

Garmin features Heinrich Haussler, Tyler Farrar and numerous time trial specialists and will be an ideal team for Haas to discover himself. He will likely improve his time trialling and win a stage in a small stage race this year.

Salvatore Puccio

If you follow cycling, chances are you’re passionate about all things Italian. Why not put your weight behind the most Italian of all neo-pros, Sicilian Salvatore Puccio? He is likely to become his country’s next big classics star, joining fellow Sicilian and Vuelta a España winner, Vincenzo Nibali.

The 22-year-old makes his professional debut after an amateur season that included a win in the Under 23 Tour of Flanders. Is he the next Nick Nuyens? Puccio sees himself more in the mould of Oscar Freire. Either way, Italy needs him since it has not had a major classic win in three years.

“He’s quite a punchy and hard rider, not a sprinter but someone a bit like Edvald Boasson Hagen,” said Sky sport director, Sean Yates. “We’re not going to throw him in the deep end this year, he’s still young.”

Andrew Talansky

American Andrew Talansky already completed his first full season in the professional ranks with Garmin-Cervélo. It was a great start, giving home fans reason to believe he could be USA’s next Grand Tour winner.

“He can climb and he can time trial, but how far he can go in those disciplines remains to be seen,” explained team DS, Allan Peiper. “We want to take his development further, help him be a GC leader, to learn to guide a team and to concentrate over long periods. Last season, he was a first year pro, just learning to fit in and earning his team-mates’ loyalty.”

Last season, the 23-year-old placed top 10 in three WorldTour time trials stages: Paris-Nice, Basque Country and Romandy. In Romandy, he was the best young rider and ninth overall and with the Vuelta a España, he finished his first Grand Tour – not bad. The bar is high, but an overall win in a small stage race is the next logical step.

Tosh Van Der Sande

Tosh Van Der Sande of team Lotto-Belisol has a lot going for him: Under 23 Liège-Bastogne-Liège winner, track star and cool first name. Alexander Vinokourov attacked to win Liège, but Van Der Sande sprinted for his win. (The Under 23 version is slightly different from the pro version that finishes with the climb to Ans.)

The 21-year-old Belgian developed his sprint skills from the track, where he is 2008 junior World Champion in the points race. He would love to win one of the sprinters’ prized events, the Milano-Sanremo. Given his Liège win and ninth place in the Under 23 Worlds, it may be within reach.

Tosh Van der Sande second from right during the presentation of Lotto Belisol Racing Team in the Autoworld (Brussels).

Andrew Fenn

Andrew Fenn made his pro debut at the Tour Down Under with OmegaPharma-Quick Step, unusual as most of the British development cyclists ride for Sky.

“They can only take so many British guys,” he explained. “After talking with the Sky guys, there was an option with Quick Step, which is a great classics team.”

The 21-year-old perhaps made the right decision since he is the 2008 Junior Paris-Roubaix winner and will be able to ride alongside three-time winner, Tom Boonen. He will learn the ropes this year, maybe have a chance to win a smaller race and prove his worth to the team, where he has only a one-year contract.

After Fenn signed last year, he won the bronze medal in the Under 23 Worlds in Copenhagen.

Arnaud Démare

Arnaud Démare is France’s answer to Michael Matthews thanks to his sprint win in the Under 23 World Championships. The 20-year-old now has a contract with French team, FDJ-BigMat and hopes to have as successful of a start as Matthews.

Démare explained. “I’ll take my place in the back of the pack and try to learn, starting over again from scratch.” As with Matthews, he said he will take he chance for a win if the opportunity arrives.

Steven Kruijswijk

Steven Kruijswijk, 24, may not look it, but he is already in his third professional year. The ginger-haired, baby-face Dutchman of team Rabobank rode to ninth overall at the Giro d’Italia and won a stage of the Tour de Suisse last year.

He said, “I really improved my climbing skills when I moved to Spain, where I train a lot on the climbs, sometimes with Robert Gesink.”

Kruijswijk is ready to win a Grand Tour stage this year, possibly when he rides for a third time in the Giro d’Italia. Dress in orange and prepare to scream for three weeks.

Daniel Teklehaimanot

Daniel Teklehaimanot is the first black-African to race in the WorldTour and he represents GreenEDGE – how cool is that? Support him, and you are supporting a continent that may hold the next Eddy Merckx, or at least Cadel Evans.

The 23-year-old from Eritrea already rode as a trainee for Cervélo TestTeam and in 2009, finished sixth overall in one of the top amateur races, the Tour de l’Avenir. GreenEDGE’s general manager, Shayne Bannan explained, “If we can harness his energy, we have a guy who can potentially make a name for himself.”

