So what have you been doing over the Christmas holidays?

I had 6 weeks off the bike because I was really tired by the end of the season and just came home and saw my friends and family in Canberra. I got to come home pretty early in the season because it was my 21st birthday and the team was like, “yeah, you’ve had a long year”. I basically started racing at the start of January so they said, “we’ll let you go home earlier this year just because you’re a new pro”, which was really good of the team to let me do.

So if you didn’t ride much over the holidays, what did you do?

I bought a little motorbike cuz I’d originally been racing motorbikes for 10 years so I bought a little motorbike just to play around with. Just a little 50cc. I put big suspension on it and made it go really fast so that was pretty fun. And my brother bought one as well so we made a little track in my backyard. Just something to do to keep ourselves entertained. I’ve also been hooked on Gran Turismo on Playstation lately.

Someone told me your brother’s into mountain biking. Does he race?

Yeah, he races every now and then (downhill and 4-cross) but he needs to be more committed because he’s got such good talent. Sort of like me on the road bike, but he’s not committed enough yet.

A couple years ago you got 2nd at the U23 Tour of Flanders. Is that the type of race you could see yourself developing towards? Or have you found your wings in the sprints?

Yeah, I’d like to be good at the classics but they’re something you need to really focus on over the years and just learn the roads and where all the important parts are to be in the race. Its not really something you can jump into as a young guy. I think I have that same pure power as the guys who win it have. Yeah its just a long waiting game for those races and you don’t see many young guys doing very well in them.

So how did you get second in the under 23s? Those guys are no slouches either.

That was a good ride. My team rode really well for me. Pretty much the last cobbled section they just jammed as hard as they could to split the bunch and then I just launched on the cobbles and had enough speed to break the bunch into a few pieces. And then it came to a little bunch sprint at the finish and two of us got away [Slovenian Marko Kump] in the last kilometer and no one chased and then I won the little bunch sprint.

What types of races do you see yourself winning in the next three years?

I think I’m sort of diverting myself a little bit more to the sprint races but I’d like to go well in the harder races where it’s a small bunch sprint at the finish. I’m not a big bunch sprint kind of guy because I don’t have that sort of confidence in the big bunches. Which sort of seems strange but I think over the years I’ll build up more confidence, getting more involved and trying more things in the bunch. At the moment its just crazy…at that speed and everyone’s just looking at each other…I don’t know…its something you really need to do over a couple of years and figure out how to do it properly.

So was winning the stage in Stirling at the TdU was unexpected? Did it give you a false sense of security going into last season?

My form was really good at Tour Down Under last year. Maybe a little bit too good and I found it really hard to hold my form through the rest of the year. Being a first year pro it’s expected that there will be lots of ups and downs so I think I’ll just use that as a learning experience for this year and maybe not go into Tour Down Under well and try to keep my form for more of the year.

Who’s your coach who helps you with that sort of thing?

My coach in Canberra, Glenn Doney. He started with me when I began cycling five years ago. He does a lot with me and as structures my programs along with my Rabobank coach in Europe. They work together and do my program for me.

A lot of people don’t realise that you’ve done really well in time trials as well. Many people see you as a sprinter. Do you have any interest in time trialling or does it just come naturally to you?

Yeah, I really like time trialling but usually when I do a time trial I’ve already done a really hard stage before or big bunch sprint so the team’s not really focused on me doing time trials. They’d rather focus on having a little rest day through the time trial and then focusing for the next day. But for me, I like doing time trials, but if that’s what the team wants me to do, thats what I do.

So how about this year? What does the team want you to do with the change of dynamics with Mark Renshaw on the team now?

We haven’t talked really too much about it but there’s a lot of races through the year and they’ll be races that Renshaw will give me a turn and I’ll give him a turn. Its just basically who’s going the best. I guess that it will push us both as well to have our form higher than each other so it pushes each other and we’ll win more races.

Since you’ve spent a season with Rabobank and you’ve already gone through integrating with the team, have you helped make it easier for Renshaw get acquainted with Robobank?

I was actually pretty lucky the way my season started because I won the first race of the season for Rabobank and it sort of pushed me into the team more because they had a bit of respect for me. It just made it easier, otherwise it would have been tough because of the language barrier. But I think with Renshaw, these guys have been racing with him for so long they all know each other anyway so its not too much of a change. Well, it is ( a change) but they all know each already but for me no one really knew who I was. They knew me from cyclingnews and stuff but not personally.

Do you feel a bit of weight on your own shoulders with the teams expectations on Renshaw? You’ll be an integral part of that.

I’m basically learning from him because he’s got so much experience and even just sitting down with him in the meetings before the race, just hearing how much experience he has in the lead-outs and through the race…he just has everything planned out. And like last night, Rabo’s not really known for their lead-outs, but we were at the front doing our best to keep Mark in a good position and it worked out. Well it didn’t quite work out perfectly to plan but it was a lot better than we usually do. Even just in the first race he’s made a good impression.

With your quick jump from U23′s to the World Tour, what were some of the shocks that you didn’t expect at that level of racing?

It was different. I went into it with a lot of confidence after winning a stage in Tour Down Under which I think helped me a lot through the start of the season. Then I won two more races after that which kept my confidence up. But the downfall of the season was crashing at the Tour of California and then after that I just had no power in my legs for the rest of the season, which was quite strange. I couldn’t move up in the bunch, I couldn’t do anything. So I think that’s why my season sort of went downhill but that’s what you learn from I guess I never really had a big crash.

I crashed in the second stage of Tour of California coming into the sprint and it really scared me. I think first big crash is always going to scar people but hopefully I can move on from that.

Were there any times in your first season when you thought to yourself, “what am I doing here? This is hard, I don’t want to be here“?

It was Three Days of de Panne and after three days of smashing down rain, crosswinds all day I definitely thought that. On the last stage (it was only 100km) I got dropped in the first 10km because it went straight into a crosswind and I just couldn’t do anything about it. It was just single file in the gutter and I was just not experienced enough to ride with those guys in the crosswinds. That was one of the days where I just wanted to say, “Nope, it’s not on…I’m going home“. I wanted to book my flight and come back to Australia. But then I got through it and you just have those up and down days.

Who are some of the people who have kept you positive and mentored you on Rabobank or even outside the team?

Graeme Browne was really good to me last year. Because he lived next door to me (in Belgium) as well and helped me a lot through last year which I probably couldn’t have made it through the season without him. He was really good to me as well and just tried to settle me down when I got a little bit angry and just little things like that. He’s just a really nice guy and real relaxed. You need those people around you when you’re down.

How did your life change after you won the under 23s?

It was an interesting change. I don’t know, I still can’t even believe I won the race. It was an amazing feeling, winning in Australia in front of your home crowd, all my family and friends…it was amazing. When I crossed that finish line and realised that I actually won, it was the best feeling that I’ve ever had. And then after that I just sort of felt like a star for some reason. It was only U23 worlds but I think my confidence has just grown so much from that. It’s what you need as a cyclist basically. If you don’t have confidence like that you’re not going to win races.

Michael Matthews winning the U23 World Championships in 2010 in Geelong. Photo Cor Vos

Did the Rabobank contract come up after that or was that being talked about before?

I was actually in the mini Tour De France (the Tour l’Avenir), about half way through they came to me with the contract and I signed then. It was about 3 weeks out from Worlds.

Do you have any desire in the future to sign with GreenEDGE?

Its every Australian’s dream to be on a Australia ProTeam but Rabobank has been really good to me at the moment and I get my opportunities. So until that changes I’m really happy on my team.

I know that over your off-season in Australia you’ve done a few corporate events, dinners, etc. Do you feel out of your depth at all or are you pretty comfortable in those situations?

As long as they know who I am it doesn’t feel weird but when people come up to me and shake my hand and say ‘who are you?’ you feel a little bit awkward. But as long as everyone know who you are, its fine. You just have fun with it and do what you have to do. You’re basically a brand for yourself so you have to promote your brand.

What kind of music do you listen to?

Pretty much everything really. Depends what mood I’m in but mostly hip hop and rap. I’m really into Bruno Mars at the moment. He sort of has relaxing songs but also has hardy songs as well so he’s got a bit of variety.

What’s the significance of your tattoo?

The birth date was sort of just to get something across my shoulders for a start and then I got the angel after I won the worlds.

Is there significance in the Angel?

Yeah, in the World Championships everything just felt so easy so I thought about it and I thought there must have something looking over me in that race because everything just felt easy. My whole plan before the race turned out exactly as I hoped. There must have been something that wanted me to win that day so I got an angel. Then at the end of this year I finished it off with the colors and the wings and the halo.

