Morvélo Test Team http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com See the other Test Team Riders posterous.com Fri, 11 Jan 2013 05:06:52 -0800 Winter ‏‏‏‏‏ http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/winter http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/winter

Now that we’re well into January, the FF button on my winter’s training will definitely feel like it’s been pressed (That’s Fast Forward, not Follow Friday for anyone that was wondering), because the racing season has moved from creeping up on us to a very distinct canter.


In general, the last 3 months or so have contributed to what I think may have been my most productive winter yet. With the much appreciated and continued support of the Dave Rayner Fund for 2013, I have been able to concentrate a lot more solely on training, using a few days a week at The Tristore only to subsidise my winter outgoings and to keep my feet on the ground. When it’s not necessary, living outside of the athlete’s bubble is pretty refreshing, so being able to take advantage of that while at home is good for the head, I find.


While we’re on the subject, a colleague at work was generous enough to lend me a Powertap to use over the winter, which is probably the main contributory factor to the improvements in my training that I’ve seen. Being able to plot two values on a graph gives each one a much greater worth, thus enabling progress, a lot easier to track. I find myself looking forward to sessions far more, to find out if I’ve got better, or if I’m tired, or any number of other conclusions. If training with power is a possibility for me at any point in the future, I’m going to have to make it a necessity, that’s for sure.


I was fortunate enough to get out to Majorca for 2 weeks prior to Christmas too. Again, a fair-weather training camp is something that was a new addition to my winter programme, but has rooted itself as another fundamental for future seasons. The physical benefits of training in 20 degrees compared to 5 degrees come in their masses, and likewise for the mental ones. Being able to compartmentalise what is essentially a 4 month training block is pretty essential, and time between the off season and Christmas is usually the hardest time to do this, but a training camp is apparently the perfect remedy.


Looking ahead...is proving to be quite an exciting prospect. Going into what will be my 4th year on the continent, there hath been no love, commitment or enthusiasm lost for the task of trying to become a cog the sport which obsesses us. 


In 2013 I’m going to be riding for Terra Footwear-Bicycle Line, one of the 18 Top Competition sides, and one well trodden by some of my peers, so a set up that I know will be a good one to be involved in. With a calendar made up by the vast majority of “proper” races, it should provide ample opportunities to get involved with the big boys, and hopefully for some single digit placings too.

For my sins, I’m going to be living with two of my housemates from years gone by, in a different location though. Gone is the creepy, dilapidated house we all became attached to, and in is a fresh apartment above my coach’s training centre. It’s a bit further to ride home after parking up for coffee, but the benefits of living in such a place will I hope outweigh such a major con!

I’m still waiting for confirmation, but something else new for this year will be my imminent enrolment on the books of the Open Uni, so the procrastination and idleness that often fill my days in Belgium will hopefully now be put to good use. I’m also continuing my idealistic habit of prioritising interests and enjoyments over ‘proper job’ career prospects in deciding to study the arts. So there, take that one school.


Right now though, I’m on the very fine line between getting quite fit, and getting sick; off the bike I am walking around sniffling, on the bike I am riding around with a jet-pack attached, so after attaching some pictures to this blog I’m off to consume my weight in Vitamin C and demand my family wear surgical masks and gloves at all times.


Tot Ziens, Jonges.

 

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Mon, 30 Jul 2012 07:07:16 -0700 Post Tour Crit ‏‏‏‏ http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/post-tour-crit http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/post-tour-crit

Post-Tour Criteriums have long been a part of cycling history and tradition, so from literally the day after the Champs-Elysees, and for the following few weeks, towns across Belgium, France and Holland put up big bucks to secure the stars of the sport for their races.


The result is pre-determined, and in a throwback to the days of Hinault, Merckx et al, riders are told before the start when they can or can’t attack, and what place they have to finish in. To this effect they aren’t really “races”, but parades, for the town and sponsors to showcase themselves, for the public to see the superstars of their sport, and for the riders to make some money. After battering themselves around France for 3 weeks, there has to be some incentive for Sagan, Cav, Petacchi and Cadel to get kitted up again the very next day, after all.


