In the past few weeks i have been a little bit on the go, resuming racing, visitors from aus, and enjoying sometime in italy. I resumed racing after the giro at the tour of austria. Was great to get back in the bunch and also my dad made the trip across to catch up and see me in action. I must point out how impressive it was dad even made it, on his day of departure he took part in his first marathon at age 55 and recorded a huge effort of 3hrs 4min. Only 6hrs later he was on the plane for europe so i was very greatful for the effort he put in to come watch me race. For me the race went ok, it was nice to finally be more toward the front of a field than the back again and enjoyed the benefits of the giro but not feeling as tired as usual. I just performed my usual role for the team by assisting our two leaders for race, Leo and Luis, with Leo taking a very impressive victory in stage 3. Following the race i headed home to monaco for one to give dad a quick tour of where i live, it was quick as my appartment only measures 50square meters! anyway he enjoyed having a good look around, being a big fan of nice cars and boats his one day here certainly kept him very busy taking in all he could. So after merely 36hrs here i bundled him into the car and we headed to my other european base in gavirate (40km north of milan). Dad was not complaining however as he has been hearing abput gavirate for the past 6 years from my rowing days so was excited to see the place also. The reason however for this trip was to perform my biannual round of testing with my coach aldo sassi at the mapei centre.
I always feel very much at home in gavirate, i been visiting for the past 6 years and the surrounding area is inhabited by many aussies so thats always good. Infact it has become such a aussie hub that they are building a mini Australian Institute of Sport right on the lake in gavirate. This will become the base for all traveling olympic sports teams from aus who can use the are for there training. Two sports certain to use it most are cycling and rowing so i am very excited about its completion in the new year. It will be equiped with all the bells and whistles of the ais in canberra, physio, massage, physical testing laboratories, doctor and of course accommodation, just a smaller version and also i dont remember seeing the world best pizza and gelato joints within 1km of the centre in canberra. Sorry Belconnon by the typical european town of gavirate provides the perfect town setting for our countries athletes to prepare for the olympic, world and other major events on there calendar. Also being the first aussie athlete to actually call gavirate home i am touched that the government decided bring the centre to me rather than me having to move, nah just kidding, alot of planning has gone into it an i will post some pictures in a future blog. Basically i can see it becoming a point of reference for all aussie athletes living and competing in europe which will be great.
Back to our trip to gavirate, so we arrive and first port of call is to take dad to a traditional italian restaurant for me tea. I have my little favourit by the lake and the chef marco and restaurant owner roberto never let me down. They opened my eyes to what real italian food is and how jolly good it tastes. Yes most places are jolly good in italy but this is by far the best i have experienced. Marco and Roberto have been big contributers to my fussy eating habits where i refuse to settle for a meal i wont enjoy greatly, remember if it aint worth burning the calories, dont eat it. Simple economics really, the satifaction you get from having an extra unit of somthing must outweight what you give up to have. Guess my Economics finance degree has helped me out afterall! So after a delightfull feed of real italian carbonara ( and yes it is very different to what you get in the rest of the world, one hint, no cream) a perfect steak and potatos, and gelato to wash it all down, Dad was satisfied after having the best meal of his life and he said it certainly justified him flying 20000km to come and enjoy it, and i was ready to rock and role for my day at centro mapei for physically laboratory testing.
Anytime i go to mapei i need to put asside the day, and this was no exception. The morning would be taken up with meeting my nutritionist doctor luca mondazzi for a fat mass test and some race nutrition strategy stuff and the afternoon was filled with my lab test and medical checks. So first with dott mondazzi and all was good, weight was down 1kg from the giro to 71kg and fatt mass down 1% also so he was happy. We set a race nutrition strategy so i am looking forward to implementing it in the final part of the season. Next up was the dreaded VO2 max laboratory test. Following a warm up the test starts at 100watts and increases by 25watts every minute untill you cant go anymore or you cadence drops below 96rpm. For me this time his occured 25seconds into 575watts so again good as was my best lab test to date. 550 step seems ok but talk about the straw that breaks the camels back when you hit 575, man it is just broke me so i am determined to finish it i hope in the near future. VO2 normal at 80 and all other sub treshold and threshold numbers were also up by 3-5% so professor sassi was happy with my progress post giro and post glangelor from last year and confident now that these health issues are behind me which is very reassuring. The afternoon medical checks again backed this up so i walked out of the mapei centre, dad in tow of course, he had had a great day watching me get put through the riggers of aldo, with a big spring in my step and looking forward to what lies ahead this year.
That night we went to what i regard as the best piazza joint in the world, followed of course by my number one gelato joint and our dads time in italy was almost up. The next morning we quickly threw down a cappa before hauling backside back to monaco intime for dad to make his flight out of nice back to aus. Pretty much i think form the time dad woke at 4am on the morning of the marathon to the tiem he walked in his front door in queensland at 3am 10days later he had not stoped for even 5 seconds to scratch himself, no surprizes that he has slepted pretty well for the past couple of weeks! So that was my time with my dad
cameron james wurf
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
looking back and looking forward
Since the giro i have been very fortunate to have a little break from racing. 5 weeks infact have past since i pushed a pedal in anger and it has given me a chance to really settle back into life in Europe. Also very fortunately for me, this period has coincided with the arrival of summer so i have been back in the ocean which is something i think Australians cherish more than most. It has also given me the chance to reflect on the very hectic start to my season and time to look forward and establish some goals for the final months of the season. More importantly i have been able to some training and enjoy exploring the surrounding roads around my European base without the stress of doing to much specific training as i continue to recover and rebuild from the first months of the season.
Alot of my thoughts have revolved around the experiences i had at the giro, where i saw myself in the race and of course admiring the feets of those animated and dominated the race. Still all be it a little biased, the way Michele fought really makes me smile and realise the work i did for him was appreciated and he showed this by his courage or grinter as the Italians call it. Second to that but perhaps almost equal was the performance of Ritchie, he was the revelation of the race and showed he was literally born to be on a bike, also along with him the victory by Matt Goss was a huge highlight and i very deserving for guy who is going to win a bucket load more big races in the future. Certainly the future grand tour success of Australia and more importantly Tassie is in very good hands with these two superstars. I hope Tassie realise just how incredible the achievements of these two truly is.