And the nickname ‘Bling’. Is that something you’ve been given or something that’s self proclaimed?

Actually when I first started cycling I had bracelets and chains and everything on me – every piece of jewellery you could imagine as well as the low baggy shorts and the really long shirts…so one of my good mates from Canberra, his dad gave the nickname “Bling” to me. And now everyone knows me as bling, I’m not even Michael Matthews anymore.

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

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

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

What was your goal of this race?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

How much prize money?

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

What brought on this Belgian adventure of yours?

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

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

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

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

What about the Superprestige and GVA Trophy races?

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

What type of support have you had while over there?

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

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

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

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

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

The highlight?

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

What’s next?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

After interviewing Micheal Wilson, this quote seemed to attach itself to my impressions of him. Speaking without ego and still with a great enthusiasm for his sporting achievements, I already knew he was amongst our best ever road cyclists but he was not about to tell me.

His illustrious international career wasn’t without some hiccups along the way though. At the start of the 1980 Moscow Olympics TTT race Micheal Wilson rolled around near the start line on the team issue Malvern Star steel frame bike. His tyres were used, cast-offs from Charlie Walsh’s track team. Lightly raced, with a stage race in Romania the only race of note, this team of four Aussies were up against it.

Coming in the opposite direction was an Eastern Bloc team, hulking steroidal monsters, like giant, muscled up Bocconcini cheese in their skinsuits, on the best aero bikes available. Before they hit the Moscow-Minsk Highway, the Aussies were already psyched out. It all got to the youngest team member and he sat in for nearly 90km’s, but then inexplicably attacked and tried to ride his three teammates off his wheel for the last tortuous 10km’s. They plucked a credible 11th place from the fire, but importantly the experience didn’t faze Wilson, who would build on each subsequent race and opportunity until he had a Palmares amongst Australia’s best.

Through his Aussie team mate John Leslie, who was already established in Italy, Wilson made the big leap to Europe and raced as an amateur in Umbria. Winning several races in Italy meant the strong Italian team Alfa Lum soon came knocking. But it was a strange choice back then, as the Pro peloton had only a handful of English speakers. Those riders would become big names within the sport though, names like Greg Lemond, Andy Hampsten and Phil Anderson.

Wilson was quickly dropped in the deep end with a start in the 1982 Giro d’italia. Although riding for his team leader and Grand Tour heavyweight Marino Lejarreta, Micheal had an opportunity early and went for it. On the second stage, he worked his way to the front on a long flat stage. At about the 230 km mark and with less than 4km’s to go, he went off the front forming a breakaway of three.

Looking across at fellow Neo Pro Laurent Fignon, Wilson was unfazed. He knew the stage ended with a long climb into the Tuscan town of Cortona, and he knew his own time trialling strength on the stretch would suit him. He attacked his cohorts before the bunch came, taking the win a couple of lengths ahead of Fignon and became Australia’s first ever Grand Tour stage winner (correction: Don Allan was the first by winning a stage of the Vuelta). He took 43rd in his first ever Grand Tour, amongst giants like Hinault, Moser and Van Impe.

In 1983 Micheal raced La Vuelta and early on ran head-on into trouble in the form of patron of the peloton and multiple Grand Tour winner Bernard Hinault. Hinault’s La Vie Claire teammate had escaped up the road and a chase was beginning to form at the front of the peloton. Hinault tried to muscle in at the front and help block the road, thinking his four TDF victories and two Giro’s at that time would afford him some respect. Some manhandling of the Badger by Wilson ensued (“I just scuffed him back a bit”), a pulled jersey, and Hinault disappeared out the back.

That night in the team hotel, Micheal was embarrassed to see Hinault sitting nearby. Wishing the ground would swallow him up, Micheal looked over at Hinault. The man described as “independent, outspoken and quick to take offence” was concentrating on his meal, but noticed Wilson out of the corner of his eye. Hinault looked up, winked at him and smiled, giving an immense of respect to the young Aussie and not a small amount of relief for his personal safety.

Later in that year’s La Vuelta, Micheal found himself in the company of Greg Lemond in the Gruppetto on a particularly hot and gruelling race. Late in the Vuelta, Lemond’s morale was down somewhere near his bottom bracket, and a rider at the front attacked the peloton. The result was carnage, with screams and shouts and a sudden ramping up of speed. Lemond stepped off his bike and jumped straight into his team car.

Guts-ing it out, Micheal stayed on and led the final stage, with several laps in Madrid. Reports from the time were that the crowd numbers were close to one million. With around 15 km’s to go, Micheal snuck quietly away with a small group. Then, with still a couple of km’s to go, he dropped the bunch and hit out for the line. About 50m behind him, and the same ahead of the peloton, Laurent Fignon was out after him, but could not get any closer than the 50m or so. Micheal Wilson had chalked up his second Grand Tour stage win.

Micheal wearing the leaders jersey at the Tour of Romandie with his son Josh at age 5.

Two years later, Micheal Wilson confirmed his absolute quality with a top 10 finish in the GC at the Giro d’Italia. At his lightest ever racing weight, and on the back of a new team base and new training partners, Wilson rode for his team leader Lejaretta and helped him to 4th overall. Wilson meanwhile rode consistently well himself to secure 8th place.

After an ill-feted stint with 7-11 in 1987 where management refused to honor his signed contract, forcing him to return home, Micheal took 50th in the Tour de France in 1988 with his new Swiss team Ariostea. The next year there, he came 3rd in Stage 8 and, also in 1989, Micheal won the third stage at the Tour De Suisse, as well as one in Tirreno Adriatico.

Later, in that year’s Tour de France came a very tough stage as the riders faced lots of 3rd category climbs. Again, Micheal formed a breakaway, but this time miscalculated the speed of the chasing peloton behind. With a long 4-5pm climb at the end, Micheal was feeling very strong. “I had them on toast” he said of his breakaway riders. He hesitated, and didn’t hit them on the climb when all his instincts told him to go. Seemingly his one life regret.

A good indication of the esteem in which Micheal Wilson is held is the fact that he has a Wikipedia page in Italian, not English. He still retains his links to Italy especially, often helping with contacts, advice and introductions for more young Aussie hopefuls. Some years ago, his son Josh headed over and raced the elite amateurs, taking with him none other than fellow Tasmanian Richie Porte.

These days back in his native Tasmania, Micheal and his wife Mary run the well reknowned Velo Wines , a great winery turning out quality whites and some very nice Pinot on the pristine Tamar River.

In his nine years in Europe as a Pro, Micheal Wilson quietly but determinedly set several Australian firsts, not the least of which include being our first ever Grand Tour stage winner and first top 10 Giro GC placer. He did so against some of the greatest ever, names like Hinault, Fignon, Lemond, and Kelly. Undaunted, he raced and won many times against them.

In my mind though, it’s the simple nod and a wink from Hinault that confirm his standing in the sport.

Salut.

The Bordeaux–Paris was an invitational race and the longest on the professional calendar. It started in Bordeaux at 2am and finished in Paris 12-14 hours later covering over 570km. Unfortunately the race began to lose prestige in the 1980s. It required very specific training and clashed with other races on the calendar such as the Giro and the Vuelta (which used to be held in the spring). The last motorpaced version of Bordeaux-Paris was held in 1985 and three non-motorpaced editions were raced but 1988 ended up being the last.

The “Dernys” that were used had 98cc Zurcher two-stroke engines, pedalled on a 68 or 70x11t fixed gear and had a petrol tank across the handlebars. The reason they’re called a Derny is because they were built by Roger Derny et Fils of France specifically for motorpacing.

For a long time I had been looking for someone to interview about Derny racing on the road and in particular, Bordeaux-Paris. I wanted some insight to how it all worked, the strategy, the training, the intricacies of the race. In all my searching I couldn’t find anyone who could tell me more.

Then I bumped into a gentleman in Bright named Wayne Hildred. Amongst many other cycling achievements such as breaking the fastest time in the Melbourne-Warrnambool and being two time Australian Professional Road Championship, he also raced Bordeaux-Paris in 1982. Gold!

I could try to retell Wayne’s story of B-P, but he tells it so well I’ve simply recounted it in his own words.