The first is always Aalst. The Tour finishes on Sunday; Aalst’s post-tour crit is on Monday. Then comes Roeselare, and some other smaller ones. The Olympics meant that this year there were fewer big names than usual at these, but last night (the day after the Olympic Road Race) saw Cavendish, McEwen, Sagan, Nibali and Basso line up with a host of other ProTour riders for the crit in Ninove.


As it was only 15k down the road, and as my team mate got a wildcard entry because it is his home town, a couple of us went along. The crowds were astonishing, lining the 1.5km circuit, and all half-cut with a beer in one hand and a burger in the other. With Nick Nuyens, Johan Van Summeren, Maxime Monfort and Stijn Devolder all in attendance, they obviously had some guys to cheer for.


My team mate Sean was off the front constantly for the first half of the race, and was even in a 2-up with Cav for a couple of laps. A “threatening” move went clear at about half distance with Basso, Van Summeren and Kris Boeckmans in it, before it of course came back together with 2 laps to go. McEwen led through the final corner, which was where we were watching, before being passed by Cavendish just a few metres from the line.


During the presentation I found myself standing next to Cav’s Mrs, Peta Todd, so naturally sparked up a conversation, before some bloke in World Champs kit wades over through the crowds, gives girlfriend and daughter a kiss, and then disappears again into the throngs of people. Peter Sagan and Robbie McEwen then barrage their way past and out of sight again....All very surreal but pretty cool nonetheless!  

Everyone knows that the night is rigged, but it is a great spectacle all the same, with every bit of the buzz and atmosphere that any competitive bike race comes with, so long may the tradition continue.


As far as my racing is concerned, after a bit of a lull at the end of June and first half of July, I am starting to find my legs again. On Monday I did a kermis in Lierde, which I suffered a lot in, but came away with 17th after winning the bunch kick.

During the week I went over to Holland to stay with my house mate from last year, and get some quality training rides in around the hills of the Limburg region, on the tri-border of Belgium, Holland and Germany. We rode a lot of the Amstel Gold and this year’s World Champs course...boy there are some climbs around there, but after a hard race on the Monday and plenty of KM’s in Holland, I knew I would have some form back.

On Thursday we did ‘Internatie Reningelst’, a big race over in West Flanders. I got away with 14 guys after 15km of a 170km race, and we managed to stay away. Confident that I was the fastest there, I sat last wheel and when the attacks started coming I just followed, hoping it would come together for a sprint. Unfortunately 5 guys slipped off just as we went under the red kite, and we went on to contest the win. I even managed to drop my chain coming out of the last corner, so was left 20m off the back with 300 to go. I got going again though, and came past all but one of them for 7th place. Knowing if it had worked out differently I could have won was at first frustrating, but in hindsight I am very happy with a top ten in a race of that stature, and it’s given me my mojo back for the rest of the season, so let’s be having it. 

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Wed, 11 Jul 2012 11:19:48 -0700 A Day in the Life ‏‏‏ http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/a-day-in-the-life http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/a-day-in-the-life


I mentioned in my last blog the controllable aspects of improving as a cyclist – training well, eating well, resting well...

It’s with this in mind that I thought I would do a blog about the day to day happenings of me, or most other guys doing the same thing – living and racing abroad on the continent. Days of the week, dates, birthdays, is for the most part irrelevant to us, with everything coming down into two categories – race days and training days.


Training day

8:30 – Wake up, take pulse and neck vitamins. If I’ve had a particularly hard day previously, timings can get extended (strict discipline needed here to define what a hard day is!)

8:45 – Breakfast. The most yearned for meal of the day after going to bed with a gurgling stomach and waking up chewing the corner of my pillow. A bowl of porridge with banana and some sort of condiment. (fellow Morvelo TT member Katie Winton can tell you more on this subject). Speculoos paste and Peanut butter are prime candidates, though.

My various housemates have their respective rising times, and I gauge the progress of the morning based almost entirely on this, in the mean time fiddling around getting my bike ready to ride and making excuses for “just one more coffee”.