Daniel Teklehaimanot neo pro in GreenEdge

Michael Hepburn

Michael Hepburn has the talent to become the next Fabian Cancellara. The Aussie from Queensland is only 20, but already helped Australia to a team pursuit gold medal at the track worlds and won a TT bronze medal in the Under 23 road worlds.

What’s next? GreenEDGE will allow him to focus on the London Olympics and then harness his power on the road. With several promising results as an amateur in time trials, Hepburn will likely bag a win in his debut season.

George Bennett

George Bennett probably will have to watch team-mates Andy and Fränk Schleck race the Tour de France, but he IS team-mates with them nonetheless. The 21-year-old Kiwi signed his first pro contract with RadioShack-Nissan after a year in its feeder team.

Bennett may well get his chance to shine in the Tour one day, as he is a gifted climber. Look for him to excel in smaller stage races this year.

The day after Boxing Day, when most people are still gorging themselves on leftover Christmas Pudding in front of the cricket, also marks a mass exodus of Victorian track cyclists from their Melbourne abodes. Over the next four days they will journey across the rural country side, stopping to race first in Horsham, then in Bendigo, then in Shepparton, and finally in Wangaratta.

In doing so they are following a tradition that stretches back decades, and that is mirrored in both Tasmania and New South Wales. While the Tasmanian Carnivals are more lucrative, and the New South Wales Carnivals more centrally located, this year the Victorian Carnivals underwent something of a resurgence, with increasing numbers across the grades and genders. Despite occasional reports to the contrary, track cycling is booming in Victoria, and the four days ‘out bush’ were no exception.

The first stop is Horsham. The landscape is flat and dry, with the hot wind usually blasting down from the deserts to the north. This year, however, the wind is coming from the south. The Horsham velodrome is flat, considerably different from the indoor velodromes city cyclists are accustomed to, so wind direction is important, playing a role in both gear selection and the timing of attacks. Each of the carnivals has its own program, and these inform each rider not only what races they will be riding in, but also how much – or how little – of a head start they will have in the richest race of the day, the wheelrace. These handicapped races include everyone across the grades, with heats in the earlier sessions and the final towards the end of the day. The handicap marks are always controversial, and this year is no exception. Riders are complaining to their mates, or mocking them about their poor chances, or sitting quietly content with the 100 metres head start they have on the rest of the field.

Perusing the program in Horsham. Image by Gavin Sittampalan

As the first stop on a long journey, Horsham is a day of much catching up and reminiscing. Everyone seems to still be feeling the post-Christmas buzz. The racing is fast and fierce, sure, but seems to come second to mates chatting with mates, parents and partners procuring and sharing food, and folks helping each other out. Not everyone signs for money at the end of the day, but everyone looks pretty relaxed and comfortable as they head into town to search for a hotel.

The next morning country drivers are surprised by the sudden influx of high-end road bikes along their backroads and laneways. It’s important to get in one or two hours of easy pedaling each morning, and this is probably the most pleasant part of the week. Rolling out through empty paddocks, state parks and grazing land, chatting amiably with your mates and breathing in the country air certainly does more than just work the lactic acid out of your legs.

Bendigo is the next stop, and in Bendigo, track cycling is big news. Unlike the other destinations, in Bendigo the track is spitting distance from the centre of town. There’s a significant crowd in attendance, a coffee cart and a genuine family fun times atmosphere. The numbers in Bendigo are stronger than anywhere else, with enough riders for three women’s grades and five men’s grades. The track is big, open and slightly D shaped – local knowledge counts for a lot. A rider has to lean right into that final corner, or they’ll drift up the track and out of the sprinter’s lane, leaving the door open for one of the Bendigo boys to come through and take the win.

Strong field in Bendigo. Image by Gavin Sittampalan.

Local hero Glenn O’Shea is not in attendance, but in his absence Beijing Olympian Daniel Ellis has shown up. The carnival is no doubt simply part of his training, but he certainly knows how to put on a show for the crowd. In the first race he sits in the pack until the last one hundred metres, then blasts through the pack with ease, taking the win and leaving the rest of the race in awe.

It seems most of the riders linger in Bendigo the next morning, as it is difficult to walk down Hargreaves St without bumping into a fellow cyclist. The previous night’s wheelrace winner, Tyler Spurrell, is seen reading about himself in the local paper. Slim blokes with smooth legs quiz each other on the whereabouts of the best coffee. No one seems particularly keen to hit the road towards Shepparton, known colloquially as “Shep.”

Tyler Spurrell took out the Bendigo Wheelrace. Image by Gavin Sittampalan.