During the giro alot of little funny things happen. Firstly you stop getting tired, you are just simply tired after about 10days. From my experience what determines how you go day to day after that is all in the mind, when you wake up feeling great generally you have a good day. You wake up tired and you tend to suffer so much you wonder if you will make it to the finish. Secondly it starts to take longer for the attacks to start. Instead of km 0 everybody seems afraid to be first to hit out and waits, unfortunately this seems generally to be accompanied by it taking progressively longer each day for the break to stick which tends to lend to everybody waiting waiting as people know they have less attacks in there legs than in the beginning of the tour. Also the groups get bigger and bigger as result of this so this also tends to mean the group will arrive at the finish with a healthy gap on the peloton so therefore everybody except perhaps the top 10 on gc want to be in it. This make the initial stages of each stage harder than the start of the tour however once the break goes it is generally a pretty peaceful role along in the bunch, well in cycling terms that is, it is certainly not the same as a strole in the park. Thirdly is food. Obviously fuel is crucial in such an event so you need to stay ontop of this. I am super fortunate to have the Guidence of Doctor Luca Mondazzi at the Mapei Centre so i di not have too many diet food issues. In fact i finished the tour at the same weight as i started 72kg, however i was 1% body fat less so i managed to build some muscle which was good. The funny thing occur with what you start to crave. For me Ritchie got me hooked on Nutella and Bananna Roles much to the discuss of my very typical Italian team who don’t approve of such sustenance and also a drink bottle filled with half coke and half water. You may think this seems simple but to me this was gods own medicine during the final week of the giro. Also at dinner i stopped eating saled as i was afraid i would turn into a carrot, my hair is enough orange i think, and used this space in my tummy for extra dessert which was almost always italys version of a raspberry or apricot jam tart, i was simply addicted. Also i could never sleep properly without a camomile tea. Very simple you might say but to honest i enjoyed every meal, oh and of course i was not leaving the breakfast table without a ham and cheese omelette in my tummy, a addition to everyone on the teams breakfast menu once they saw how much i enjoyed mine. I was proud to bring this to the table so to speak! Next came the conversations in the peleton and as the race went on and you got sick of talking about cycling, you started to get to know people alot better and will be great to catchup with these people you strike up a little acquaintance with at future races and speak with a little more substance to a conversation. As i have said many times, sport is a great leveller and the giro is certainly no exception to this so naturally new friends are a great bonus from such an event. All i can say is thankgod Julia Gillard did not become PM during the giro because this would certainly have been a question asked way to many times and i am not so up to date with politics, guess its a by product of being on the other side of the world. And finally you realise how truly powerful the mind can be in convincing yourself that you are not fatigued. At the end of every stage the best advice i was given was to forget that day and start to prepare for the next. In a funny way i guess it is a great way of your mind keeping at bay how your body truly feels. I did not realise this until the end of stage 20 when i sat down on the bus. With only the time trial to come the following day and therefore scarponi being along for that one, my job was done and i could enjoy simply being able to complete the giro. My body responded in a way that i have never experienced fatigue before, it was all of sudden a huge task to make it firstly off the bus, secondly to dinner, and then when i was to lazy to change into my pj’s for bed i realised that i was simply spent. My mind had shut down and so had my body. I truly regret the now as i should have maintained my focus the final days tt and inevitably i simply had no energy, i could barely muster up the strength to warm up. I guess it is just a by product of being a domestic and having only this goal for the race however i will certainly do it a differently next time when the tt ends the race. However that’s that, there are of course billions of other things i could discuss but it would simply bore you and probably take me 3weeks to write it all down!
Now for looking forward. As i said before i have had the opportunity to enjoy some regular training without to much specific intervals. This has meant that i have the opportunity to simply enjoy riding the bike. I focused a little on dropping some weight, a decision i took during the giro where i realised what skinny realise looks like when look at some of my fellow competitors. This will inturn reduce my power temporarily however i am hoping long term it will indeed make me stronger, particularly on the climbs. With having the glangelour over the summer and being unable to ride the bike i was unable to these usually regular tasks so it is good that i get this opportunity now. I am already very excited about getting really stuck into it over the off season and hopefully starting 2011 in my best condition. It certainly has been a long slog back from the virus however i am finally starting to feel more of the sensations i had in my legs and recovery before having the virus so this is a good sign i think especially considering i just completed the giro. Finger crossed by the final 2 months of the season i will be back to my old self and that will be a very nice feeling. This period has also given me a chance to look at the type of rider i want to develope into as this season has seen a complete transformation in my role in races. I now simply perform the work for the team however i realise at time to time i will be also called upon to perform. For this reason i have tried to regain my climbing ability and as i am hoping that perhaps i can use this as a little advantage in future breakaways, also have reintroduced some tt work so i have a little more confidence that i can handle all terrain a little more effectively now. Unfortunately during the giro with all the beginning of season races requiring my work on the flats, i felt like concrete anytime we went skyward so working on this was my number one objective. I am currently racing in Austria and however my role here still being to perform the usual tasks of breaks and work and getting back some race condition after my rest, i am feeling the benefits of this climbing work so that’s been nice. Give me good motivation to stick at it when i resume more regular training after Austria.
So Next up is the brixia tour followed by vuelta burgos and tre valli verisine which is a race i am very excited about as it as close to a home race as will ever get in cycling with it being raced on the roads surrounding varese. After this the focus for our team is on all the Italian one day races so will be hoping to contribute where possible and look for some opportunities when they come along. I am certainly looking forward to the final part of the year as all the experiences i have had in the first 4 months have meant i am alot more relaxed when i am racing, it is nice having a bit more of idea what your in for as it helps me prepare for the suffering a little better. So for now it is off to Italy to the mapei centre for some testing then some training on those familiar roads of varese in the lead into brixia tour so i am looking forward to some good pizza, very hot weather, and a good gelato to cool me down at the end of the day!
Alot of my thoughts have revolved around the experiences i had at the giro, where i saw myself in the race and of course admiring the feets of those animated and dominated the race. Still all be it a little biased, the way Michele fought really makes me smile and realise the work i did for him was appreciated and he showed this by his courage or grinter as the Italians call it. Second to that but perhaps almost equal was the performance of Ritchie, he was the revelation of the race and showed he was literally born to be on a bike, also along with him the victory by Matt Goss was a huge highlight and i very deserving for guy who is going to win a bucket load more big races in the future. Certainly the future grand tour success of Australia and more importantly Tassie is in very good hands with these two superstars. I hope Tassie realise just how incredible the achievements of these two truly is.