“I was in Belgium at the time and we just formed an Australian team. Many people don’t realize this but there was a registered Australian professional team in Europe in 1982 called Mavic-Clemennso. There was a journalist named Noel Truers (sp?) who lived in Zolder who took an interest in a few of us Aussies and formed the team. Eric Bishop, Terry Hammond, Shane Sutton, etc. We weren’t a major team and we didn’t have much money. We weren’t able to get a ride in Paris-Roubaix but we did race all the other major classics (L-B-L, Flanders, Amstel Gold, etc).

Noel Truers asked me if I was interested in doing Bordeaux-Paris and there was this guy named Staf Boone [CT: a dodgy Belgian wheeler and dealer for many aspiring Aussie cyclists]. He wanted to be the Derny driver. Staf must have wanted a little bit of glory for himself through this. He was the “King” of bike riders in Belgium. He loved it and wanted to be part of it. He had a big influence in getting Aussie riders into teams and helped guys out. Kind of an ‘agent’ if you will, but he mostly attracted the struggling riders.

Only 20 riders were invited to Bordeaux-Paris. An English rider named Paul Sherwin, an Australian rider which was me, and other riders which included Sean Kelly and others from around the world. Herman van Springel won the race five times he had just retired that year and was the television commentator.

I trained up for it. Staf Boone would motorpace me to races, I’d race, then he’d pace me home. So I’d do 200km’s motorpacing, 160-220km race, and go home again. I was doing massive kilometers. I’d race five or six days a week and motorpace a couple times to the races. I’d go out for 300km rides regularly…massive days.

Time came for the race and I hadn’t met the other Derny driver yet. You had to have two Derny drivers for Bordeaux-Paris. When one ran out of petrol, the other driver would swap in.

We arrived in Bordeaux at 2 in the morning and started at 3am. There were 20 riders at the startline and we all take off together without the Dernys. We rode in a pack for the first 180kms until about 7am. Then we had a 30min break where we got changed, ate a little bit of food and stocked up, then rode off down the road for 20km and picked up the Dernys. Then the race was on.

The Derny driver has to be in tune with the rider otherwise he’s gonna blow the rider up or not go fast enough to keep up. For the first 20km we settled in and rode the pace of everyone else. They were all experts but I had never done this before. Then, I don’t know what was going on with Staf, but he decided he wanted to race. I had no say in what was happening! And that’s how the race was for the rest of the day…

Staf had prepared all the food and for some reason he brought all this stuff that was milk based. Milkshakes and stuff like that. All protein. Staf took off at a ridiculous pace. Here I was the novice and he set a pace as if I were the champion. He took me to the front and stirred everyone up, full gas. He had me strung out right from the gun. Staf wanted to win this and he had me strung right out! My heartrate was right on the knocker and then it was on – everyone was racing now. I’m screaming out at Staf “Ease up! Easy easy! Slow down Staf” and he wouldn’t listen. In the end I was beginning to get angry and I was screaming at him so hard that it was going right through my legs. After a while I just blew up – it just killed my legs and it was only 8am in the morning! The rest of the riders disappeared into the distance. Everytime I got back on Staf he would ramp up the pace again and I began to feel sick. My stomach was in knotts and I began to throw up. I was a mess! Then the television car comes by and I can understand a bit of Flemish and Van Springel (the commentator) was saying, “It’s not possible for this man to finish the race, he’s too far off the pace, he’s not well….”. Then the commissaire then comes along and tries to pull me out of the race, but I refused.

Staf had to get fuel and the other Derny driver took over. I can’t even remember his name. He was a tall, slim Dutchman. He talked to me and calmed me down. I said, “Look, I’m blown to bits, this is not good!”. By this time I’m 20 minutes down on the rest of the bunch but he talked me through it and backed me right off. He made me eat and coached me for about half an hour. Little by little he steadily brought up the pace and 2hrs later we had connected back onto the bunch.

After 10 minutes of being back on my Derny driver had to go and get fuel. Staf came back and straight away he couldn’t control himself. He was so excited that we were back on and he began ramping up the pace again. I was yelling at him “Staf, Easy Easy!”. He must have been on drugs or something, I don’t know what it was. They had to pedal these Dernys and he was this big fat guy, really unfit. Normally the drivers would be pedaling these Dernys at about 30rpm but Staf was going at 120rpm. After a while I would just sit up and refuse to keep the pace and eventually I gained some control over him. The picture you see (headline image) was at the point where I told him I would ride on my own and he ended up following me!

Then he settled down and we rode along. They said I wouldn’t finish the race. Right from the start there were people in their pyjamas along the side of the street watching us come past. The last 100kms everyone was yelling “Allez Ausralia, Allez Australia!”. I had this entourage of people yelling for me to finish. It motivated me and I started to go better and better.

I came in an hour behind the winner (Marcel Tinazzi). He finished in 12hrs and I finished in 13. I came in at about 5pm, about 20minutes back from Paul Sherwin. The people had lined the streets and waited for me to come past. When I got to Bordeaux the race was well over, but when I made it to the finish the people picked me up over their heads and crowd surfed me past the line!

I went and had a shower. It’s all a bit of a blur as I was one big blob at that point. I left with Staf in his big old Mercedes Benz and all I can remember is looking out the window with my glazed eyes and seeing the Eiffel Tower and though “oh…yeah”, and fell asleep.

8am the next morning Staf tapped me on the shoulder and said, “We’re home”. We got out of the car and Shane Sutton and the rest of my teammates came down and said “We didn’t need to open the door, we could just drag you through the letterbox!”. I had lost that much weight during the race…I had started at 73kg and I was now 67kg.

I did absolutely nothing for two weeks after Bordeaux-Paris. We then had the American Road Championships in Baltimore and Shane Sutton, Danny Clarke, this other guy and myself went over from Belgium. I was absolutely flying. Never touched the pedals all day. I was working for Shane and Danny and I was doing all the donkey work. We won all the sprint primes, Shane won the race, Danny came in second, the other guy was seventh and I was tenth. It was amazing how much fitness and strength I had after Paris-Bordeaux!”

Where is Wayne Hildred Now?

After the 1982 season Wayne came back to Australia and had a successful season winning the Australian Professional Championships. He went back to Europe with a contract but it fell through as soon as he got there. Life got a little bit difficult with his former wife and child being back in Australia and he made the decision move back home.

Wayne settled into family life and worked in Woodonga at the Mars Confectionery plant. Wanye and his lovely wife Susan took a vacation in Bright, VIC, fell in love with it and moved there. After 19 years off the bike and sick of being overweight Wayne decided to train up for the NZ Master’s Games (Wayne is originally a Kiwi) which he won. He went back to Europe, did some touring, and fell back in love with the sport.

Wayne and Susan now own the Bright Cycle Inn and Cafe Velo. They also run training camps out of Bright. If you’re in the area this summer consider staying at Wayne and Susan’s Cycle Inn or at least join them for a coffee and a yarn. Bordeaux-Paris is only the tip of the iceberg for Wayne’s stories.

Pretty big couple of weeks, Haasy?

Absolutely! It’s been overwhelming and surreal. The hard work has definitely paid off. It just shows that hard work brings good luck. I am thankful for everyone’s help this year.

How did your cycling adventure begin?

It’s not a super eventful story. I started riding mountain bikes at 17 doing some cross country racing in Canberra but mainly mucking about. Given a disappointing mountain biking season in 2009, I entered the Tour of Tasmania and did pretty well so Genesys Director Andrew Christie- Johnson offered me a spot! Pretty non eventful actually. It was a good offer and seemed like a logical step with perfect timing.

Genesys’ success over the past few years has been no fluke. What is the support structure like at the team?

Andrew is a passionate cycling enthusiast, and has an in depth perspective on tactics and approaches to cycling. He simply knows how to win bike races, and is an incredible coach.

The culture is one of “if you ask you’ll be answered self-help system”. The knowledge is there and how much feedback and help depends on how much each rider needs. This way the team’s resources can be allocated more effectively to provide more assistance to the riders who really need it.

Team Genesys after Nathan wins the 2011 Jayco Herald Sun Tour

How’s the camaraderie in the team?

Andrew chooses riders not only for their ability but personality is just as important. Hence, we’re all good friends in the team which makes a huge difference. We started to work in sync earlier on in the season sharing the same tactical approach in races. This allowed us success throughout the year as we were one step above the rest of our competition.

[Given the Warny was the hot topic of the week; I broached the subject of preparation and nutrition strategies for the race.  Haasy’s plan echoed that of former Warny champions, “we don't really look at it like that. Feeding is done through training, ensuring our metabolisms remain efficient and keeping our glycogen stores topped up. It’s more about repeating the same routine of as little fat intake as possible, consuming complex carbohydrate rich foods and cutting out refined food. For example, I never eat the same thing before a race; it’s just around the same food groups.]