Tyler Spurrell was interviewed at length about his victory. Image By Gavin Sittampalan.

The Shep track is a few kilometres out on the edge of town – looking away from the back the view is paddocks, orchards and cows. It’s dry and dusty in Shep, and the riders are starting to get tired. Shep offers more races for slightly less prize money, and the commissaires have been inventive with the formats, offering elimination races, progressive points, and win-and-outs, among the common handicaps and scratch races. Ellis is again in attendance, showing all and sundry how to win a keirin, but today he is joined by Seoul Olympian and Shep local Stephen Fairless. The local migrant community is catering, and the smell of exotic spices wafts over the track. The night ends with the Men’s Victorian Five Kilometre Track Championships, and here Blackburn’s Brent Nelson shows his dominance, defying significant opposition and sprinting to the gold medal.

Signing on for prize money at the end of the night. Image by Gavin Sittampalan.

By way of contrast, the Wangaratta track is down by a river, with grass and trees around the outside. The track itself is around the outside of a footy oval, and consequently is huge – around five hundred metres, or twice the size of DISC. It’s also flat, which wreaks havoc on the riders, who skip wheels at speed and generally float up the track coming into the final straight. To further complicate matters, as the sun goes down seasonally appropriate Christmas Beetles invade the track, making a frightening crunching noise as they are crushed underneath the spinning wheels.

By the time Wangaratta rolls around everyone is relaxed – spectators, riders, and even officials. Birthday boy Stu Vaughn is allowed to jump into the final race, which is written in the program as a points race, but which chief commissaire Ian Notting decided will instead be a motorpace. The ensuring race was perhaps the most intense of the carnival, with riders rolling turns behind a motorbike doing fifty, then sixty, then perhaps even seventy kilometres per hour. Legs are hitting one-fifty, one-sixty, then perhaps even one-seventy revs per minute. By the time the motorbike pulls off only Spurrell and Nelson are left. The two teammates roll up the track and have a quick chat, before Nelson hits the gas and takes the win.

Driving back to the city that night the cars smell of tiredness, sweat, unwashed lycra, staminade powder and dust. The vans and station wagons immediately in front and immediately behind are also fit to burst with hastily packed frames, race wheels, spare wheels, rollers, dirty clothes and weary bodies. As the city comes back into view thoughts turn to the future, both cycling: the Bay Crits, Bendigo Madison weekend, the Austral; and personal: a shower, loved ones, and the comfort of their own beds. When they pull into the driveway, finally home at last, most of them will leave unpacking the car until the next morning.

Full Race Results:
Horsham
Bendigo
Shepparton
Wangaratta

For more information on track cycling in Victoria this summer, check out the Cycling Victorian summer calendar.

Leipheimer superior in San Luis

Alberto Contador and Levi Leipheimer dominated the Tour of San Luis in Argentina last week, but to be honest, they faced inferior rivals. Besides Vuelta a España winner, Vincenzo Nibali, they were up against mostly friendly South Americans.

“In the group there were riders looking and talking about me,” Contador told Italian newspaper, La Gazzetta dello Sport. “They all wanted to take a photo with me.”

Contador (Saxo Bank) won the first mountain stage to Mirador del Potrero on Wednesday and the second and final one to Mirador del Sol on Friday. American Levi (OmegaPharma-Quick Step) trailed slightly behind on both stages, but won the time trial by one minute over Contador.

“It was expected,” Contador explained. “After the Tour maybe I was still for too long. Even my brother was worried. I was seven kilograms over [from in-form weight 62kg]. I could still lose about three kilograms.”

Leipheimer’s win paved the way for his overall win. He won tours in Utah, Colorado and Switzerland last year. This year, he will be OmegaPharma’s captain at the Tour de France.

Nibali finished second, 33 seconds behind Leipheimer in the 19.5-kilometre time trial.

“Contador said that he’s only been training for 20 days and the other [Leipheimer] said that he had to stop for 10 days due to tendonitis. So, I’m the only idiot who’s training like crazy?” Nibali said, letting loose after the time trial. “Don’t try to kid me!”

He finished fifth in the final overall behind Leipheimer. Contador finished second at 46 seconds. Australian Jonathan Clarke (United Healthcare) finished 18th overall.

Cameron Meyer and Leigh Howard Take Berlin Six Day

Cameron Meyer and Leigh Howard have won their first Berlin Six Day in a thrilling final day of racing. Kenny de Ketele and Iljo Keisse went into the final evening with the lead, but couldn’t hold the pace with the previous five nights of racing and dropped down to third. Franco Marvulli and Silvan Diller moved to second place with only 24 points separating the top four places. The last Australian to win a the Berlin Six Day was Danny Clark in 1988. More good info on this story at cyclingnews.