During the giro alot of little funny things happen. Firstly you stop getting tired, you are just simply tired after about 10days. From my experience what determines how you go day to day after that is all in the mind, when you wake up feeling great generally you have a good day. You wake up tired and you tend to suffer so much you wonder if you will make it to the finish. Secondly it starts to take longer for the attacks to start. Instead of km 0 everybody seems afraid to be first to hit out and waits, unfortunately this seems generally to be accompanied by it taking progressively longer each day for the break to stick which tends to lend to everybody waiting waiting as people know they have less attacks in there legs than in the beginning of the tour. Also the groups get bigger and bigger as result of this so this also tends to mean the group will arrive at the finish with a healthy gap on the peloton so therefore everybody except perhaps the top 10 on gc want to be in it. This make the initial stages of each stage harder than the start of the tour however once the break goes it is generally a pretty peaceful role along in the bunch, well in cycling terms that is, it is certainly not the same as a strole in the park. Thirdly is food. Obviously fuel is crucial in such an event so you need to stay ontop of this. I am super fortunate to have the Guidence of Doctor Luca Mondazzi at the Mapei Centre so i di not have too many diet food issues. In fact i finished the tour at the same weight as i started 72kg, however i was 1% body fat less so i managed to build some muscle which was good. The funny thing occur with what you start to crave. For me Ritchie got me hooked on Nutella and Bananna Roles much to the discuss of my very typical Italian team who don’t approve of such sustenance and also a drink bottle filled with half coke and half water. You may think this seems simple but to me this was gods own medicine during the final week of the giro. Also at dinner i stopped eating saled as i was afraid i would turn into a carrot, my hair is enough orange i think, and used this space in my tummy for extra dessert which was almost always italys version of a raspberry or apricot jam tart, i was simply addicted. Also i could never sleep properly without a camomile tea. Very simple you might say but to honest i enjoyed every meal, oh and of course i was not leaving the breakfast table without a ham and cheese omelette in my tummy, a addition to everyone on the teams breakfast menu once they saw how much i enjoyed mine. I was proud to bring this to the table so to speak! Next came the conversations in the peleton and as the race went on and you got sick of talking about cycling, you started to get to know people alot better and will be great to catchup with these people you strike up a little acquaintance with at future races and speak with a little more substance to a conversation. As i have said many times, sport is a great leveller and the giro is certainly no exception to this so naturally new friends are a great bonus from such an event. All i can say is thankgod Julia Gillard did not become PM during the giro because this would certainly have been a question asked way to many times and i am not so up to date with politics, guess its a by product of being on the other side of the world. And finally you realise how truly powerful the mind can be in convincing yourself that you are not fatigued. At the end of every stage the best advice i was given was to forget that day and start to prepare for the next. In a funny way i guess it is a great way of your mind keeping at bay how your body truly feels. I did not realise this until the end of stage 20 when i sat down on the bus. With only the time trial to come the following day and therefore scarponi being along for that one, my job was done and i could enjoy simply being able to complete the giro. My body responded in a way that i have never experienced fatigue before, it was all of sudden a huge task to make it firstly off the bus, secondly to dinner, and then when i was to lazy to change into my pj’s for bed i realised that i was simply spent. My mind had shut down and so had my body. I truly regret the now as i should have maintained my focus the final days tt and inevitably i simply had no energy, i could barely muster up the strength to warm up. I guess it is just a by product of being a domestic and having only this goal for the race however i will certainly do it a differently next time when the tt ends the race. However that’s that, there are of course billions of other things i could discuss but it would simply bore you and probably take me 3weeks to write it all down!
Now for looking forward. As i said before i have had the opportunity to enjoy some regular training without to much specific intervals. This has meant that i have the opportunity to simply enjoy riding the bike. I focused a little on dropping some weight, a decision i took during the giro where i realised what skinny realise looks like when look at some of my fellow competitors. This will inturn reduce my power temporarily however i am hoping long term it will indeed make me stronger, particularly on the climbs. With having the glangelour over the summer and being unable to ride the bike i was unable to these usually regular tasks so it is good that i get this opportunity now. I am already very excited about getting really stuck into it over the off season and hopefully starting 2011 in my best condition. It certainly has been a long slog back from the virus however i am finally starting to feel more of the sensations i had in my legs and recovery before having the virus so this is a good sign i think especially considering i just completed the giro. Finger crossed by the final 2 months of the season i will be back to my old self and that will be a very nice feeling. This period has also given me a chance to look at the type of rider i want to develope into as this season has seen a complete transformation in my role in races. I now simply perform the work for the team however i realise at time to time i will be also called upon to perform. For this reason i have tried to regain my climbing ability and as i am hoping that perhaps i can use this as a little advantage in future breakaways, also have reintroduced some tt work so i have a little more confidence that i can handle all terrain a little more effectively now. Unfortunately during the giro with all the beginning of season races requiring my work on the flats, i felt like concrete anytime we went skyward so working on this was my number one objective. I am currently racing in Austria and however my role here still being to perform the usual tasks of breaks and work and getting back some race condition after my rest, i am feeling the benefits of this climbing work so that’s been nice. Give me good motivation to stick at it when i resume more regular training after Austria.
So Next up is the brixia tour followed by vuelta burgos and tre valli verisine which is a race i am very excited about as it as close to a home race as will ever get in cycling with it being raced on the roads surrounding varese. After this the focus for our team is on all the Italian one day races so will be hoping to contribute where possible and look for some opportunities when they come along. I am certainly looking forward to the final part of the year as all the experiences i have had in the first 4 months have meant i am alot more relaxed when i am racing, it is nice having a bit more of idea what your in for as it helps me prepare for the suffering a little better. So for now it is off to Italy to the mapei centre for some testing then some training on those familiar roads of varese in the lead into brixia tour so i am looking forward to some good pizza, very hot weather, and a good gelato to cool me down at the end of the day!
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Bomma
Just last week i had the added privelige of me top pal Bomma (his nickname as when he was youngster he could not pronounce his real name Tom correctly) come and visit for a couple of nights. He managed to fit me into his schedule in between a wedding and 60th birthday he had traveled to europe for with his danish girlfriend. Bomma and i first met in 2003 when we rowed and won the under 23 worlds together. I dont know if it was the 20 pints following the selection trials that year or just we were destined to be good mates but in real aussie fashion we struck off a great friendship and one which i cherish greatly. In 2003 we trained in perth which is bommas home town and i consequently spent alot of time at his joint. In 2005 bom decided to come down to tassie to hang out with me and ended up staying for 5months. In 2006 it was my turn again to train in perth and therefore another 2month stint at his place and in 2008 bom was training for the nice ironman and decided that 2months in varese in northern italy with me was the best place for him to prepare and it was again my turn to accomodate him. Therefore over the years we have spent alot of time together and i can honestly say never had a glitch. I reakon this is a pretty good sign of a friendship.
This has led me in the last couple of days to reflect on the important things i have learnt from bom. Firstly bom was the first to encourage me at the time to have a look at cycling in 2007. Cant be that hard and how much much suffering for that long on bike everyday he told me, and with that belief i embarked on the journey that has led me to where i am now. I have had to reinterate to him on numerous occasion the sport is perhaps a little harder than we pigioned holed it 3 years ago. Secondly he really pushed me to take on challenges. Being a person that loves structure and set perametors and goals in my sporting endevours crazy challanges where never part of my routine. These have included a range of things from 8hr cross training sessions, to seeing how many beers you can consume in one go with his giant funnel, 4 being my record and perhaps our most daring challenge, riding from hobart to lake barrington. With Boms back calling an early end to his rowing career his forays into fitness, or witness the fitness as he likes to call them have become more speratic. This means that whenever we get together boms tends to put himself though alot of suffering but he always seems to enjoy it. Jess gets a little mad with me when he arrives home barely able to stand each day but i assure her he would not have it any other way. And i reakon this appitimises bom, he is happy to suffer to hang out with his mate, and this is pretty cool as you know he is a bloke you would want in the trenches with you.