10-11am - Ride. The first highlight of the day (usually). Some days it is the bane of my existence, and I feel bad for thinking like that when I do, but with one solitary thing consuming most aspects of life, it is inevitable to feel like that sometimes. If I have a long ride to do I’ll leave earlier, but as a general rule of thumb I try to time it so that my return coincides with lunch. Once back, it’s time for a stretch, protein shakes and a shower, before:

1-3pm – Lunch. I go through phases of what I have for lunch. Like a fickle school dining hall, there is always some sort culinary fad going through the house kitchen. Tortilla wraps were particularly successful a few weeks ago, omelettes have been big in the past. Your stock standard salad sandwich is currently my prime suspect, though.

2-5pm –These hours of the day have a habit of either passing achingly slowly or fast. I am still unsure as to the factors that determine which, it is a mystery. The afternoon hours are spent doing any errands, like going to the shops, visiting people, tinkering with bicycles and other things. If there happens to be cycling on TV, then you can be sure that the afternoon will be spent watching full coverage on Eurosport. Any excess time on your feet, or doing anything remotely tiring, is wasted recovery time, so the more time spent sat down with a cup of tea the better!

6-8pm – Dinner. The second highlight of the day and something which I have likely been looking forward to for a while. Time not being an issue, I try to be as adventurous as my culinary skills allow when cooking. Diet is a big part of being a cyclist, and you get what you pay for, so I like to buy good quality food and cook it as best I can. This year has even seen a small vegetable patch be cultivated in our back garden, which is now churning out mange tout, courgettes, lettuce and spinach aplenty.

8-10pm Farting around. Evening hours are spent reading, watching TV, going on the computer and generally not doing much. Once a week we might go into town for an Ice Tea, for the boys to embarrass themselves trying to speak Dutch to the local girls.


Race Day

7am – Wake up. Exactly the same routine, but an hour or two earlier to leave enough time before pre race meal.

9am-12pm – Travel. Team races usually start around 1 or 2, and as we have to get a lift with the DS or Soigneur. This means getting there 3 hours early for them to go to the briefings and such like, which leaves a couple of hours to chill out, look at the race handbook, and eat the by now cold, stodgy pasta cooked that morning.

If it’s a kermis race, which are done individually, there is time to eat pasta at home, and then ride out as a group to wherever the race is as they don’t start until 3pm.

1-6pm Race.  The big ones can be anything up to 180/190km, and so range between 3.5 and 5 hours long. I’m guessing I don’t need to describe what happens here though!

5-7pm is spent doing the normal post race rituals of showering, eating, getting a congratulatory or disheartened talk from the manager, and driving back home.

8pm. Arrive home, get dinner on the go. Something pre-prepared like lasagne or shepherds pie works wonders at times like these. Depending on the standard of the facilities at the race, a second shower is often necessary!

9-11pm Nothing changes here. The same as any other day, the evening is spent chilling out not doing much, and feeding the appetite which is by now setting in after the afternoon’s exertions.  

11-12pm Bed. A combination of late exercise, late dinner, and too many energy gels usually means bed is a bit later on race days. Despite being physically tired it can be hard to switch off, especially if the race has gone particularly well or badly (another excuse for a post race lie in).


Since I arrived in Belgium in early March, the vast majority of my days will be a carbon copy of either of these. Having a routine can be really good at times, when you are going well usually - keeping within the lines, doing what you need to do, and enjoying the discipline because of the results it is giving you. On the flip side, the mindless routine and regimental layout can at times be exhausting and frustrating. It is mentally pretty difficult sometimes, and the lack of freedom is hard to overcome. I’m pretty sure this is what ‘cracks’ most people, not the severity of the racing.

When these rough patches do occur, it is just a case of putting your head down, carrying on with the routine, and waiting for it to feel normal again. 

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Wed, 13 Jun 2012 02:36:57 -0700 Politics ‏‏ http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/politics http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/politics


Despite being different from the norm in a lot of ways, the career of a cyclist is no different from any other career in what factors determine success, status, and positions on the social or professional ladder.