I suppose it’s sensible not to shock the body before a race like the Warny by over-eating or resting too much out of panic?

Yes, one thing I learned is it’s actually NOT the small one percenters which matter. It’s more a holistic long term approach like getting your sleep, diet and training right for the entire year. So if you do struggle to get your perfect meal the night before the race, it shouldn’t matter as you have built up enough depth in fitness, metabolism efficiency and confidence to still perform at a high level. People have to detach themselves from “race winning meals” or “lucky routines” and rather have consistency in all areas of their lives so nothing can inhibit race day performance.

I used to be like that but through racing and travelling, it’s rare to get everything lined up and right the way you want it. If you’re someone who needs everything to be right to race well, then you might only perform well once a year. You need to be dynamic and work around how hard things can be on the road, like doing your washing in the shower if no washing facilities are available in the hotel or eating a fattier meal than usual given limited dining choices. The hard work is done way before that meal, so it shouldn’t affect one’s confidence.

Your recent signing with Garmin–Cervelo is yet another testament to the way Genesys produce world class riders (Richie Port, Will Clarke, Steel van Hoff). What happens now?

I’m heading to live in Girona next year, where team headquarters are. I should find out my race schedule next week too. The plan is to put my development in the hands of Garmin. I am not sure what bike rider I am yet, that’s what we have to figure out. The first year is a discovery year seeing what races I can win, which ones I am suited for and what races I like doing.

Any epic training rides this year that stick out in your mind?

One of the differentiators of Genesys to other teams is training camps. Andrew is a big believer in them. Before the Tour of Gippsland, Steel van Hoff and I spent a month at a training camp in Tasmania during winter, living near Mt. Wellington. We got caught out on one ride as there was so much snow we had to turn back, but found it challenging to descend the hills and were drifting down mountains with one foot out in the corners it was so slippery. Even Steel who is an amazing bike handler was all over the place in the snow. But we toughed it out and that’s what makes you stronger.

Rumour has it a special person came to watch you at the Jayco Herald Sun Tour, which you won?

Yes, my mother has been to some mountain bike races but never really been able to come to a road race as they’re in pretty obscure parts of the country. But I told her this one was a big one.

Your emotion on this video at the tour of Japan says it all!

I thought I got 3^rd! Around the final corner I was on the left hand side of a right hand corner. I picked Cunego’s wheel for the bunch sprint as I thought there were two guys ahead in the break. So I came off Cunego’s wheel and I realised I won the bunch kick for 3^rd, but then couldn’t work out why there were no other riders after the finish line in the fenced off area. I turned around and rode back to cheering team mates. I guess we caught the breakaway.

[Nathan has deferred his studies at the University of Sydney to pursue his cycling career. His approach of “you can only do one thing well at a time” is definitely working and on behalf of Cycling Tips’ readers I wish him all the best for his European campaign. It couldn’t happen to a more genuine down to earth guy.

Haas took 2^nd in the Warny in his first attempt at the race (after two bike changes). His teammate Joel Pearson taking his second victory (2009, 2011). Anthony Giacoppo also won the Shipwreck Coast Classic on Sunday.  Orange Army Invasion!]

This interview was featured on a show called Ushi & The Family. It’s a Dutch television show where Wendy van Dijk (playing the Japanese interviewer as well as other characters in her shows) takes the piss on unassuming guests. I must say, Andy and Frank took it very well. Watch from 12:03 onwards…

BTW Andy, this is the reason the TdF jersey is yellow….just so you know.

[CyclingTips] So how did you and Brian Nygaard begin working together after his departure from Leopard-Trek?

[Shayne Bannan] Once the rumours started going around about the the Leopard-Trek/Radioshack merger and it was evident that Brian wasn’t going to continue in his role as General Manager. I made contact with Brian because we had been searching for somebody who was the right fit to become the Communications Director for GreenEDGE.

How is that different than Press Officer?

It’s probably a little more detailed. Brian comes with vast experience. He’s more than a press officer. He comes with a wealth of knowledge from his roles within Saxo, Sky and Leopard-Trek in various areas of communication. Once it was evident that he wasn’t continuing we made contact. I’ve known Brian for a little while, had several discussions about the possibility of joining us, and came to an agreement about a month ago.

This will be your first ever ProTeam that you’ve managed. Will you be looking to Brian for his experiences with Leopard to help run GreenEDGE?

I think the key to this is people. Everybody knows their weaknesss and strengths. It’s about putting the right people in place. Over the past six months we’ve really tried to select the people who will value add and bring various parts of expertise to the table. It’s not just Brian, it’s also Neil Stephens, Álvaro Crespi who is our Financial Director and was the team manager of Mapei for six years. Those guys and 3-4 other key guys will be bringing their expertise to the table.

What’s next in the ProTeam application process?

On the 14th of October we should be receiving a letter from the UCI after their initial stage of viewing. In that letter they may ask us to change some of that documentation. Hopefully not too much. You have five days to do that. Once you do that they have another viewing of all the documentation. On the 20th of October you put your final ten riders contracts on the table to get it up to 20. On the 1st of November they’ll name the first 15 teams. If you’re in the first 15 teams and you already have a license the procedure is finished. But because we are a new team, even if we’re in the first 15 teams, the next step in the process is that we’ll give a presentation in front of the ProTeam commission. Basically they’ll go through the documentation and see if we’re capable of running a team in 2012.

What is the total roster size you’ll be selecting.

We still haven’t decided. It’s a minimum of 28, and a maximum of 30 riders. We’ll do that over the next 2-3 weeks. But we have our 15 riders in place who will give us the points that we need.

Was there anyone you were keen on signing who you weren’t able to secure a contract with?

Yes, there was one person in particular who would have been great to have on the team for his experience, but unfortunately we were competing against the team he was already in, which was a pretty good one. It was a little disappointing not to have been able to get him. Really only that person.

Can you say who it was?

Nah, I can’t really say.

What about the women’s team? Have there been any announcements?

No, there haven’t as of yet. We’re in the process of discussion. We’ve identified the riders of the women’s team and there will be an announcement in the next three weeks.

When do you see the first team gathering of the team – whether it be a training camp or internal introduction?

Late November.

And GreenEDGE’s first race?

The first race will be the Jayco Bay Crit series [beginning of January], then the Australian National Championships, and then the first WorldTour race, the Tour Down Under…if we’re fortunate enough to get the license.

And the biggest question – the kit design. The one that’s out now is horrible. When is the real kit design going to be released?

That won’t be released until January. Not too sure if they’ll use it in the Jayco Bay Crit series. We’re still in discussion. We may use a different jersey for that series and use the actual WorldTour jersey at the Tour Down Under.

The association between Cycling Australia and GreenEDGE is misunderstood by a lot of people. Can you clarify your relationship and how you’re aligned?

GreenEDGE is a partner, a sponsor, of Cycling Australia. We support the U23 continental team and have an agreement in place. We provide funding to that program and enables us to have the first rights of discussion. There’s no exclusivity at all. At the end of the day the riders make their own decision as to what team they may or may not ride for.

The way I understand it, the Jayco-2XU team is a feeder team to the U23 AIS team. Is that correct?

We have an alignment with Jayco-2XU, but it’s more supporting the grass roots. I supposed you can look at it as a feeder team, but every cycling club, every state academy and institute is a feeder team to a professional team. In terms of being an official feeder team, we’ve had a lot of requests from various organisations and we’ll try to support them as much as we possibly can without taking away from our key business.

So are you saying that every non-AIS aligned Australian development team will have equal opportunity to feed into GreenEDGE?

One of our reasons for starting this team was to value add to Australian cycling in terms of providing pathways. Not just for riders, but for staff as well. Giving back to the sport as much as we possibly can. It’s an evolution which will take place over the next 4-10 years. We would expect that we’ll be in a position to give a lot back to the community.

There is lots of debate of potential favoritism and political alignment with national team selections. With the exclusion of Mark Renshaw in the World Championships because a perceived favoritism, what comfort can riders have who aren’t aligned with GreenEDGE for national team selection based on their own merits and results?