Anyway back to the ride to barrington. This was in 2006 and the rowing nationals were being held at lake barrington and i had recently had hip surgery and despite my protest that i was ready to race the national selectors would not let me race until the final sunday in the interstate regatta. This annoyed bom as much as me as he was living with me at the time so he decided that the best way to show them i was fit and ready to row was to ride the 300km to lake barrington. Simple enough we thought, only 10hrs ish at 30kmph so off we setthe day before the regatta started. The ride was not so bad, a little challenging at times and bom started to suffer pretty bad about 60km in a town called deloraine. This town is now affectionately know as Bommerspain among the rowing community following his recital of the suffering he was experiencing. For me it was not so bad and to be honest i arrivied feeling pretty good, it was the first indicator that perhaps cycling may suit me. Enjoying 10hrs on a bike with kost of it riding into a howling northerly of the Bass Straight is probably not somthing many would enjoy but i did. So upon arriving and bom and i thought the point had been made and i would get to race afterall, we were simply told how stupid we were and that i was still not allowed to race until the following weekend. Anyway we did not think it was stupid and like with all challenges had opened up a new range of what to judge a long day on the bike on. For the record i finally got to race on the sunday in the interstate regatta and we won the lightweight four for the Penrith cup for a record 8th consecutive year so i felt i had earnt the right to travel home in the car. I would have ridded but it was late in the afternoon and had some celebrating to do and bom had also decided that riding the mt wellington time trial the following morning was the best way to recover from the rowing regatta. So after a nice night out i was up early to go up the mountain as fast as possible. By this stage i had not ridden the bike for the 10days of the regatta, somthing i would consider unthinkable these days before a cycling race, but this was different, this was another of boms challenges only this time he followed in the car yelling out the window. It was another painfull day and although from memory i went ok, i dont think i rode my bike for a while afterwards! This is a pretty good example of how most of our time is spent together. Infact even in his two days here bom decided it would be a good idea to do a bit of a fitness test on the Col de Madone, Lances test climb. His idea was i would ride up it flat out and he would follow on the scooter. This would give him a chance to do two things he greatly enjoys, looking at a bloody good view over the mediteranian, and watching me suffer. Again for the record i did suffer and averaged 420watts for the climb so despite suffering was nice to see the giro had given me some good condition.
This final thing i will touch on that bom instilled on me is if it aint worth the exercise to burn off then it aint worth eating. This came about when i was keen to go to macdonalds following the rowing world cup in lucerne switzerland in 2003, bom quickly laid down the law and said in a foreign country under no cirumstances would i be dining in mcdonalds. If you want a burger we will get a proper one at the pub and wash it down with a pint, cant get a pint in mcdonalds he said so i guess you can argue with that logic. These food lessons evolved continued whenever bom felt i was not paying the correct attention to me diet. As a have showed before, it is not so much the food thats the issue, just where you get it, and also the experience you have from eating it in that place. This has ultimately led me to be terribly fussy about where and what i eat. Not even breakfast escapes scrutiny and Jess gets a little stroppy with me as it often causes me to think way to much about whats on the menue or be to fussy about the restaurant or quality of food we buy. I simply cant eat a meal i am not really stoked about, It all boils back however to the simple principle that if you are going to eat it, it has to be worth the effort required to burn of the calories. Therefore i can eat as much pavlova or toblorone cheese cake as i like, just means a little longer on the bike the day after. On the contrary if i dont feel like doing much exercise i know the has to fit the bill for this, therefore this what most would seem a silly little rule bom decided to instill in me like gospel, has actually become pretty usefull in my current chosen endevours where nutrition truly is the fuel that keeps you going!
So thats a little snap shot of bom and the time we have had over the years. I would like to think i have also taught him a thing or two but he would have to tell you about that. What him coming to stay did really make me reflect on how lucky we are to have mates, and specially those that a you grow up with and help guide you into the person you become, usually positive guidence i hope! I am sure in the years to come we will do plenty of other silly things and no doubt learn alot more from each other and i look forward to that. Also maby some of these little stories give a bit of an insight into the way i go about things and the person i have become. So i guess what i am really trying to say is look after your friendships and never take them for granted.
cameron james wurf
This has led me in the last couple of days to reflect on the important things i have learnt from bom. Firstly bom was the first to encourage me at the time to have a look at cycling in 2007. Cant be that hard and how much much suffering for that long on bike everyday he told me, and with that belief i embarked on the journey that has led me to where i am now. I have had to reinterate to him on numerous occasion the sport is perhaps a little harder than we pigioned holed it 3 years ago. Secondly he really pushed me to take on challenges. Being a person that loves structure and set perametors and goals in my sporting endevours crazy challanges where never part of my routine. These have included a range of things from 8hr cross training sessions, to seeing how many beers you can consume in one go with his giant funnel, 4 being my record and perhaps our most daring challenge, riding from hobart to lake barrington. With Boms back calling an early end to his rowing career his forays into fitness, or witness the fitness as he likes to call them have become more speratic. This means that whenever we get together boms tends to put himself though alot of suffering but he always seems to enjoy it. Jess gets a little mad with me when he arrives home barely able to stand each day but i assure her he would not have it any other way. And i reakon this appitimises bom, he is happy to suffer to hang out with his mate, and this is pretty cool as you know he is a bloke you would want in the trenches with you.
Anyway back to the ride to barrington. This was in 2006 and the rowing nationals were being held at lake barrington and i had recently had hip surgery and despite my protest that i was ready to race the national selectors would not let me race until the final sunday in the interstate regatta. This annoyed bom as much as me as he was living with me at the time so he decided that the best way to show them i was fit and ready to row was to ride the 300km to lake barrington. Simple enough we thought, only 10hrs ish at 30kmph so off we setthe day before the regatta started. The ride was not so bad, a little challenging at times and bom started to suffer pretty bad about 60km in a town called deloraine. This town is now affectionately know as Bommerspain among the rowing community following his recital of the suffering he was experiencing. For me it was not so bad and to be honest i arrivied feeling pretty good, it was the first indicator that perhaps cycling may suit me. Enjoying 10hrs on a bike with kost of it riding into a howling northerly of the Bass Straight is probably not somthing many would enjoy but i did. So upon arriving and bom and i thought the point had been made and i would get to race afterall, we were simply told how stupid we were and that i was still not allowed to race until the following weekend. Anyway we did not think it was stupid and like with all challenges had opened up a new range of what to judge a long day on the bike on. For the record i finally got to race on the sunday in the interstate regatta and we won the lightweight four for the Penrith cup for a record 8th consecutive year so i felt i had earnt the right to travel home in the car. I would have ridded but it was late in the afternoon and had some celebrating to do and bom had also decided that riding the mt wellington time trial the following morning was the best way to recover from the rowing regatta. So after a nice night out i was up early to go up the mountain as fast as possible. By this stage i had not ridden the bike for the 10days of the regatta, somthing i would consider unthinkable these days before a cycling race, but this was different, this was another of boms challenges only this time he followed in the car yelling out the window. It was another painfull day and although from memory i went ok, i dont think i rode my bike for a while afterwards! This is a pretty good example of how most of our time is spent together. Infact even in his two days here bom decided it would be a good idea to do a bit of a fitness test on the Col de Madone, Lances test climb. His idea was i would ride up it flat out and he would follow on the scooter. This would give him a chance to do two things he greatly enjoys, looking at a bloody good view over the mediteranian, and watching me suffer. Again for the record i did suffer and averaged 420watts for the climb so despite suffering was nice to see the giro had given me some good condition.