On a physical level, there is not really much arguing with how to progress. You train hard, you rest easy, you eat well, you go to bed on time, you stretch, you get massage...yada yada yada. If there is a gain to be made, the chances are any full time athlete is and doing that and all they can to make sure their body is in the best condition possible. It’s the easy part.

Upstairs, between the ears, it’s a whole different ball game. The mental side of competing, as everyone knows, is where the real gains are to be made, because it’s so subjective and uncontrollable to some extent.


 Tactics, will power, focus...the mental side of competing is a sea that one could get very lost in numerous books that have been written on the subject, so I won’t go there. From a personal point of view though, I think you’ve either got it or you haven’t. (I am still unsure as to which side of the fence I lie).


The other major player in factors which determine success is one that often gets forgotten, but which plays an ever increasingly important role. The romantic days of sport, when the strongest man won and that was that, are long gone, and although what the spectator sees are athletes competing mano-a-mano, it is just the final product in a long line of widely diverging events that have ended with a sports contest.


As the years have gone by, I have found that it is the same story of WHO I know, that has helped me as much as my performances. Mingling at the start or finish of races, following up on contacts, emailing, general networking skills and the assessing of every situation have all contributed to where I am today, and will certainly contribute to wherever I end up.

Ones status within an organisation (or team) is based largely on interpersonal relationships that every member has with each other. Whether it be for a promotion or a race start, it’s the same game. It is a fact of life that I dislike, but it’s the nature of the beast so I do my best to keep my head above water in this web of gossip and backhanders.


Everything from team selection, to race invites, to sponsorship deals are subject to politics. Even racing itself. Riders forming alliances against others to gain the upper hand, blackmail and bribery are all as common in the last 10km of a race as they are in the wider world.


Being a successful bike rider is a lot more complicated than it often appears, but this is just another reason why I love it so much (and sometimes hate). I am not incredibly gifted physically so it’s probably a good thing that it’s just one part of the puzzle.


Anyway, if it doesn’t work out I’m sure I could pull the right strings at a job in PR or something. 

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Mon, 21 May 2012 03:30:19 -0700 Getting Somewhere ‏ http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/getting-somewhere http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/getting-somewhere

"Trying to become a pro cyclist" has been, for the last 3 years, the standard response when someone asks me what I’m doing with my life at this moment in time. But, truth be told, until fairly recently not even I knew what that really meant.

Sure, it was a goal, but one so out of reach that it didn’t bear thinking about, which I think disconnected me from what ‘pro cyclist’ actually meant. The perception of a professional bike rider has gone from being a supernatural being; to a peer, albeit a much more advanced one. That’s a big wall to get over (almost as hard as the Muur).


Don’t get me wrong, I have always tried my utmost to improve and move forward, but the steps have always seemed so small in comparison to the colossal end goal. It is like laying one brick every day, and sometimes even accidentally knocking one off again, in a bid to build a mansion. It is sometimes easy to get lost in the complex vastness of it all. 

However, as I said, in the past few weeks and months the big objective seems to have come into a better focus. I have made a lot of progress so far this year – physically, mentally and professionally, which probably helps, and as a result the route to the top tiers of the sport has become a lot clearer in my mind. 


Riders who a year or two ago I would have classed as ‘way out of my league’, could now respectably be classed as beatable; races which even last year I would have been pleased to start, let alone finish, I am now aiming for results at. More importantly, I feel like a racing cyclist again, attacking, sprinting and playing poker, not just another young buck in lycra getting his head smashed in every week trying his best to hold on to the wheel i n front. 

I am not saying I’m almost there by any stretch of the imagination, but maybe I’ve just finished laying another storey with my ‘brick a day’ tactic. 


Cycling is both the most complex beast I know, yet also the simplest. At the end of the day, it’s just riding a bike, but the amount of factors that contribute to being able to do that successfully are infinite. 

In the last couple of weeks I’ve made the winning breakaway twice, coming away with a 5th and 6th place, and an ever growing confidence and motivation to outweigh the initial disappointment of not capitalising and taking a win. The fact that during my three years in Belgium the disappointments have gone from not finishing, to not making the breakaway...to not winning, shows the progress I’ve made though, so hopefully that will continue. 