1 Leigh Howard (Aus) & Cameron Meyer (Aus) Axel Lange 263 pts
2 Franco Marvulli (Swi) & Silvan Dillier (Swi) Wolfram 254
3 Iljo Keisse (Bel) & Kenny De Ketele (Bel) Techem 254
4 Leif Lampater (Ger) & Roger Kluge (Ger) Schultheiss 239

Contador waits for CAS

Besides his weight, Contador returned to Madrid yesterday morning worrying about a possible doping ban. He now has dropped beef from his diet, but says that a contaminated steak that he ate at the 2010 Tour de France led to him testing positive for Clenbuterol.

Contador won that Tour – his third title – but later discovered he failed an anti-doping test. The Spanish federation cleared him, but the Union Cycliste International (UCI) and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland.

The CAS heard the case in November and after a few delays, was due to announce its decision on Monday. Instead, it announced that the decision will come next week on February 6.

Contador faces a two-year doping ban and loss of his 2010 Tour title. He says he is innocent and prefers not to think of the consequences for himself and cycling.

“I try to alienate myself from it as much as possible, even if that’s not easy,” he told La Gazzetta dello Sport. “I think only of cycling, which is what brings me pleasure.”

Contador’s next scheduled race is the Challenge Mallorca, February 5 to 8.

Boonen returns

Leipheimer’s OmegaPharma team-mates Francesco Chicchi and Tom Boonen dominated the sprints in San Luis. Boonen’s win on Sunday marked a comeback, even if the startlist lacked depth.

His last win came in Gent-Wevelgem nearly a year ago. In past years, he was the king of the classics, winning three times Paris-Roubaix and twice Tour of Flanders. In recent years, he had problems with injuries and cocaine.

“It’s been nothing but problems and bad luck in the last two years,” Boonen said at the presentation on January 13. In Argentina he said, “It’s a nice feeling to taste victory again. I hope this is the first of many.”

Tom Boonen wins stage 7 of Tour de San Luis - Photo Cor Vos

Evans talks about… his adopted son

BMC Racing presented its 26 cyclists on Friday in Spain, including Tour de France winner Cadel Evans. Evans talked about winning the French race again this year and, something closer to his heart, becoming a dad.

“It happens like,” Evans told news agency, AAP, while clicking his fingers. “It is a flood of emotions and it has been an amazing process.”

He described how he and his wife Chiara went to Ethiopia over Christmas to take custody of 15-month-old Robel. The process took years.

They first discussed adopting a baby five years ago and had their first meeting with Switzerland’s social services (where they live) in October 2009. From that point, though, he said that the time flew.

Evans still did not expect the process to be complete until 2012, but in August, while racing at the Tour of Colorado, he received good news. Then, when the couple where in Australia in October, they were called and given a hearing date in Addis Ababa on December 28.

“You come back from the courtroom in a taxi and this time you can walk out the door [of the childcare centre] with him,” Evans said. “It is quite bizarre.”

Robel was abandoned in the streets at six months old. He is now with Chiara in Stabio while dad trains with his team in Spain.

Gilbert and Hushovd promise to support Evans

Evans won the Tour last year, but Belgian Philippe Gilbert won about everything else. BMC Racing signed him and 2010 World Champion, Thor Hushovd to the team for this season and to support Evans.

They said at the presentation in Denia, Spain, that they would support Evans towards a second title, which may not be a surprise since the team pays them to do so and, at least, say so.

Gilbert won the opening stage and Hushovd won two stages last year. They both will forgo their hopes of winning a green jersey for Evans.

The three musketeers, Philip Gilbert, Cadel Evans and Thor Hushovd during the January trianing camp in Spain. Image: Team BMC

“We will do everything for him,” Gilbert said, “to support him to win the Tour again.”

“It’s easy, Cadel is the defending champion and our main goal is to win the Tour,” Hushovd said. “We have to sacrifice something and we knew that when we signed with BMC. We will all work to help Cadel.”

Gilbert and Hushovd also promised that they would help each other in the classics this spring.

Valverde makes a point, or does he?

Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) proved strong on returning from his doping suspension in the Tour Down Under. He won the Willunga Hill stage and placed himself for an eventual second place overall.

Did he make his point? No, at least not with the UCI.

Valverde after the Queen stage of the 2012 Tour Down Under.