This final thing i will touch on that bom instilled on me is if it aint worth the exercise to burn off then it aint worth eating. This came about when i was keen to go to macdonalds following the rowing world cup in lucerne switzerland in 2003, bom quickly laid down the law and said in a foreign country under no cirumstances would i be dining in mcdonalds. If you want a burger we will get a proper one at the pub and wash it down with a pint, cant get a pint in mcdonalds he said so i guess you can argue with that logic. These food lessons evolved continued whenever bom felt i was not paying the correct attention to me diet. As a have showed before, it is not so much the food thats the issue, just where you get it, and also the experience you have from eating it in that place. This has ultimately led me to be terribly fussy about where and what i eat. Not even breakfast escapes scrutiny and Jess gets a little stroppy with me as it often causes me to think way to much about whats on the menue or be to fussy about the restaurant or quality of food we buy. I simply cant eat a meal i am not really stoked about, It all boils back however to the simple principle that if you are going to eat it, it has to be worth the effort required to burn of the calories. Therefore i can eat as much pavlova or toblorone cheese cake as i like, just means a little longer on the bike the day after. On the contrary if i dont feel like doing much exercise i know the has to fit the bill for this, therefore this what most would seem a silly little rule bom decided to instill in me like gospel, has actually become pretty usefull in my current chosen endevours where nutrition truly is the fuel that keeps you going!
So thats a little snap shot of bom and the time we have had over the years. I would like to think i have also taught him a thing or two but he would have to tell you about that. What him coming to stay did really make me reflect on how lucky we are to have mates, and specially those that a you grow up with and help guide you into the person you become, usually positive guidence i hope! I am sure in the years to come we will do plenty of other silly things and no doubt learn alot more from each other and i look forward to that. Also maby some of these little stories give a bit of an insight into the way i go about things and the person i have become. So i guess what i am really trying to say is look after your friendships and never take them for granted.
cameron james wurf
Saturday, June 5, 2010
The Giro from the middle of the bunch
For the past 4 weeks i have been battling my way through the giro and now enjoying some recovery time. The Giro was an amazing experience for me, my main role in the race was to be there to help our team captain Michele Scarponi and with him finishing in 4th place in the General Classification only 10 seconds behind 3rd, it was also a very satisfying experience. Our team did not have the greatest of fortune on the luck front however thats all part of the sport and where you miss out in one way you tend to benefit somewhere else so you like to think that in the end it is fare for everybody with regard to luck.
After the first few days we returned to the home of the race for the remaining 18stages. We did make a breif detour into switzerland on stage 20 but appart from that it was all on the roads of coffee and pizza. The Team time trial was the first stage on italian soil and was not such a great day for our team. We started very well and at the midway point we were in the top half of the field, unfortunately a couple of km further on we hit a freak hail storm which lasted all of 5min and lost all our rythm and along with that a bucket load of time and ultimately a very average performance. It was a pretty crazy experience having to race in a hail storm however quickly realising stopping and waiting for it to pass was not an option, i quickly tapped my head to ensure my helmet was safely secured and figured i was pretty safe from any serious injury! The team TT was followed by a couple of flatish stages with the next big day involving the famous gravel roads in tuscany. On the one day where rain is far from welcome it bucketed cats and dogs turning the usual white gravel roads to brown mud. Again unfortunately the team did not have a great day with me pucturing at a very inconvenient time just as the peleton had split. I was thrown a wheel by the neutral spares cars but with the convoy a minute away behind the second group my day at the front was over. Not long after michele crashed and had a bike fight to return to the front of the race and did a great effort to get within 1min of the days winner Cadel Evans which was a fantastic effort by him. Riding through mud and rain is pretty much like riding with 2 flat tyres and your brake pads tightened up against the rims so whoever can win on a day like that is truly a super strong dude so with michele not in the mix was great to see the aussie get up for the win.
After the day in the mud a few more regular roleing and flat stages followed, most noteably a sprint stage win by tasmanian Matty Goss which was great to see. He sure is a special talent. The next big test came on the longest stage of the race, 265km to the earthquake ravaged l'aquila. I dont think anyone would have imagained how great a impact this day would have on the peleton at the start of the day but by the end of the stage nobody will forget it in a hurre. It was a very nervous start with all well aware that the lucky one to make up the days break away would more than likely arrive at the finish to fight for the win. This occured however instead of the usual group of 10-15, a group of 56 escaped up the road including carlos sastre, bradly wiggins, david arroyo, and the big winner of the day the white jersey wearer and fellow tasmanian Ritchie Porte. Myself and Matt Goss were also present so tassie had its full representation in the great escape. With all the big teams either unwilling or unable to do anything back in the main field, the gap rose to 18min before my team called myself and 2 of my team mates back to start chasing it down. This is pretty normal ask when riding for the GC however on this occassion with rain wind and freezing cold temperature this 30min wait for the superstar group really messed me up! By the the time they arrived i was no longer feeling super strong and with teeth chattering i took my place on the front and started chasing the group i had just been relaxing in for the past 160km. My legs were now turning in squares and after 60km of pulling the gap was down to 12min 50sec and i went flat out out the back of the group when we hit the final major climb of the day. For the final 40km i suffered like never ever before, again teeth chattering in the freezing cold and seemingly incapable or unable to eat i was in big trouble. My saving grace came in the form of Pablo Lastras, Greg Hendy Henderson the Kiwi, and Michel Albasini who realised my suffering and rode me to the finish. In the end Michele along with Cadel Vino and Basso lost 12min 30sec to the breakaway and the guttsy little tasmanian Ritchie Porte had ridden himself into Pink so was a great day to be appart off in that respect. After the finish i reflected and how i had ended up in such a state and realised how much can go on during 7hrs on the bike. It had started perfect and i was in the break, doing no work and hoping for a good performance. Then i find myself waiting on the side of the road to wait and chase the group i just sat up from. I bury myself to try and close the gap then suffer like never before simply to make it to the finish line. Pretty crazy i quickly realised that it certainly wont be the last time i experience such days on a bike and really in the end after realising that i still had 10 fingers and 10 toes and had not lost any to frostbite i realised in a funny way it was a great experience and i was lucky to experience it, the tuff days make the good ones all the more satisfying!
With Ritchie now in pink and with a handy lead the group enjoyed a few easy days with breakaways and the opportunity to regain some strength for the mountains of the final week. The Monte Grappa stage quickly established those who would be prominent in the final week and michele came to the for finishing 3rd in a group of basso and cadel and it was time to start clawing back the lost minutes. By the time michele finished the stage on the zoncolan the podium was insight and with the rest day to follow the team had plenty of optimism about the final run to verona. I meanwhile had developed a good relationship with michele and was enjoying the role of looking after him. Simply i did anything i could to ensure he did as little as possible, water food, tell him a joke, and of course the more serious duties such as moving him up front. On the hard mountain days once he was in the perfect position to start the crucial climbs i would give him one last bottle and a push and sit up and save some juice for the next day. One funny thing about every race is that you always tend to find yourself in the same group at the finish, i was always pretty much bang in the middle, hence the name of this post, and made some good friends in the final km's of stages as we rode to the finish without the stresses of being right up the front.