I live in Italy so I don’t actually read a lot of press. I just deal with day to day facts. But I have heard about the discussion, which is a great thing and shows the evolution of cycling and people having their opinions. In my old position I was a selector and a team manager and came under criticism quite a bit for various selections. When you’re in that position you pick the make-up of the team based on who you believe will do the job for a particular person on the day, or you come up with different scenarios. On the Australian team this year, and without speaking to Matt White, but knowing how I would feel in the past…Matt white would have gone through the various scenarios. He would have based it with the other selectors on what would be the best for Australia. Not GreenEDGE, not Garmin, not SKY – I believe there were three SKY riders on the team, there was one Garmin rider on the team. So to say that the team was stacked with GreenEDGE riders was a bit of an exaggeration. I think at the end of the day the person in charge of Australian cycling makes the decision for what’s best for Australia and to get the result. We’re always going to have controversy. That’s part of the sport becoming popular. It’s actually not a bad thing. It shows people are passionate about it.

So can you offer any assurances that riders who aren’t part of GreenEDGE won’t miss out on selection of National Team events?

I’m here speaking for a representative of GreenEGDE. That’s a question for Cycling Australia. I don’t have any say whatsoever with Cycling Australia. I used to in my old position, but as of January 1 of this year I’m not part of the selection process. They still talk to me for advice on various issues because I have a fair amount of history, but basically they are their own people who make the decision for Cycling Australian, and vice versa for GreenEDGE.

2012 is of course an Olympic year and there’s bound to be some overlap in rider’s schedules. Will one of GreenEDGE’s objectives be to support the riders who are competing in London?

As an Australian we love to be supportive of our Australian riders who want to compete and be successful. We’ll be letting CA know that it will be an absolute partnership and there will be no compromise in their preparation. For the guys in our team who want to be part of the Olympic team we’ll give them 100% support.

Do you feel any pressure or responsibility towards making sure your riders perform at the Olympics after a dismal 2008 in Beijing?

Every World Championships, Commonwealth Games is a lot of pressure. I’ll be feeling a different pressure next year because I’m not involved with the Olympic Games, I’m a GreenEDGE person. But certainly standing and cheering from the outside will be pretty exciting and nerve wracking.

It must be hard be for people, because I’ve been involved with CA working for them for 23 years and now I don’t work for them anymore. I have this business I’m trying to set up, a WorldTour team. I understand the perceptions out there. But I actually don’t have any say whatsoever in the selection process.

You have a busy day ahead of you Shayne so I won’t keep you. Thank you kindly for your time and all the best in 2012. We’ll be cheering you on. [Shayne heads back to Italy on Thursday and will be at the Giro di Lombardia this weekend. Just as I finish writing this I see a press release in my inbox stating that Christian Meier (CAN) and Daryl Impey (SA) have been announced to signing with GreenEDGE. That brings the roster count up to 27]

Aged 19 he won the Silver medal in the 4,000m Pursuit at the Commonwealth Games, and two years later he won the silver medal in the ‘Kilo’ at the 1972 Munich Olympics. Amazingly, the Australian Olympic riders’ sole preparation just prior consisted of a training camp in country NSW, sleeping on a straw mattress and riding on the road in the cold and wet. Makes you wonder what might have happened if he had prepared like the Europeans with months of hard racing and undoubtedly less Spartan accommodation?

His racing career continued for another 30 years, finally finishing at the age of 49, not far from where it all started when he took a stage win in the Tour of Tasmania. In between, and in what was probably double the racing life of most racing Pro’s, he became one of the greatest riders on the track with 74 wins in 6 Day Races, second only to the greatest ever 6 Dayer, Patrick Sercu. Along with his feats in 6 Day racing, Danny was 5 time Track Cycling World Champion, as well as winning 5 silver medals and 2 bronze medals.

The ‘Six Days’, as they were known, are a fascinating and unique part of cycling, but which sadly have dwindled in popularity and prestige over the years. In the ‘70’s and ‘80’s though, the six day season ran over the European winter from September to February, in front of crowds of 10,000 each night and attracting the best riders in cycling at the time.

In the early ‘70’s Danny was sponsored by local Tasmanians to travel to Denmark and raced a season there. Hit with homesickness, he returned and raced locally. One day out of the blue he just decided to go back to Belgium. Racing, but living in truly rugged conditions in a Ghent flat without a toilet, shower, hot water or even a proper kitchen, he got a phone call to come race in the 6 Day in Frankfurt when another rider had pulled out.

He borrowed some wheels from friend and Tour stage winner Barry Hoban, and begged to borrow a track bike as well, then got himself to the race. Winning most of the sprints, breaking Sercu’s track record and generally scrapping his way to the top there was a break-though moment. From there he was invited to the next 6 Day, and his track racing career had started.

Danny lived in Belgium for 20 years and raced the biggest 6 Days in some of the biggest cities, places like Ghent, Berlin, Copenhagen, London and Munich. His “Attack! Attack! Attack!” style was a big hit, especially with the fans, but not always with the other riders.

Patrick Sercu didn’t always see eye to eye with the fiery Aussie, who strongly felt the Euro-bias against him. Danny was more successful in the 6 Days than greats like Peter Post and Eddy Merckx, winning races with partners like Aussie legend Don Allan, Brit Tony Doyle, Etienne De Wilde, Gilbert Duclos-Lasalle and Rolf Aldag. Some of his more memorable races were when Merckx and Sercu combined (Merckx would only race with Sercu), with Danny joining Merckx’s then hated foe Freddy Maertens as they fought tooth and nail in grudge matches with a real competitive edge.

Starting at around 6pm, riders would be race for up to 13 hours each of the 6 days. After finishing “the Chase” (an exciting 70km Madison race with hand slinging between partners) about 2am, riders then slept in cabins under the grandstands. But at 2am Danny was just starting to fire up.

It all started when Elvis released his version of “My way” and Danny (a big Elvis fan, and a pretty good singer himself) was singing it as he changed after a race. The promoter at Copenhagen heard him and paid him 1,000 Kroner to perform. The crowd loved it too, and for nearly 15 years his Eric Clapton covers were a much-loved feature of the 6 Days, which often featured plenty of beer, strippers and casinos.

In the late ‘70’s Danny was also sponsored by the Danish ‘Adult’ magazine Rapport, with rumours that girls from the magazine had been given to Danny and his team mate as ‘chaperones’. The money was good and life was fun for Danny who was a non-drinker. In all, he won the big races – Ghent 8 times, Copenhagen 8 times, and Munich 6 times.

In 1981, Danny won gold in the World track championships and a year later he lined up with a crack field in the 1982 World Track Cycling Keiren final. The race was standard fare for track racing back then, flinging elbows and barging shoulders into each other while burning up the track. As Danny fought for position behind the Derny rider, the Canadian Singleton pulled the shorts of the German to sling himself off the bend and into what was a winning move. Every team protested, but with a mate on the appeals board and being a ‘Leicester local’, Singleton was always going to be declared the winner.

There is a little of the ‘bush footy legend’ about Danny Clark, someone who possessed all the skill but never pushed his own barrow. With no one to guide him, provide advice or exert influence on his behalf, Danny missed the chance to race on the road. This is still a regret, and although he still managed to race smaller road races like the Tour of Denmark and Tour of Germany, he feels he would have been a real shot at winning a Classic or Tour stage.

Catching up with Danny is not easy, because he rides every day for around 3 hours, in between trips overseas. Living at Mermaid Beach on the Gold Coast, Danny mixes up his solo training with hard group rides where he relishes the chance to shred the young blokes. Last year he won C grade in Grafton-Inverell aged 59.

Travelling overseas each year, Danny rides a Derny in the Copenhagen 6 Day as a way of catching up with his mates, and has just come back from a stint in Masters racing in Italy. I don’t doubt him when he says the 50 year olds racing over there would win A grade here, especially when he talks of the Thursday 50km/hr “full gas” sessions that he was riding.

Danny Clark loves the bike, loves racing. After talking with him, I am pretty sure it is a part of his DNA. Unlike some racers who walk away from the sport never to pedal again, riding is literally his oxygen and I can understand why he can’t explain his extreme longevity, it’s such an inherent part of him he’s never tried to even understand it.

Danny Clark – the eternal champion.

Head on over to PezCyclingNews for an excellent interview and photos with Danny Clark.

Let’s face it, more often than not, news about Israel is usually controversial and confined to the political sections of international media. But last week there was refreshing news of a 23 year old Israeli rider joining Team Saxo Bank Sungard for 2012 broke away and climbed into the sports section.

I was intrigued to find out more about this young gun and learn about his hurdles, determination, self-belief, hard work, discipline, dreams and ambitions which ultimately led him to this momentous signing.