The cycling federation awarded him WorldTour points for his second overall (80), stage win (6) and fourth place in Stirling (1). Those 87 points put him second in the WorldTour individual rankings and Movistar second behind RadioShack in the team rankings, but they will not figure when it comes to licence renewal.

The UCI decided last year to withhold points won by returning dopers when reviewing a team’s WorldTour licence application, specifically the its sporting value. The UCI’s licence committee consider four criteria: sporting, ethical, financial and administration.

The rule applies for riders who served a doping suspension of at least two years. Spain’s Movistar might suffer since Valverde is its key rider, but the UCI would rather see such teams building on clean riders.

Movistar’s licence expires at the end of 2013, but will be reviewed this fall, as the UCI does with all teams every year.

Roelandts eyes return in Tirreno-Adriatico

Jürgen Roelandts plans on returning to action in March, nearly two months after crashing and fracturing a vertebra in the Tour Down Under. Doctors gave him the OK to train on rollers after a check up yesterday in Herentals, Belgium.

Team Lotto-Belisol took him to Adelaide to help André Greipel win stages. Roelandts hopes he can be back in action for Tirreno-Adriatico, March 7 to 13, and then to help Greipel win Milano-Sanremo on March 17.

He fractured his sixth vertebra in a crash in the final kilometre of stage one of the Tour Down Under.

Jurgen Roelandts (Lotto Belisol) with neck brace after his crash in stage 1. Photo Cor Vos

Racing continues in Qatar and Mallorca

Cadel Evans will make his season debut in the Challenge Mallorca in Spain this week, February 5 to 8. He joins the Schleck brothers, Andy and Fränk, who finished second and third last year at the Tour de France, and Alberto Contador.

The Challenge Mallorca is a unique series of one-day races where teams are able to interchange riders for different days. Teams, like BMC Racing, often include the race as part of their training camps and field around 10 riders.

World Champion Mark Cavendish (Sky) will debut in the Tour of Qatar, February 5 to 10. The race is a sprinters’ affair, held over flat, wind-swept and mostly life-less roads.

Mark Renshaw won the overall title last year with HTC and will return this year to lead team Rabobank.

GreenEDGE will send a team with Robbie McEwen and Baden Cooke, Garmin with Tyler Farrar, BMC with Gilbert and Hushovd, Katusha with Denis Galimzyanov, Lotto with Greipel, OmegaPharma with Boonen, Liquigas with Peter Sagan…

The race:
Stage 1: February 5: Barzan Towers – Doha Golf Club, 142.5km
Stage 2: February 6: Lusail TTT, 11.3km
Stage 3: February 7: Dukhan – Al Gharafa Stadium, 146.5km
Stage 4: February 8: Al Thakhira – Madinat Al Shamal, 144km
Stage 5: February 9: Al Khor Corniche, 160km
Stage 6: February 10: Sealine Beach Resort – Doha Corniche, 120km

WorldTour racing continues with the Paris-Nice stage race from March 4 to 11.

Beautiful Tour of Italy

Danish singer Malene Mortensen recorded a song in honour of the Giro d’Italia starting in her country this year, Beautiful Italy. The video includes some memorable scenes from last year’s edition, won by Contador.

“You know what you got to do…” get ready to dance!

I don’t know many riders that have ever spent much time considering their bidon cages. They are the floor mats of a bike: most of us just make sure the colour matches the frame and only replace them when they fail. Given how much we rely on them, function deserves to take precedence over form, but next time you’re replacing your cages, take a moment to consider your options: there are plenty to choose from.

Metal

The earliest Bidon cages were fashioned from metallic wire or tubing, so metal cages typically make for a classic look. However, Tacx and Lezyne offer contemporary shapes with a raw look. In all cases, the use of metal allows for a little “customisation” (ie by bending the frame) to adjust the hold on the bottle.

From left to right: Elite Ciussi Inox, King Ti (also available in stainless steel), King Iris, Lezyne Alloy Road Drive, Tacx Tao.

Colours

Plastic and aluminium bidon cages are available in a wide range of colours including powder-coated and anodised varieties. This is one way to provide a striking highlight of colour to a neutral or unfinished (eg Ti) frame. Alternatively, you might want to fly the colours of your nation’s flag.

From left to right: Elite Custom Race Colour, Elite Custom Race Flag (oi, oi, oi), Zipp, Bontrager Race Lite.

Add a splash of colour with Arundel's Dave-O cage or a lot more with powder-coated cages from Minoura.

Carbon

Carbon rules the bidon cage market at the moment. Now cages are available in an incredible array of shapes that are lightweight and durable. The only thing lacking from this corner of the market is colour.

From left to right: Arundel Mandible, Cinelli Ram, Colnago BC-01, Far and Near.