Josh

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Mon, 16 Apr 2012 05:27:48 -0700 Innings Beginnings ‏ http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/innings-beginnings http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/innings-beginnings

The turn of the month, on the weekend of the Tour of Flanders, marked the passing of one month in my racing season and, as always, it has been a mixture of positives and negative feelings, emotions, condition and varying success. 

I arrived in Belgium, delayed after English prescribed physio, in a bit of a slump after having spent 10 days off the bike with a minor knee injury, at the end of February. Despite being out of sorts mentally and physically, I was notified the night before Brussel-Zepperen, that I would be riding the brutal early season amateur race. It was hard, but harder than I expected, and I felt worse than I was expecting too.


Some lab testing confirmed that something was up, as despite showing test results of being better trained than last year, I was only able to put out 20 watts less in the test... Confused? I was too, and a bit worried as I did feel terrible. I was booked in for a blood t est, but put on iron supplements in the mean time, and as luck would have it, that was apparently the root of the problem! Once semi-accidentally addressed, I felt better every day and have progressed in one month to what is now the best shape I think I’ve probably been in. 

For two years I have gone to races expecting a punishing, fruitless 3 hours, getting in breakaways from time to time by following the right wheels, but with no great expectation and generally thinking, “I hope this isn’t too hard”.  In the last two weeks that mentality seems to have been left behind, though. I still know that it’s going to hurt, and will more often than not come away with nothing, but I have a confidence in my capabilities that hasn’t been there before, at least not while I’ve been in Belgium.


It seems two years of hanging on has dented my tactical nous at the business end of things though, as I’ve missed the winning break in the last 2 races and walked away dissatisfied and frustrated; as clear an example as any that bike races are more often than not won by the clever, not the strong. Those that win at the highest level have so much of each that it leaves mere mortals like me in disbelief. The other undo ubted key ingredient of success is confidence, something which at the moment I am on the cusp of getting a spoonful of. I know I’m capable of winning now, at least. Never before has the term “easier said than done” felt more applicable! 

Due to the slow start, I’ve only notched up 5 race days so far. A little less than expected for this point in the season, but with an aim to be competitive for the whole season (as opposed to the usual crack point of August), keeping a lid on things is probably advisable for now. Once the Kermis season is in full swing I’ll start to race two or even three times a week, which will more than likely be from late May onwards, in the overcast, anti-climatic throngs of the Belgian summer.&n bsp;

The next two weeks bring with them two big outings for the team, and hopefully me, at Zellik-Galmaarden, and GP Roeselare, the former being a TopCompetition race and UCI 1.2 which tops the Muur twice and the Bosberg thrice,  the latter a Cup of Belgium event which takes in two summits of the Kemmelberg. The next couple of races after these are both TopCompetition races, and held in the Ardennes, so perhaps not best suited. Once in the gutter, dragging myself over the cobbles of Kemmel, I will I’m sure be doubting the suitability of that terrain too! I need to get in the team first though, something which as you ascend the cycling ladder naturally becomes increasingly hard to do. With a fully fit squad, and some already taking wins, competi tion for spots can be quite intense. 


Off the bike you can’t really help but be entertained in Belgium at this time of year with the amount of bike races on to go and watch. We’ve had a great few days out “race chasing” E3 Prijs, KBK and of course Vlaanderen’s Mooiste, The Tour of Flanders. With Flanders, when I say “chasing”, of course what I really mean is perching on the Kwaremont and turning my head between road, portable TV, and free Panos pastries, but it’s probably just as fun. The course change isn’t all bad, and I even had the blasphemous cheek to state that while filming a typically bizarre Belgian TV show on the subject when out on a team training ride.


April and May could be quite decisive then, as I seem to be at the deciding point of another peak or trough. One good result could send me off on a successful spell of  raci ng, a few more episodes of failing to grab chances could have me down in the doldrums. One thing’s for sure, if that does happen I should probably stop reading books about cycling around the world in case I do something silly! 