Lucca, Italy, Wednesday, 12pm. Ran Margaliot is about to head out for a 2hr training ride with a few intervals. He’s racing the Franco-Belge/Tour de Wallonie-Picarde on the weekend and his racoon eyes and sharp jaw line make me wish I had done an ergo session that Melbourne morning instead of sleeping in. How did Ran end up 2000km from Israel racing his bike professionally? Here’s his story.

The Warm-up ~Beginnings~

“I used to catch a bus from a small town hidden in the Jerusalem Mountains to Tel Aviv with my mountain bike to train with some distinguished local riders, who would race road and mountain bikes in Europe every year. I was fortunate to join them on such a trip in 2004 for a summer in Holland and man, I got a huge reality check! The speed and duration at which those juniors could spin a 50×16 restricted gear was incredible”

Ran realised two things on that trip. One, he needed to be in Europe and two; he needed to be on a European team if he was going to fulfil his childhood dream of becoming a professional cyclist. The desire had been ignited and after some initial intimidation from fellow competitors, he realised that “besides their nice looking bikes and kit and family support on the start line, they have nothing on me”.

The Prologue ~Making a mark ~

Ran spent the next 3 years racing for a Belgian club during his school holidays. He struggled through just to finish, while other locals were winning and placing in these tough regional races. One of those locals happens to now be a soigneur for Saxo Bank Sungard, and both marvel at how things have turned out. Surviving these challenging trips made Ran realise that he could take care of himself and create his own reality – to become a professional rider.

KOM #1 ~Military ~

After finishing school, Ran was drafted into the Israeli Defence Force as conscription is part of being Israeli. Ran’s father was in the air force and having grown up on bases it was obvious from an early age he was going to serve, probably as a fighter pilot. Due to being Israeli National Road Cycling Champion and having support from the Israeli Cycling Federation, Ran served as a ‘Sportsman of Excellence’, which entails completing a shortened version of the defence force’s rigorous basic training course, serving 6-7 hours a day at a base located away from conflict as close as possible to his residence and the having the flexibility to travel abroad 3 months a year for races. These special conditions helped facilitate a ‘normal’ training regime (riding before and after army duties) but apparently are nowhere near as good as what the country’s top soccer players experience. Israeli conscription is 3 years for males and Ran served every one of those required days. Ran felt that 3 months a year was simply not enough time to get noticed in Europe, so he put his case forward to increase this allowance in order to spend more time racing abroad. The army approved his request but it meant that every day over and above the 3 month period spent abroad would have to be served at a later stage. As a result it took Ran 4 years to complete a 3 year service, which spanned 2007-2011.

“It definitely made me tougher, and helped me appreciate everything I have”, Ran says of his military service.  His character and ambition enabled him to jump the hurdles constantly laid out before him. “As hard as bureaucracy can be, I am proud I fulfilled my national commitments and served my country. Now I hope to represent Israel in another way”.

The Tailwind ~ A Bit of Help~

Tuscany, 2008. Through a mutual friend, Ran was tested by Massimiliano Lelli, who after realising his potential organised him a spot on the Saunier-Duval under-23 team. (Later becoming Footon-Servetto). He rode the U-23 World Championships and European Championships in 2009 and due to some impressive results he got an invite in 2010 to race for the UCI’s World Cycling Centre Programme, funded by the Olympic Solidarity Committee based in Switzerland. “This was the best a non pro rider could ask for”.

So what is a day at the World Cycling Centre like?

Ran explained that first of all each athlete has their own room- a luxury as an amateur in Europe. After breakfast, there is usually a stretching / core session. Then a 2-4hr ride escorted by the team coach in the surrounding hills. Lunch is followed by an afternoon rest and then a second session in the afternoon. “I think I used to train more then, than I do now!” he jokes.

There are also classroom sessions where anything from race tactics to English lessons are taught. “All the athletes are motivated and focused on becoming professional cyclists. Their discipline and passion are phenomenal.”

KOM #2 ~ Stagiare with Saxo Bank~

Last year Ran had some good amateur results (including the KOM in the Giro dell’Emilia) but had yet to sign a contract for 2011 (a goal of his was to have a contract by the time he finished his military service). In April this year his agent, Giovanni Lombardi, arranged a stint for him with Saxo Bank Sungard. Ran attended a team training camp in Alps with the riders who didn’t do the Tour de France and then raced as a stagiare for the team, prompting his recent signing.

The Cool Down ~ Form ~

I asked Ran how he gauges his form when in Israel, given that European riders have the convenience of racing and training with other pros. By using a power meter, doing time trial efforts, mountain biking during the off season and motor pacing after local bunch rides, he ensures he arrives in good condition for Europe. For now it’s about “how much power I produce and how good I am. This is a huge opportunity and it’s up to me to do what I want with it”.

The Finish ~ Stories from the road~

Ran, what kind of rider are you: Tour or One-Day man?

“At the moment I am a bottle carrier!” Ran is still figuring this one out, but he does like the stage races and would “love to race Liege-Bastogne-Liege”. At 59kg, he’s not so sure about Paris Roubaix.

What was your most recent ‘epic’ training ride?

“I did a training ride with Taylor Phinney a few months ago. People think he’s a TT specialist, but he’s simply a tough, professional hard worker. After 7hrs in the saddle, 5000m of climbing and 5 mountain passes, Taylor suggested we sprint up a notoriously steep climb to ‘earn’ our gelato! Epic.” Ran adds that he doesn’t like easy days or days off as you need to watch what you eat and always question if you are doing enough. Sound familiar?

Who are some of the more personable pros in the bunch?

“Bernie Eisel, Taylor Phinney and Nick Nuyens. Nick is so humble and personable. He always makes a point of thanking me for getting him bottles.” Ran commented on how the friendly winner of the Tour of Flanders moves so effortlessly through the bunch and always finds time to chat to fans.

What was your most embarrassing moment in the pro peleton?

“I crashed in the first feed zone when taking a mussette in my first race for Saxo Bank this year”. Enough said.

Lastly, do you do any core or strength and conditioning training?

“I believe in core work but it is a personal preference”, adding that it helps him break up his training routine and keeps his body aligned. “The old school guys spend so much time on the bike that they miss quality sessions. Core allows me to ensure that my upper body and leg muscles are maintained, while ensuring I am fresh for my quality workouts. I prefer to go for quality not quantity.” Ran also has learned that “the difference between amateur and pro is the responsibility to rest”. I asked him what other differences he’s noticed between the ranks, to which he replied “a professional cyclist is able to control his speed. When you need to go fast you go really fast” and that “racing is easier than training sometimes!”

Debrief

Talking to Ran was an absolute pleasure. He is intelligent, insightful, and ambitious and is writing an important chapter in the history books for his country. His story is an example of how we can all set personal goals and achieve them with self-confidence and belief.

You are the Director of Global Cycling Promotion (GCP), a company owned by the UCI. What are the GCP’s key objectives?

Basically it’s to assist with the UCI’s strategic objective of globalizing professional road cycling. Professional road cycling is a very strong sport in a number of territories – Western Europe mainly – but there’s still a huge potential that is not exploited in other parts of the world. The UCI’s mission is to develop the sport worldwide and to strengthen the Olympic status of the sport. We know that globalization, or universality as the IOC calls it, is a key criterion to develop a sport in the Olympic program and it’s a priority for the UCI to make professional cycling as global as possible. By creating a dedicated company to create, or assist the creation of, new events in new territories the UCI is taking action to reach its strategic objective.

[I did actually have a few specific (and curly) questions about the GCP, but given Alain was short on time we got straight into race specifics.]

Firstly, has the threat of team boycott over race radio regulations now completely disappeared?

Yes, all teams have confirmed their participation in accordance with UCI regulations.

I’m not sure if you’re aware, but an hour ago (18:30 AET, when the interview was conducted), David Millar tweeted “UCI/GCP = SNAFU: organize Tour of Beijing, give World Tour status obliging teams to go, tell riders last minute they need visas. Thank you.” China Visas can take weeks to process. Whose responsibility was it to ensure all riders were informed they needed visas?