From left to right: Elite Moro d'Elite, Elite Patao, Elite Sior, Elite Paron.

From left to right: FSA K-Force, FSA SLK, Lezyne Road Drive, Look.

From left to right: New Ultimate, Ritchey, Tacx Uma, Time.

From left to right: Token 9422, Token 945, Token 941, XLAB Gorilla

Problem solvers

The only problem that ever needs to be solved for a bidon cage is fitting a small frame or tight triangle, hence the invention of a cage that can be accessed from the side. Elite’s side-loading cage can be flipped for entry from either side while Arundel’s offers models that can be accessed from either the right (Sideloader) or left (Othersideloader).

Left to right: Elite Ciussi Side Entry, Bontrager Sideswipe, Arundel Sideloader.

Exotica

In every market, there’s always room for a bit of exotica, and so it goes for bidon cages. Campagnolo’s Record cage is priced like exotica, the Emporelli cage may be perfect, the Tune Skyline is the lightest at 5 grams (but you must use a tapered bottle), and then there’s a bit of wood (mahogany, fir, maple, bamboo, zebrawood, and oak)  from Sykes.

From left to right: Campagnolo Record, Emporelli, Tune Skyline, Sykes white oak.

I’ve been using the Elite Moro D’Elite cages for a few years now and they work so well that they have ceased to figure in my thoughts. My bottles have been held tight over all sorts of terrain yet I can retrieve without much effort. The only thing I’ve noticed is that the prongs can vibrate against each other when the cage is empty. I’d love to hear about your experience with any of the cages featured here, and let me know if I’ve overlooked any great cages.

While all of this was going on I got in touch with my friends from SRAM to see if they could do anything to get Mat back on the road. I could tell from the photos that it was a cyclocross bike (the media reports say it’s a “hi-tech bike”) and it wouldn’t be a big deal to get him a new derailleur and wheels. They were more than happy to help out. SRAM dropped off the Apex derailleur and S30 wheels and on Sunday I delivered them to Mat who gave me a couple bottles of his homemade ale as a gesture of his appreciation (I assume that Mat got his bike fixed before he had received these parts from SRAM). I had meant to pass these onto SRAM guys but I got a little thirsty during the Nadal and Djokovic match. Sorry fellas…

This morning I read about Mat’s a civil lawsuit against Shane Warne for the $1575 repair bill on his “hi-tech bike” plus damages, interest and costs. A minor incident like this wouldn’t be something the police would normally get involved with but Shane Warne has a massive amount of influence over a certain population who seem to have taken it upon themselves to make our roads more dangerous. The police are doing absolutely nothing about Warnie’s irresponsible behaviour and will not press any charges. Mat tells me that it’s not about the money, it’s about the principle of the matter and he’s standing up for cyclist’s rights on the road. Civil action is Mat’s only recourse to make Warnie admit that what he did was wrong and face up to his social responsibility as a public figure.

The day after Warnie began his rants I noticed a distinct difference with many motorist’s behaviour towards cyclists on the roads. I first noticed it when myself and a mate were out riding in the Dandenongs like we normally do on a Saturday morning, however this time we were constantly abused and had half a dozen near misses. I was ready to walk my bike home on the footpath. In seven years of riding in Melbourne I’ve only had a few of incidents like this. Over the past couple weeks countless other cyclists have describe this same type of behaviour from Warnie’s disciples.

I don’t know Shane Warne but I do know that he hasn’t learned to connect his brain to his fingers before sending out tweets to over 644,000 people. I had to laugh when I saw this twitter exchange between Warnie and a parody QantasPR account beginning with:

@QantasPR: “We’ve left @warne888 stranded in Perth. Melbourne cyclists, it’s now safe to ride on the streets”

@warne888 proceeds to tear into Qantas…

Twitter exchange between a QantasPR parody account and Warnie. (the twitter stream has been slightly modified to depict the exchange that took place).

Even though we all wish this cyclist vs car debate would go away, I wish Mat all the best in getting Shane Warne to face up to his actions and reiterate our rights on the road in the mainstream press. The last thing we need is one of Australia’s role models setting this type of example. In the mean time I look forward to following Warnie’s comical tweets about this and many other escapades.

So tell us about how the past 12 hours and how it’s been for you?

Oh my god, amazing! Easily one of the best things I’ve done in my life. In my first World Cup there were 10,00-15,000 people and that was amazing enough, and today there were 61,000 people. The atmosphere was unlike anything I’ve ever been a part of. To have actually been racing as well was something I’ll never forget.