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Tue, 27 Mar 2012 02:16:56 -0700 Race-chasing http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/race-chasing http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/race-chasing

It doesn’t happen very often in Belgium, but at this time of year one doesn’t need to be on one’s own bicycle to be entertained. For 11 months of the year you could be forgiven for opting for a ‘weekend away in Gravesend’, rather than Flanders (said with the same sort of masked affection you would employ when calling your best mate a pleb), but this Belgium’s moment in the sun - quite literally too, at the moment. There’s so much excitement and buzz revolving around the arrival of the cobbled classics that one weekend flies to the next faster than Tom Boonen ascends the Taaienberg.


The best way, in my opinion, to get any real sense of the races from a spectator’s point of view, is to get out amongst the hubbub of it all and go race-chasing. Similar to the popular hobby, Storm chasing, but with more drama and risk involved.


It’s the done thing to do for a lot of locals at the big races – Het Nieuwsblad, E3 and of course De Ronde. Last year I joined the masses and chased the Tour of Flanders around, testing my local road knowledge and managing to see it 6 times. With so many other people doing the same, the scenes can only be described as resembling the type of frantic mass exoduses you see in films like Independence day or Godzilla. With the berg locations so close both geographically and in time, the lead car is often rolling past while hundreds of people are still arriving, and the last rider in the bunch as barely come into view before everyone is running back to their mode of transport – off road things like quad bikes and motocross bikes are often popular for ‘short cuts’.


Anyhow, as my Mum and Girlfriend were visiting last week, it would have been rude not to join the masses for E3 Prijs. We managed to see the race 5 times, which wasn’t a bad effort. Ok you don’t get to see the race unfold, but there are no lack of crowded bars to watch the finish in once you have seen the gory bits and managed to piece together what’s happened so far. 


The pictures are roughly as follows - Crowds gathering on The Muur. 

Protestors on The Muur (about it's absence from The Tour of Flanders). 

The back end of the bunch cresting The Muur. 

The bunch rolling over La Houppe.

Crowds massing on the banks of the Oude Kwaremont. 

Boonen, Pozzato, VanMarcke and Sagan get the gap on the Oude Kwaremont. 

Sagan leads the pursuit of Chavanel, Muravyev and Gatto on Le Cote De Trieu. 


Now, by tactfully choosing to race this coming Saturday, I'll hopefully get out and beat last years effort of 6 viewpoints in 'Vlaanderens Mooiste', the Tour of Flanders. 

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Tue, 21 Feb 2012 08:15:46 -0800 Bumpy Road http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/bumpy-road http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/bumpy-road

After such a mishap-free winter, I knew I was due some sort of unfortunate occurrence, and if the saying is true that bad luck comes in threes, then I should be out of the woods now! Well, emerging from the undergrowth at least.


I initially left for Belgium on the 26th of January, full of enthusiasm and enjoying the feeling of my fitness falling into place. I spent a few days getting a few bits sorted – namely collecting my team bike and trying to get a Belgian racing license – before departing with the team from Bruxelles-Charleroi on 1st Feb for our pre season camp in Tuscany. You know, that place where it’s sunny and warm? No, that place where it’s minus 5 and snowing apparently!


In typical Belgian fashion we rode to the hotel from the airport, and arrived 3 hours later with frozen hands and feet, despite wearing every item of clothing in our suitcases and regular trips back to the car for a bidon refill of warm tea. The trend for the week had been set!


Despite the arduous conditions though, we actually managed to get in a really good week’s riding. Doing between 4 and 6 every day, the kilometres took care of themselves, and with the added viciousness of some of the climbs, so did the teeth clenching and handlebar slogging.  Tuscany, despite it’s seemingly run down appearance in a lot of urban areas, certainly has it’s great training roads in equal measure.


Time to leave then, or so I thought. What would have probably aided my leaving the country would have been for my passport to have remained with me, and not in the team car, by this point a few hours into it’s journey back home. Alas, it was not to be, and I duly made my sullen way to Milan, and the British Embassy for an emergency passport.