Well, I saw that and you may have seen that I immediately sent a tweet to David to see how we could assist him. He has a specific situation with regards to visas, but that’s a unique case. In general, teams were well aware that visas were required for the Tour of Beijing. We’ve been in regular contact with (participating teams) over the last few months. We have set up procedures with the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) in Beijing to receive visas. Obviously with a race in China, the logistics are more complicated than a race in France or in Italy. You have to apply for a visa in an embassy etc, etc – you are a traveler, you know this very well – so we have created procedures with the City of Beijing (the LOC) to facilitate this and we are assisting teams on a daily basis. In fact, that’s why I am particularly busy at the moment; I am dealing with some specific cases in teams. I can fully understand it’s a surprise for a rider who’s used to mainly racing in Europe where the borders are virtually non-existent and it’s easy to go from one country to another. But, we’re working on it and assisting wherever we can. I hope to be in touch with David very soon to advise him on how best he can sort his problem out.

The Tour of Beijing has capacity for 18 so-called ProTeams and 1 Chinese National team. What is the LOC’s deadline to finally confirm the participating teams?

Well this is happening at the moment. You have seen that Team Lampre-ISD has confirmed its participation; we have announced Vacansoleil-DCM. In fact, all teams have sent a list of (participating rider) names to the UCI in accordance with regulations. We will announce them between now and the race. And on their side, teams will also announce their riders. [Teams will arrive three days before the start]

The Event Partner bar along the bottom of the website is empty. Are there any race sponsors? Who are they and when will they be announced?

The marketing rights belong to the City of Beijing so it’s their responsibility to arrange sponsorship. At the moment there are no sponsors showing on the English site.  We are just waiting for some logos from the LOC. If you go to the Chinese-language site (tourofbeijing.co), you will see a list of sponsors at the bottom. There’s a car company, there’s a leisure clothing company and I think there’s also an energy drink company at the moment. [note: there are several automotive sponsors, including Mercedes-Benz and also a bicycle sponsor ‘UCC’ which has significant market share in China]

Has it been a challenge to engage local sponsors when compared to a similar event in Europe? Do local sponsors understand the significance of the Tour of Beijing and the potential benefits?

Well, I can’t comment on the specifics because it’s the responsibility of the LOC. Certainly, it’s more challenging to promote a race and attract sponsors (in China) because they don’t know about cycling, it’s the first edition, there are no major Chinese riders at the moment, etc. However, it’s good to see in these conditions they (the LOC) have still been able to find (many sponsors) until now.

Is it an objective, after the four-year agreement between the GCP and Tour of Beijing ends, to sell the event or will the GCP continue its ownership so long as the event is profitable?

Well, first of all we haven’t done the first edition yet so it’s probably a little early to speak about the future. At the moment, there is no plan to sell the event. I think we have a strong partnership with the City of Beijing and a set of rights and obligations that I think work well, so we don’t have plans to change that in the future I think.

You studied political science at the University of Lausanne. In a political sense, how does organizing a race in China compare to organizing a race, for example, in Australia or another western country?

(laughs) Well, that was a long time ago! No, I mean, it’s very interesting and certainly very different. During my last visit to Beijing in August, I had lunch with the president of the Chinese Cycling Association. He made a very interesting statement that we (GCP) are going to face three types of differences. The first one is cultural; this difference creates basic communicational misunderstanding etc, etc. The second is political; the political systems are totally different. You know, the way cities, regions and central governments are organized in Western society when compared to China. We are faced with this on a daily basis. Fortunately, in my team, we have Chinese people who understand both systems, the way the hierarchy is organized, the decision-making process. The third difference is what the President called “technical” difference; the (lack of technical) expertise. We are used to working with organizers who know the sport, are experienced in the sport, and there’s no such experience at the moment in China. That’s the reason we are bringing in ASO (Amaury Sports Organization, owner of the Tour de France) to fill the gap in technical knowledge. I’m very confident we will be able to transfer knowledge to China very quickly and they will become very good organizers themselves.

In order to compete in a race on the UCI World Calendar, riders of UCI ProTeams and UCI Continental Professional teams must have submitted accurate whereabouts information and have been subjected to at least three blood parameter tests collected in accordance with the UCI biological passport protocols. The three tests must have been collected over a minimum period of six weeks. Will the Chinese National team be subject to these exact conditions?

As you pointed out, this requirement is for UCI ProTeams and Professional Continental teams, not for other riders. Having said that, the UCI has a very comprehensive program so all the riders get tested on a regular basis. It is the same situation as the Tour of Poland and the Tour Down Under in fact so, yes; the riders in the Chinese National Team are tested on a regular basis. However, they are not part of the UCI biological passport program.

You mentioned Poland and Australia. Do you think the intent from the Chinese Cycling Association is to have the same level of testing on their athletes as we do in Australia? How do local protocols compare with other established cycling nations?

Well, that’s not exactly for me to comment, as this is the UCI’s responsibility. I’m just commenting as the race organizer. Having said that, all athletes competing at international level are submitted to UCI regulations. I think the UCI has a very comprehensive anti-doping program, so I’m not concerned about it.

Is there any concern from either the LOC or GCP that the Chinese National team is going to – as we say in Australia – get smashed by the ProTeams, therefore creating an embarrassing situation for Chinese officials? After all, we know that “saving face” is very important to Chinese people. Is there a concern about the difference in quality?

It’s true. At the moment on the international scene the China team is not very high in the international hierarchy, but this is mostly due to their lack of international experience! There’s a lot of activity at the national level. You may know the most important event for Chinese athletes is the China Games (note: National Games of the People’s Republic of China, held every four years). Different provinces all compete against one another, so there’s a lot of competition at the national level. Many (expat) professional riders are also racing in China, so the level is quite good, I think. To answer your question, if the China Cycling Association has decided to enter a team in the Tour of Beijing, it is because they are confident they will be able to keep up with the other teams. For that reason, we are confident for the first year the Chinese National Team will compete at a reasonably high level. We know it’s not going to be easy for them, which is why together we are organizing training camps and coaching. Gradually, Chinese athletes can compete well internationally and integrate to international teams. The Tour of Beijing is not just a race; we really want it to be a platform that will benefit everybody. Not only for sponsors and teams but also for Chinese cycling.

There are three riders from the Chinese National team currently training at the World Cycling Centre, in Aigle, Switzerland. How are they finding their stay in Switzerland?

They’re doing well. I see them on a daily basis because my office is at the WCC where they train. They are doing a lot of miles and they have experienced international coaches looking after them, so of course it’s going to be beneficial for them. And that’s just the start of this cooperation; the WCC will assist the Chinese Cycling Association to develop Chinese athletes, coaches, officials and commissaires over the next four years.

Europe, Canada, Australia and now Asia are home to WorldTour races. Where to next?

We are actively, you know, working to identify cities that could host new UCI WorldTour events. We are also monitoring existing races to see if they can be upgraded to WorldTour level. It is more the UCI’s responsibility to set up the UCI calendar. I think, in a recent interview, Pat McQuaid mentioned countries like Brazil, India and Russia. These are definitely countries where we would like to develop new projects.

Because the strategy is to globalize cycling, does that mean GCP will only be targeting races in emerging countries, and not developed countries like the UCI. For example, the USA does not currently have a World Tour event.

No, I don’t think it is only emerging countries. It could be any region in the world where there is potential for the whole sport; I think the US is a key territory. If a project can be developed in this country, I’m sure the UCI will look at it with a positive eye.

So, if there was an interesting opportunity in the USA, would the GCP itself look to own a race, or are you talking about assisting an existing race like the Tour of California to become a WorldTour event.

It could be both. We are not just stuck on one business model, I think different business models are possible as long as the UCI and GCP’s goals are achieved; that is, to support projects which benefit the whole cycling family and its stakeholders.

Did you have the possibility yourself to ride in China?

Unfortunately not, because I’ve been very busy every time I’ve been in China. I would love to do that one day.

Well I can recommend some good bunch rides to you.

Let’s talk about it when we meet in Beijing then!

Alain Rumpf, thanks for your time.

– Tour of Beijing Race Details –

Official website: www.tourofbeijing.net

Stage One – Wednesday 5th October ?Individual Time Trial – 11.3km – Bird’s Nest – Water Cube via Olympic Park circuit [No TT bikes allowed]

Stage Two – Thursday 6th October ?133.5km – Bird’s Nest to Men Tou Gou via North Gate of Summer Palace

Stage Three – Friday 7th October ?162km – Men Tou Gou to Yong Ning Town via Thirteen Ming Tombs Reservoir

Stage Four – Saturday 8th October ?189.5km – Yanquin Gui Chuan Square to Shunyi Olympic Rowing and Canoeing Centre via Great Wall

Stage Five – Sunday 9th October ?118km – Tian An Men Square to Bird’s Nest Olympic Stadium

NOTES:

Teams logistics will be made simpler by a ban on time trial bikes for the stage 1 test, like in the Tour of Qatar and Tour of Oman.