It was all set for an exciting final week which was kicked off with the mountain time trial. For me this was not such a good day, my ambition was to ride the climb at regular intensity to ensure i firstly made it up the climb but also to try and keeps as much juice in the tank as possible to help michele in the final days. This plan backfired a bit on me and i got a little bogged down and suffered more than i should off so will know for next time to be a little more prudent with my effort on such stages. Michele had a great ride and was 5th and was continuing to claw back the time. 2 easier days followed before we reached the final 2 mountain days, the tuffest of the race no less. Michele again showed great determination and was the only rider to hold the furious pace set by the liquigas duo of Nibali and Basso and was rewarded with the stage victory. Basso was now in Pink and the race was finally turning into an italian affair after the first part dominated by the anglo saxons and the spainyards!
The tone was set for the final road stage and with micheles win the day before and getting ever closer to that podium, our team was ready to rock and role. I personally was really determined to make the breakaway to hopefully be there late in the race to help michele take back some time. The day started perfectly as i was feeling good, quite a luxury after 20 days of racing. I made the breakaway and was again full of excitment as we hit the first of the day 4 climbs, the 34km monster which took us to livigno. Half way up the climb the breakaway group had significantly taking a bit of facelift with the initial group being whittled down with the likes of Sastre, Lloyd, Cunego, Simoni, Vino, Pinnoti and the eventual stage winner tschop from france joining in on the escape. When Vino and sastre arrived the pace went up all over the race and the pace was to much for me, with 4km to climb i was dropped and by the time we reached half way i was back in the peleton. I offered michele some food and that was it on the climb out of livigno i was dropped and spent a very painful day dangling between the front and last group on the road, i position i was getting used to being in. I was pretty dissapointed in myself as i really wanted to hang in the break but on this occassion was just not strong enough and i guess with the calibre of riders i know i am not quite at there level yet, specially on day 20! Anyway after that michele had another great ride and put in a huge late attack and was 4th on the day, more importantly had dropped nibili and was now only 1 second of 3rd overall. The play of the day however was probably by basso as he was able to follow the move of scarponi and pip him for 3rd place. This meant that michele missed out on the 8second time bonus for 3rd and ultimately was pretty much the difference between 3rd and 4th on GC.
Michele therefore needed the time trial of his life to get on the podium and at the middway stage had taken the time from nibili. Unfortunately on the 5km decent run into the finish nibili took 8 second out of michel and the final margin was 8 seconds, how handy that time bonus would have been the day before! Anyway thats sport and michele did a great job and also the team worked to our best capabilities to set him so everybody was pretty satisfied. Michele i know perhaps was not as 4th always leave you wondering, in my final Rowing world campionships in 2006 i was 4th and there is never an easy way to view it. For an italian to finish 4th in the biggest event of his life i am sure will fill him with the required determination to come back next year and hopefully for him move up some spots.
For me the giro was an experience i never thought i would have in my lifetime. It was great to be there to see what you need to do to one day try and succeed in such a race. Sure there are the exceptions such as Ritchie who was the revelation of the race and basically looked born to be in the position he was in thoughout the race. To dominate the young riders comp from day one, spend 3 days leading the tour, there is only one place he is going in the future and that is to the podium whenever he steps on the bike. Its exciting for him and those arround him to see what he is capable of. I am super lucky to have been close to him over the past few years and the work he does is seriously impressive, certainly hrs most would consider insane but for ritchie the proof is in the pudding! Anyway back to getting though your first grand tour and i was reminded of some wise words Matt Lloyd gave me once, "to finish first first you must finish". Sure finishing first my be out of my reach but also pefhaps not, in 21 days of racing you have alot of time to reflect and perhaps i was just halusinateing but there were moments where i thought perhaps one day i can be up the front. For now one step at a time, first is recover and recover well to ensure this glangelor does not coem back to haunt me, and also ensure i enjoy the power bumb you earn by racing a grand tour, then look to my next race which will be the Tour of Austria where i hope to be finally feeling on top of things after the hectic start to the year!
So rest rest rest and plan the final part of the year which i am pretty excited about. One great part about the giro is you leave home with the weather still a little temprimentle at the end of april and when you get home it is summer and time for the beach, and i love the beach!
for now
cameron james wurf
After the first few days we returned to the home of the race for the remaining 18stages. We did make a breif detour into switzerland on stage 20 but appart from that it was all on the roads of coffee and pizza. The Team time trial was the first stage on italian soil and was not such a great day for our team. We started very well and at the midway point we were in the top half of the field, unfortunately a couple of km further on we hit a freak hail storm which lasted all of 5min and lost all our rythm and along with that a bucket load of time and ultimately a very average performance. It was a pretty crazy experience having to race in a hail storm however quickly realising stopping and waiting for it to pass was not an option, i quickly tapped my head to ensure my helmet was safely secured and figured i was pretty safe from any serious injury! The team TT was followed by a couple of flatish stages with the next big day involving the famous gravel roads in tuscany. On the one day where rain is far from welcome it bucketed cats and dogs turning the usual white gravel roads to brown mud. Again unfortunately the team did not have a great day with me pucturing at a very inconvenient time just as the peleton had split. I was thrown a wheel by the neutral spares cars but with the convoy a minute away behind the second group my day at the front was over. Not long after michele crashed and had a bike fight to return to the front of the race and did a great effort to get within 1min of the days winner Cadel Evans which was a fantastic effort by him. Riding through mud and rain is pretty much like riding with 2 flat tyres and your brake pads tightened up against the rims so whoever can win on a day like that is truly a super strong dude so with michele not in the mix was great to see the aussie get up for the win.
After the day in the mud a few more regular roleing and flat stages followed, most noteably a sprint stage win by tasmanian Matty Goss which was great to see. He sure is a special talent. The next big test came on the longest stage of the race, 265km to the earthquake ravaged l'aquila. I dont think anyone would have imagained how great a impact this day would have on the peleton at the start of the day but by the end of the stage nobody will forget it in a hurre. It was a very nervous start with all well aware that the lucky one to make up the days break away would more than likely arrive at the finish to fight for the win. This occured however instead of the usual group of 10-15, a group of 56 escaped up the road including carlos sastre, bradly wiggins, david arroyo, and the big winner of the day the white jersey wearer and fellow tasmanian Ritchie Porte. Myself and Matt Goss were also present so tassie had its full representation in the great escape. With all the big teams either unwilling or unable to do anything back in the main field, the gap rose to 18min before my team called myself and 2 of my team mates back to start chasing it down. This is pretty normal ask when riding for the GC however on this occassion with rain wind and freezing cold temperature this 30min wait for the superstar group really messed me up! By the the time they arrived i was no longer feeling super strong and with teeth chattering i took my place on the front and started chasing the group i had just been relaxing in for the past 160km. My legs were now turning in squares and after 60km of pulling the gap was down to 12min 50sec and i went flat out out the back of the group when we hit the final major climb of the day. For the final 40km i suffered like never ever before, again teeth chattering in the freezing cold and seemingly incapable or unable to eat i was in big trouble. My saving grace came in the form of Pablo Lastras, Greg Hendy Henderson the Kiwi, and Michel Albasini who realised my suffering and rode me to the finish. In the end Michele along with Cadel Vino and Basso lost 12min 30sec to the breakaway and the guttsy little tasmanian Ritchie Porte had ridden himself into Pink so was a great day to be appart off in that respect. After the finish i reflected and how i had ended up in such a state and realised how much can go on during 7hrs on the bike. It had started perfect and i was in the break, doing no work and hoping for a good performance. Then i find myself waiting on the side of the road to wait and chase the group i just sat up from. I bury myself to try and close the gap then suffer like never before simply to make it to the finish line. Pretty crazy i quickly realised that it certainly wont be the last time i experience such days on a bike and really in the end after realising that i still had 10 fingers and 10 toes and had not lost any to frostbite i realised in a funny way it was a great experience and i was lucky to experience it, the tuff days make the good ones all the more satisfying!