The fans really get into it. On my practice lap the sand sections are really hard to ride. I haven’t ridden much in the sand so I stopped and re-did a few before the race. All the fans got into it and gave me slow claps and everything. They got right behind me during my practice laps and when I was racing so it was really cool.

What was your goal of this race?

I tried to keep my goals pretty realistic. I wanted to beat two finishers and I did that. I wanted to finish on the same lap as a few of the quicker guys and I didn’t quite get that – I was one lap off the guys who I wanted to finish with. There was a Canadian bloke and a Japanese bloke who I would have liked to finish with but I was 1 lap behind them.

Are there other guys like you out there having a crack and not necessarily competitive?

There’s a Norwegian guy, and American (he’d like 40 or something) but same kind of thing. They’re not in it to do particularly well, they just want to promote the sport in their home country and try to kick-start a bit of action back home. It was nice to meet others who were there in the same mindset without any pressure to perform. We were all out there just to enjoy it.

When I think about it, what you’re doing is not that different than Phil Anderson did with road racing when he rocked up to France back in 1979 looking for a bike race.

Phil Anderson went on to do some pretty amazing things. I’m not sure I’ll get that far but in terms of being one of the first Australians it’s pretty cool to be here.

Can you put into perspective how good are these guys are who you’re racing against?

It’s a whole other level. I’ve ridden a decently high level mountain biking (National Series) and I certainly have followed mountain biking for a while so I know where I stand. People like Jose Hermida came from a professional MTB background and was the World Champion and then today on the course he was well and truly off the pace. We were just watching the replay of our race tonight and I wouldn’t say the top guys make it look easy, but they certainly struggle through it a hell of a lot faster than everyone else. On some of the courses where I’ve gotten lapped and rode behind them briefly it’s quite amazing how they ride through the mud and sand. They’re generally able to say on their bike much longer where I’d be dismounting much earlier than they would.

Are you learning lots or just practicing and perfecting what you already knew?

No, I’m certainly learning lots of new stuff. It’s almost like learning how to mountain bike from scratch again. I’ve taken it back to the basics. Simple things like looking where you want to go and picking your line. Also things like tyre pressure is extremely important which I didn’t have any idea of. Also when to remount after you’ve dismounted. That was pretty important on the course today. If you remount too early and you don’t have enough speed you just stop. You need to remount when the track started to go downhill to give you a bit of momentum so you’re able to cut through the sand and mud better.

Have you gotten to know the higher level Cyclocross pros while over there?

With the very top level riders I generally try to keep out of the way because I don’t want to put them off right before their race. A lot of the middle level riders have been really cool. Some of the Japanese riders and a German bloke who has been really great to me. Not really the top guys though. I said G’day to Jeremy Powers and he’s a bit of a dude, but he was in the middle of something but politely said, “I’d love to chat but I gotta keep moving”.

Those top guys are all paid big money and each of the top 15 have their own little fan clubs with their favorite riders on jackets and caps and stuff. The top 5 are very well paid – definitely millionaires. They have their own merchandise and endorsements. You walk into the supermarket and Sven Nys has his own mineral water brand for example. These guys are rock stars.

How much prize money?

You’d have to double check but I think it’s about 15,000 Euro for a World Cup win. They pay all the way down to 50th which gets 300 Euro. I would have loved to have snuck into there but didn’t quite get there.

What brought on this Belgian adventure of yours?

I was working at a bike shop called St Kilda Cycles and a Belgian cyclist named Rolland just popped in one day during the cyclocross season in Melbourne in 2011. I had originally planned to go overseas and race but I didn’t necessarily intend on going to Belgium. The level would be way too far out of my league. I was tossing up Japan or America, or even England. I got chatting to this Rolland who was a really nice guy and convinced me to come to Belgium. He was moving back there with his Australian girlfriend and offered for me to stay with them and they’d help out anyway they could.

After the Melbourne CX season I had a fair bit of success but I certainly didn’t have high expectations. I decided that I should just come to Belgium and have a crack. You tend to rely quite a bit on other people. You need to get to the races, have a mechanic in the pits, have someone to take your jacket at the start line, etc. So Rolland’s offer was a good opportunity to make the most of it. The fact that the UCI is trying to globalise the sport would mean that being an Australian I’d be able to get entries into a fair few races. So I shot off some emails to race organisers, I contacted Cycling Australia and MTB Australia and presented to them my intentions and explained that I don’t expect any support – all I want to do is get an entry into a World Cup. I’d do anything to make that happen. I spoke to them for a while had to speak to the High Performance center in SA. They asked me a few questions just to make sure I was serious about this and it wasn’t some sort of joke. After speaking with them they confirmed that I could wear the Australian colors during the races.