On the plus side, I got to re-acquaint myself with Youth Hostel life, which I do miss from my cycle-touring days, and had a pleasant stay as one of 6 ethnically differing strangers cooped into a shoe box room. But with some conversations I wouldn’t otherwise have had, some very helpful WiFi, and breakfast, all for 20 Euros, what’s not to love?

I picked up my emergency passport with relative ease, and spent a day loitering in Milan before flying back that night, just in time for the team presentation.


The usual procedures of photos, interviews, sponsor parading and general mingling ensued, almost wrapping up a long week. I say almost because what really finished it was breaking down 10km from Calais on my return home the next day! The tiny engine of my Vauxhall Agila was dealt a heavy blow as the head gasket went, so the return home was spent in the cabs of varying pick-up trucks, assuring the drivers that “no, I haven’t ridden the Tour de France” and “no, I shan’t be at the Olympics this year”!


Number three then, was unfortunately something I was still feeling optimistic about – my fitness! I haven’t crashed since April last year, so I was probably due one of those too, to be honest. I could see the corner in question was slippery, and off camber, so approached it with caution to begin with, but it soon became apparent that I had been ambitious even at that speed, and came down hard on my knee.


I am due to go back to Belgium tomorrow, and had been selected for the first race of the year this Sunday, Brussel-Opwijk. After 3 days off the bike, and 1 day on the rollers (with discomfort), I am going to see a physio before I leave and get a professional opinion before I take things further. I think starting on Sunday is out of the equation though.

They say racing is the easiest thing about being a full time athlete, and the last few weeks have certainly backed that theory up well. All I want to do now is pin a number on and get going! 

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Fri, 27 Jan 2012 05:55:15 -0800 Welcome to the Test Team - Josh Cunningham http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/welcome-to-the-test-team-josh-cunningham http://morvelo-test-team.posterous.com/welcome-to-the-test-team-josh-cunningham

It’s with great pleasure that I’m able to say I’ve become a member of the ‘Morvelo Test Team’. As a long time admirer of the Morvelo clothing; and now that I’ve been educated, an even bigger admirer of the philosophy in the threads, it's great to be on board. 

Right now I’m in the midst of final preparations for the 2012 season, which will be spent riding for ‘Viasport-Publiled Cycling Team’, and getting quite excitable in the process. It is always the same feelings of eagerness, positivity, and healthy nervousness at this time of year, with the prospects of new teams, new bikes, new kit, a new calendar, and a new (and hopefully better) season of racing ahead. I’ve always said; my current career path will continue until I either stop progressing and/or stop enjoying it. This will be my third season abroad, and although it’s not a concrete, 45-degree line of development, both are still moving in the right direction, so the dream continues. As a last year under 23, or ‘Belofte’, as they say in Flemish, and with quite a high profile racing calendar, the next year or so will be particularly crucial.

So, barring café’ stop sprints, the last competitive action I had was my final race day of 2011, on 12th September, so after that, and a month off the bike, I started training again mid October, and I’ve gradually been building up since then. This is the first winter for a few years that I have been coached, and as a result I have done quite a lot less miles than what I’d usually prescribe myself. This has meant that it’s taken longer to start to feel ‘fit’, but now that’s happening, I’m hoping it means I’ll come into shape at just the right time, and also remain fresher, for longer into the year.

Later this week is when the ball starts to gather some real momentum, as I’m travelling to Belgium to sort out a few things, like bike set up, Belgian racing licence, and most importantly to shot gun my room in the house. From there I’ll fly with the team to our training camp in Tuscany at the start of February, before returning for the team presentation in Geraardsbergen on the 11th. I’ll come home for a week or two after that, to make the most of the South Coast of England while I can. The 20th has then been pencilled in as d-day; back to the concrete roads, overcast skies, and mundane towns of Belgium, the cycling mad, beer drinking, enthusiastic locals, and the combined Aussie, Kiwi, and ‘Pommie’ charm of our house. Allez het seizoen, met Morvelo. 

Josh

- See Josh's rider profile on Morvélo right here.

- And see the fellow riders of the Test Team here.

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