With Ritchie now in pink and with a handy lead the group enjoyed a few easy days with breakaways and the opportunity to regain some strength for the mountains of the final week. The Monte Grappa stage quickly established those who would be prominent in the final week and michele came to the for finishing 3rd in a group of basso and cadel and it was time to start clawing back the lost minutes. By the time michele finished the stage on the zoncolan the podium was insight and with the rest day to follow the team had plenty of optimism about the final run to verona. I meanwhile had developed a good relationship with michele and was enjoying the role of looking after him. Simply i did anything i could to ensure he did as little as possible, water food, tell him a joke, and of course the more serious duties such as moving him up front. On the hard mountain days once he was in the perfect position to start the crucial climbs i would give him one last bottle and a push and sit up and save some juice for the next day. One funny thing about every race is that you always tend to find yourself in the same group at the finish, i was always pretty much bang in the middle, hence the name of this post, and made some good friends in the final km's of stages as we rode to the finish without the stresses of being right up the front.
It was all set for an exciting final week which was kicked off with the mountain time trial. For me this was not such a good day, my ambition was to ride the climb at regular intensity to ensure i firstly made it up the climb but also to try and keeps as much juice in the tank as possible to help michele in the final days. This plan backfired a bit on me and i got a little bogged down and suffered more than i should off so will know for next time to be a little more prudent with my effort on such stages. Michele had a great ride and was 5th and was continuing to claw back the time. 2 easier days followed before we reached the final 2 mountain days, the tuffest of the race no less. Michele again showed great determination and was the only rider to hold the furious pace set by the liquigas duo of Nibali and Basso and was rewarded with the stage victory. Basso was now in Pink and the race was finally turning into an italian affair after the first part dominated by the anglo saxons and the spainyards!
The tone was set for the final road stage and with micheles win the day before and getting ever closer to that podium, our team was ready to rock and role. I personally was really determined to make the breakaway to hopefully be there late in the race to help michele take back some time. The day started perfectly as i was feeling good, quite a luxury after 20 days of racing. I made the breakaway and was again full of excitment as we hit the first of the day 4 climbs, the 34km monster which took us to livigno. Half way up the climb the breakaway group had significantly taking a bit of facelift with the initial group being whittled down with the likes of Sastre, Lloyd, Cunego, Simoni, Vino, Pinnoti and the eventual stage winner tschop from france joining in on the escape. When Vino and sastre arrived the pace went up all over the race and the pace was to much for me, with 4km to climb i was dropped and by the time we reached half way i was back in the peleton. I offered michele some food and that was it on the climb out of livigno i was dropped and spent a very painful day dangling between the front and last group on the road, i position i was getting used to being in. I was pretty dissapointed in myself as i really wanted to hang in the break but on this occassion was just not strong enough and i guess with the calibre of riders i know i am not quite at there level yet, specially on day 20! Anyway after that michele had another great ride and put in a huge late attack and was 4th on the day, more importantly had dropped nibili and was now only 1 second of 3rd overall. The play of the day however was probably by basso as he was able to follow the move of scarponi and pip him for 3rd place. This meant that michele missed out on the 8second time bonus for 3rd and ultimately was pretty much the difference between 3rd and 4th on GC.
Michele therefore needed the time trial of his life to get on the podium and at the middway stage had taken the time from nibili. Unfortunately on the 5km decent run into the finish nibili took 8 second out of michel and the final margin was 8 seconds, how handy that time bonus would have been the day before! Anyway thats sport and michele did a great job and also the team worked to our best capabilities to set him so everybody was pretty satisfied. Michele i know perhaps was not as 4th always leave you wondering, in my final Rowing world campionships in 2006 i was 4th and there is never an easy way to view it. For an italian to finish 4th in the biggest event of his life i am sure will fill him with the required determination to come back next year and hopefully for him move up some spots.
For me the giro was an experience i never thought i would have in my lifetime. It was great to be there to see what you need to do to one day try and succeed in such a race. Sure there are the exceptions such as Ritchie who was the revelation of the race and basically looked born to be in the position he was in thoughout the race. To dominate the young riders comp from day one, spend 3 days leading the tour, there is only one place he is going in the future and that is to the podium whenever he steps on the bike. Its exciting for him and those arround him to see what he is capable of. I am super lucky to have been close to him over the past few years and the work he does is seriously impressive, certainly hrs most would consider insane but for ritchie the proof is in the pudding! Anyway back to getting though your first grand tour and i was reminded of some wise words Matt Lloyd gave me once, "to finish first first you must finish". Sure finishing first my be out of my reach but also pefhaps not, in 21 days of racing you have alot of time to reflect and perhaps i was just halusinateing but there were moments where i thought perhaps one day i can be up the front. For now one step at a time, first is recover and recover well to ensure this glangelor does not coem back to haunt me, and also ensure i enjoy the power bumb you earn by racing a grand tour, then look to my next race which will be the Tour of Austria where i hope to be finally feeling on top of things after the hectic start to the year!
So rest rest rest and plan the final part of the year which i am pretty excited about. One great part about the giro is you leave home with the weather still a little temprimentle at the end of april and when you get home it is summer and time for the beach, and i love the beach!
for now
cameron james wurf
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Giro
On saturday I began my first grand tour. The giro d Italia. I am super excited to be here as my goal since arriving in Europe has Been to be appart of the team for the giro I very greatfull for being given the opportunity to do it by the team management and senior riders. My role is simply as a domestic. This basically means use as little as possible energy whenever I can as when I am required to perform work, be it riding on the front or collecting bottles or giving up my wheels for punctures of other riders or helping riders back on after crashes or whatever I need to use the energy I have for these purposes. Perhaps later in the tour I will get an opportunity in a breakaway were I will have my own chances but firstly my job is to ensure Michele scarponi, our team leader is well looked after.
If I had any doubts as to my role they were quickly emphasied to me on the first stage where I had been toward the front with 5km and I suffered a flat tyre. As the field had split majorly due to crashes I I tried to ride on the wheel while I waited to our first car however was to risky with all the fast corners. Therefore I stopped took out my wheel and waited to for the car ready for a quick change but when the car approached I realised they we're not slowing down and did not stop as they needed to stay with the front groups in case Michele had any problems. I therefore was left stranded without a wheel and had to wait another couple of minutes for our second car. After this I gently rolled on into the finish with the knowledge greatly reinforced to me that I am certainly the dish pig on the team and taking it easy and saving energy to the finish Is actually a reward which I should embrace. On the positive side Michele finished safely in the front so team goals for the day satisfied and all were happy.