Stages 2, 4 and 5 are more or less circuit races for sprinters

Stage 3 from Men Tau Gau to Yong Ning contains three category 1 and one category 2 climbs.

I clearly remember 12 laps into the 16 lap course when we got to the business end of the race and the Rapha Condor guys went to the front and blew the field to smithereens. I didn’t hold on for much longer and pulled-out at the finish line to see the end of the race.

I’ll never forget watching an relatively unknown Porsche-Drapac rider named Peter McDonald outfox and outsprint two seasoned professionals who were supposed to be working together – Mick Rogers and Adam Hansen (Columbia-Highroad). That was not how the script was supposed to go!

I cannot overstate how massive of a victory that was for Peter. He had only raced a bike for five years prior and his win against a world class field like that showed immense talent and potential. This wasn’t just any race. It was the highly coveted National Title which can earn ProTour riders an added bonus of ~$25K to their contract.

Offers from European professional teams didn’t come knocking on his door however. Peter McDonald is one of the many talented bike racers who simply had some back luck and didn’t have the right opportunities come his way.

Beginnings

Peter began his cycling career late at 24yrs old by doing bike couriering just for something different to to. He was a primary school teacher before that and his break was meant to be a year out of “real work” to have fun. Towards the end of the year he started going down to the club and racing the crits on the weekend. Starting off in D grade he quickly worked his way up to A grade in about 6 months. Towards the end of that year he was approached by FRF Courier team to fill-in and started in the Tour of Murray “which was a bit of an eye opener”, he said.

He wasn’t really making an impact on the race and ended up punctured during one of the more difficult stages. He managed to chase back on by himself and caught the attention of Domenic Caravello, who ran a team in Sydney called “Caravello”. Domenic took notice in his determination and asked if Peter would like to race the 228km Grafton-Inverell Classic with his team. So he went along with the flow and casually said “oh yea..sure, why not”. And he won. “It was a big surprise me and everyone else” he humbly claims.

He raced the 2004 season with FRF-Caravello full-time (a now combined Continental registered team) where he got some experience and a few successes in his overseas races.

Onto Porsche-Drapac

Peter quickly got the attention of Porsche-Drapac who had helped Darren Lapthorne with his 2007 National Road Title. With them he was able to get a good amount of experience racing in Asia and in Europe with the Belgium kermesses and French Tours. He spent the first month there toughing it out struggling to finish the races. Eventually he began to find his way and was finishing top 10 in many of the races. Placing second in a pro kermesse was the highlight of his European racing campaign.

At the end of the 2008 season Peter came back to Australia and raced the Herald Sun Tour. Peter was going quite well at the time and had  gained a lot of confidence from the European racing. During the Sun Tour Peter told the Drapac directeur sportif that he thought he could win nationals. The course just outside of Ballarat suited him perfectly and he’d performed well there before.

After the Sun Tour Peter didn’t do as much as unpack his bike. A couple months later he went to a small race in Japan and when he took his bike out of his bag he still had the Sun Tour numbers and bidons on it. He literally hadn’t touched it.

That gave Peter the rest and the kick that he needed. He trained that summer harder than he’d ever trained to prepare for nationals. He worked with his coach named Dan Healy (now working with the NZ Academy of Sport) doing a lot of specific training for the Buninyong national course.

Peter did a training camp in Bright with his Porsche-Drapac teammates which lead into the Tour of Bright. I remember racing against him that year as well. He won 2 stages and won the overall tour without trying too hard. He was “floating” up Mt Hotham while I was barely hanging on.

The National Championships

Come January 11, 2009 and Peter was in excellent form. It was a stacked feild for the National Championships with not only Australia’s best riders, but some of the best riders in the world. Peter said, “I knew before I went there that I was the champ. I had good form. It was a surprise to everyone, but I knew I was in with a shot before I started – which I didn’t want to tell anyone of course. I had finished in previous years in the top 10, so I knew I had it in me”.

The nature of the Bunninyong course always makes it a race of attrition. Half-way through the second last lap Mick Rogers attacked the bunch and broke away by himself. Peter played it cool and rode with the group (or what was left of it). He looked around at the other guys left such as Matt Wilson, Simon Clarke, Richie Porte, etc. He looked at them and could tell none of them had that much left in the tank. Peter just waited until the climb began on the final lap and then made his move to bridge to Rogers. He made it across and both of them worked together for that entire lap. Peter admits that he did less work than Rogers, mindful that he is three time world time trial champion. A David and Goliath match-up if I’ve ever seen one.

Coming down to 2km remaining Hansen bridged to McDonald and Rogers and immediately attacked.  It was up to McDonald to chase. Once he caught Hansen coming around the corner into the finishing stretch Rogers immediately counter-attacked. Peter thought, “that’s it, there’s no way I’ll get back to him”, but suprised himself and managed to reel Rogers in while dragging Hansen along with him. McDonald took a few deep breaths and hit Hansen and Rogers in the final couple hundred meters. He held both of them off and crossed the line as the 2009 Australian National Road Champion.

When I asked Peter about what was going through is head with being isolated with two of the strongest riders in the world on the same team in the biggest finish of his life, he said, ”For me, I had nothing to lose. They were in the position of strength and I’m meant to get beaten in this situation. When Hansen attacked at the end I obviously had to chase or he would have just ridden away with it – Rogers wasn’t gonna help me. An so it was just a matter of putting my head down and chasing him back. When Rogers countered I just thought I’ll give whatever I got left to the line. That was enough”.

"Standing on the podium I thought 'ah, shit…I'd better win another race now'. You don't want have the jersey all year and finish at the back."

Had A Deal Been Made?

In hindsight Peter said, “the only thing that Rogers and Hansen might have messed up on (which is hard in the heat of the moment) is that Hansen perhaps shouldn’t have bridged. It confused things when he got there. Once he got there they really should have done more to get ride of me. The way it worked out it was probably quite embarrasing for them.”

I’ve heard through the grapevine that Peter was offered a sizeable amount of money from Rogers to strike a deal to let him ride away with the win. When I asked Peter about this he confessed “Yeah, that is true. Maybe there’s two sides of the story, but he wanted to buy it from me to ride away and win on his own (halfway through the lap when I caught him). I kept saying to him, ‘you’re not riding away because that’s not a deal…because your teammate is coming across to us’. Whatever deal there was, which I don’t believe there was one, all bets were off as soon as Hansen got there. There was no deal with him [Hansen} and he [Hansen] was trying to win. When Hansen went past he wasn’t looking back trying to help Rogers. That’s when I said all bets are off and as far as I’m concerned, we’re racing.”

Representing the Jersey

Peter was loyal to his Porsche-Drapac team where he continued to race the 2009 season. He gave up a spot on the UniSA National Team at the Tour Down Under to race with his teammates at the Tour of Wellington (which he won) and continued to have a few good results that season.

Pegasus Fallout

Peter signed for V Australia (formerly FlyV) for the 2011 season. He intended on using this as a stepping stone to get into Pegasus but they needed someone to lead V Australia’s US team which was supposed to be Peter. After Pegasus fell apart V Australia still went ahead and raced, but it wasn’t looking so good at the time so Peter decided to put a hold to his racing career and cut his ambitions short. Fortunately Peter got to ride the Tour Down Under with team UniSA this year but another contract at that late stage never eventuated.

Where Is He Now?

Peter moved to Busselton, WA this year with his wife Lisa to be closer to her family. They’re proud parents to their new baby boy named Flynn. Peter also manages a new bike shop called Fat Duck Cycles and Espresso.”In a way it’s good because with the little fella it would be a tricking thing juggling bike racing and being away for part of the year. It’s been nice to be home this year even though I miss the racing”.

"Flynn woke us up a lot to watch the Tour which was great!"

“I’m happy in Busselton but I would like to do a little more racing in the future. There are a few small teams in WA that I’ll talk to when things settle down and get back to normal after having a kid. I havne’t done any local racing in a while. I did the Pemberton Classic and it was quite funny how this guy in a Drapac kit I’d never seen before beat me!”

Peter also does some coaching on the side for a few athletes in Busselton and Sydney, but it’s not something he ever sees himself ever retiring on.

Any Regrets?

“Last year I didn’t have great results with Drapac. I kind of regret not persuing FlyV or another bigger team at the beginning of the year instead of staying with Drapac. It wasn’t a bad year while wearing the jersey but it could have been better. Unless you’re knocking on doors these big teams aren’t going to come looking for you.”