Lewis tearing up the local Melbourne CX scene last winter. Thanks to the hard work and passion of the guys behind Dirty Deeds CX we look forward to a thriving cyclocross scene in Australia's future. Photo courtesy of brianmangano.com

I had some UCI points for finishing the World Cups so from there getting into the World Championships was smooth sailing. I stayed in contact with the people at CA and they put my entry through. It was all good! I’ve been extremely lucky. Everything has just fallen my way with this trip.

What about the Superprestige and GVA Trophy races?

That’s very high up on my list of things to do. I’ve raced pretty much every weekend and I managed to squeeze in a GVA trophy but haven’t managed to race a Superprestige yet. There is one next weekend but I’ll see how I go. I might try to find a smaller race to do. I wouldn’t mind getting a result!

What type of support have you had while over there?

Giant bikes came on board for me during the CX seasons in Australia. I had one of their bikes already and was lucky enough to be given a top of the line carbon TCX which has been fantastic. It wouldn’t have been possible without having 2 bikes. Every rider in every race has 2 bikes and most have quite a few spare wheels.

Rolland, the guy who I met in St Kilda Cycles, is a pretty handy mechanic. He’s worked at the Crocodile Trophy and in bike shops as a mechanic and he’s done a bit of my pit work. His friends and his brother have also helped out. We’d always need to people in the transition area – one to take the bike and one to pass the clean one onto me. Their main job is to hose it down, get all the mud off the drivetrain, lube the chain, and keep it rolling. Rolland’s girlfriend was often at the start/finish line for me to take my jacket and give me my ventolin inhaler (I have asthma), because often you have to wait around in the cold at the startline before you set off.

You rely on a lot of people and it’s something I hadn’t really realised before I went over and was planning on just winging it.

Has there been any time you thought it was just too hard?

Ha! No. There have been a couple times I kinda tough that but I snap out of it pretty quickly because I realise how lucky I am to be over here and have all these people supporting me. It’s really only when I have to get up early and it’s freezing cold and 20-30cm of thick muddy on the course and I thought “F$%^, I don’t want to be here”. But once the gun goes it’s completely different and you get in the zone and I enjoy every minute of it.

The highlight?

It has to be today in the big sand pits where all the fans were going just nuts. That was amazing! Really really special…

What’s next?

I’d like to go overseas again and race cross. If I do it’ll probably be Japan or America. In the meantime I’ll be back in Australia racing on the road and obviously as many cyclocross races as I can during the winter in Melbourne and even interstate. I’ll probably focus a bit more on the road than mountain biking this winter. It’s weird. I don’t really enjoy mountain biking in the mud at all, but I love cyclocross in it. So I’ll do some MTB races while it’s still dry and then switch over to CX and the road later on.

Out of all the things you’re successful at, why the love for cyclocross?

The atmosphere at the races, even in Melbourne, was heaps of fun. The fact that you can see the entire course from one standing position, people are there and everyone is happy and a bit drunk cheering you on. I’ve been racing bikes for a while but usually I would never really ask family or friends to come and watch one of my races – it can be a little bit boring. For CX races though they’re a heap of fun and I don’t even have to ask my friends anymore – they’re all pretty keen to come down. It’s great to have people you know there cheering you on.

To go from an already great atmosphere in Melbourne to 61,000 screaming fans in Koksijde was amazing.

I come back in a couple weeks and foolishly signed up for the MTB nationals a couple weeks after that. It’ll be a bit different to what I’ve gotten used to here!

Check out Lewis’ blog to get more photos and write-up on his inspiring journey.

As a side note, last year there was a gentleman named Ray Rhodes who lives in Gipplsand, Victoria who left a comment on a cyclocross post saying:

How long before it get really serious with a national championship? 

In 1970 or was it 1971? I was the first Aussie to ride the worlds, I almost said raced but to be honest it was a course that was way too technical for me. The riding and running was Ok but there were guys ‘bunny hopping’ one meter piles of railway sleepers and at one section we rode down a three metre wall. Seriously I was petrified.

I may be still the only guy (stupid) enough to try his hand at the worlds.

I briefly spoke with Ray over email about lining up an interview about his experience at the ’1970/71 Cyclocross World Championships but I got distracted and we never ended up chatting. The race would have either been held in Apeldorn, Netherlands or Prague, Czechoslovakia. This is the only other Aussie I’ve ever heard of who has competed at this level of cyclocross and I look forward to getting the story from Ray very soon!

UPDATE: Apparently Luke Stockwell also represented Australia in the Cyclocross World Championships in the early 2000′s.