Day 2 for me was much the same on the luck side of things, dropped my chain just as we entered a hectic crosswind section where the peleton did indeed split, got back to front group then avoiding a crash ended up on the footpath with access to the road being blocked by a road of trees so when I finally made my way back onto the tarmac the lead group was gone again, I quick check to ensure Michele was all ok and in the front which he was and I simple sat up and rolled easily along until the second group caught me and enjoyed another early mark for the final 20km. Again team goals met with mechele finishing safely up front and not losing time so again all happy. As for me I am dissapointed I have not been able to really push and get involved in the first 2 days but as far as my job description goes I am happy also as I have only average 190watts and 110heart rate for the 10hrs of racing in the first two days so I am greatfull that fatigue has not found its way into my system as yet. With 18 days racing still to come I am sure it won't be long before this is not the case!
Today we have enjoyed a rest day after flying back from holland where the first 3 stages were held to Italy last night and tomorrow we have the team time trial so I am looking forward to that as it is a day where I am really expected to contribute more so very excited about that!
Really don't know what to expect being a 3 week race but the best advice I have been given is when the stage finishes forget about and start resting and preparing for the following day. After my first 2 days which could often leave you a little annoyed I have realised the importance of this as you need to ready when you do have those good days!
For now from the giro
Ciao
Cameron
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Patients!
Patients is a little word that has taken some years to become part of my make up. Aslong as i can remember i have always been in a hurry to do things. Unfortunately i am realising now, perhaps a little late, that it has prevented me achieving my chosen endevours to a much higher level. Anyway can dwell on the past and better late than never to realise this i guess?
The reason i have finally come to this realisation is cycling has taught me that you must build the foundations to get where you want to go. Again it has taken 3 years in this sport to realise this but i feel i am starting to get there. It has come about as this season has not begun for me like previous years where i am usually toward the front end of the fields and full of optimism for the year. Things just seem to be a little tuffer in the crucial points of the races where i am usually coming good and i need to be patient to let these sensations return. Luckily in my new team i am able to ride in the role of domestic and help the team leaders to success which allows me slowly build my conditon. Being a professional sport you also are quickly reminded when you have not spercifically prepared for a race when things get hard, you are quickly put in your place and thats how it should be.
For me this year there a couple of good reasons why i am little behind at this point. Firstly my recovery from glangelor was long and has meant i am 3 months behind in my preperation compared to previous years. Secondly when you race every week with only 5 days recovery in between it is impossible to train and do the specifics required to reach your full potential in the races. The most important thing is i accept this and learn to work around it and balance better my recovery, preparation and racing. Although i am only now giving this process to required attention i finally like i am building toward getting the most out of myself in the races. The sensations are good for 90% of the time however i need to patient (for the first time in my life) and put together the process to get there. I hope in the future to be writing a blog about implementing this process and how it worked effectivly for me!
The great thing about this sport is the ones that put in and prepare best will always be the ones up front. There are not many miracles in cycling where major results are achieved with little or now preperation. It is impossible to fox your way around up to 7hrs of intense racing, across mountains, flats, cobbles and brutal winds and come out the strongest. No it is a sport for those committed to the sport and those most commitent and "patient" in there preperation not leaving a stone unturned who will more often than not be the ones the fans come to watch and enjoy the spoils of there success. Back to my problem, it is quite simple, if i want to get to this point in the sport i simply have to patient!
Cameron
The reason i have finally come to this realisation is cycling has taught me that you must build the foundations to get where you want to go. Again it has taken 3 years in this sport to realise this but i feel i am starting to get there. It has come about as this season has not begun for me like previous years where i am usually toward the front end of the fields and full of optimism for the year. Things just seem to be a little tuffer in the crucial points of the races where i am usually coming good and i need to be patient to let these sensations return. Luckily in my new team i am able to ride in the role of domestic and help the team leaders to success which allows me slowly build my conditon. Being a professional sport you also are quickly reminded when you have not spercifically prepared for a race when things get hard, you are quickly put in your place and thats how it should be.
For me this year there a couple of good reasons why i am little behind at this point. Firstly my recovery from glangelor was long and has meant i am 3 months behind in my preperation compared to previous years. Secondly when you race every week with only 5 days recovery in between it is impossible to train and do the specifics required to reach your full potential in the races. The most important thing is i accept this and learn to work around it and balance better my recovery, preparation and racing. Although i am only now giving this process to required attention i finally like i am building toward getting the most out of myself in the races. The sensations are good for 90% of the time however i need to patient (for the first time in my life) and put together the process to get there. I hope in the future to be writing a blog about implementing this process and how it worked effectivly for me!
The great thing about this sport is the ones that put in and prepare best will always be the ones up front. There are not many miracles in cycling where major results are achieved with little or now preperation. It is impossible to fox your way around up to 7hrs of intense racing, across mountains, flats, cobbles and brutal winds and come out the strongest. No it is a sport for those committed to the sport and those most commitent and "patient" in there preperation not leaving a stone unturned who will more often than not be the ones the fans come to watch and enjoy the spoils of there success. Back to my problem, it is quite simple, if i want to get to this point in the sport i simply have to patient!
Cameron
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Columbia
Currently I am in the trento region of Italy, just north of Venice in the mountains. Today I begin the giro del trentino. The reason for this blog however is that I have just leant a little about the Columbian culture!
My room mate for the week is one of our star riders Jose serpa. He is an amazing climber and has 3 wins to his credit already this season. It is not his cycling I want to discuss however. Since rooming with him for the past 24hrs I have noticed he spends an unusually large amount of time on the telephone and by this I mean almost constantly. Puzzled by this attraction to the telephone I just raised this with him and his response was very interesting.
It turns out the Jose has 3 wifes in Columbia. No wonder the poor bloke is on the phone 24hrs a day, he deserves a medal for keeping ontop of that situation. In australia most blokes struggle to keep just one wife informed of what's going on let alone multiplying this by 3!
This is what I love about cycling. It is an international sport and the things you learn and experience are often things far removed from the bike. It is a educational sport in its very own unique way!
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device
My room mate for the week is one of our star riders Jose serpa. He is an amazing climber and has 3 wins to his credit already this season. It is not his cycling I want to discuss however. Since rooming with him for the past 24hrs I have noticed he spends an unusually large amount of time on the telephone and by this I mean almost constantly. Puzzled by this attraction to the telephone I just raised this with him and his response was very interesting.
It turns out the Jose has 3 wifes in Columbia. No wonder the poor bloke is on the phone 24hrs a day, he deserves a medal for keeping ontop of that situation. In australia most blokes struggle to keep just one wife informed of what's going on let alone multiplying this by 3!
This is what I love about cycling. It is an international sport and the things you learn and experience are often things far removed from the bike. It is a educational sport in its very own unique way!
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device
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