Judges, Journeys, Jokers and Jet Lag

The contest is looking good, keep the entries coming. In my opinion we have some strong competitors. However I believe some of the favorites are yet to be claimed. The entries will officially close on the 18th of April (that’s when I am back from worlds).

Right now Favorites: (In my opinion) include the Flash, and firestorm…but contestants like James bond and the $6,000,000 man are bound to have secrets up their sleeves.

One last contest note: I am proud to announce the guest Judge for the contest. Many of you have seen him on the site before, none other than the bishop of bike, the guru of gears, direct from the Charlottesville Monastery, always a humanitarian and fraudulent veterinarian; MR…….CHRISTOPH HERBY whaaaaaaa yeah the tens of people go wild.

That’s right ladies, the superstar himself, from 2skinnypros.com. His resume includes but is not limited to:
- Most jacked cyclist on 2skinnypros.com (excluding the CAT 3 corner)
- Voted most aerodynamic at the Rite Aid Camp
- Film Star Ultraordinar (that’s right beyond Extrordinar and absolutely NOT Ordinar)

Finally, on the docket today we have a new video available for your viewing pleasure. This is a good one, an energetic film about the Commonwealth Games experience…I had so much material that it was hard to edit…so enjoy…and remember…its not over till its over.

So keep your contest entries coming…with the entries thus far I will guarantee a prize
with some commonwealth games schwag in it for the winner so now it is really worth your time to get in on the action.

Airport Reflecting Pools

So I am sitting here in the LAX airport…paying for the day long internet connection…because, unfortunately, I am here long enough that it is actually a good deal…I will have been here almost 12 hours by the time my plane leaves the ground…I guess it is giving me the time to reflect on the experience of my first major games….the best way to analyze it…lets *WICKY WICKY* break it down

The Goods:
- Food, in many verities, every 100m or so, 24hours a day as far as I could tell
- 300 dollar HBC blanket
- CDN Record, 5th in the Scratch, a smoking TT along the beach and tan lines to boot.
- FOOS BALL, In the house for free (after some aggressive negotiation with the table)
- A sweet track and the best group of Canadian cycling dudes to chill with (Mtn bikers are all right guys.)
- Travis Smith – two medals – the first two by a pizza man who get you your pizza when it absolutely, positively has to be there over night some time…
- Air Miles – I am one step closer to being super ultra mondo cool air Canada dude guy who can sit in the lounge and listen to jazz music while I wait…
- I have finally found the axel that makes me ride fast…AXEL ROSE
- Melbourne and Melbournians (highly recommended as a vacation or final shipwreck destination)
- TROY, not the movie, the bad ass dude who could fix all our bikes…and all the tri-athletes bikes (oops we forgot our mechanic in Canada…you work for free right) and all the wheel chair athletes…he must have been hired by the CCTAWA cause he never complained once…

The Bad’s
- Holy butt crack X Ray shorts batman
- The Martin’s grasp of English present tense “don’t broke my rollers”
- Cam’s grasp of French profanity (and French in general)
- 7 days of travel time total…I mean I know it is a long way but wouldn’t it be faster to just wait for the earth to spin underneath you???
- Bike BAGs…as in plural, as in to damn much crap to fit in the average elevator…
- Eating with sprinters when you are a endurance dude…”come on one more steak won’t make you go down hill any slower…what you can go up hill on a bike???”
- my bikes had better have been up in the first class cabin since the cost more to put on the plane than ME.
- having to leave the day after your event…and missing the opening ceremonies at your first games…

Well there you have it…I would say that weighs in at just a pound over good times where had by all with only a hint of jet lag…with the long travel times I think I was able to progressively adjust to the time change, its really the only way to travel…next time I will take boat…a row boat I think…that way I will never know the difference.

See you on the right…

Quick and Dirty Briefs…

SO I am sitting the Richmond Airport, using the free internet and preparing for my 36 hour trek across the globe for the world cup and commonwealth games. The last few weeks have been and interesting and exciting time for me…I met up with my team at a mini camp in Virginia. After a week at the monastery (video coming soon) with Christoph Herby (www.2skinnypros.com) , I spent the remainder of this last week setting up, training on, and tweaking my new team bikes… A Merlin and a Quintana Roo TT frame(Pictures also coming soon). It has been like Christmas, we even had the snow. As I set off I am feeling fantastically optimistic. The training has been great, and the idle time I have had here in the airport has really let me reflect and revel in the situation I find myself in at the moment in life in general. Maybe I am just elated at the fact that the wireless internet here in the airport is free…correct me if I am wrong but that just doesn’t happen in the real world does it? Good on the people of Richmond for providing something of convenience for no charge. It makes up for all the temperamental K-9’s that have nipped at my heels here…the rides have been beautiful…you just have to enjoy them at high speed in order to outrun the obviously athletic dogs who clearly make regular meals of local cyclists…they seemed to pursue me with extra vigor…I suppose they don’t see beefy track cyclist, all you can eat, meal on wheels too often. When Christoph and I where riding together it must have been like making a choice between celery and steak (or modified soy protein vegan burgers for you class 7 vegan cyclist out there, although I think Christoph does still cast a shadow??)
That’s all I have for now…but here are a few of the things here in Virginia that have put me in such a good mood. All the below come highly recommended…

Hedwig and the Angry Inch – Fantastic, Google It to find out more
Moxy Fruvous – Cunuckazation at its best
Chinese desserts and Cycling Trivia

Watch for more visually enticing hot and cold media coming soon….

Commonwealth Games

So, after many weeks of waiting and wondering, the CCA has finally decided my fate for the next few months. I have been sitting and stewing, training and hoping to hear if my partner on the track, Martin Gilbert, and I would be named to the Games Team. Today I got the news I have been waiting for. As I hoped and prayed over the past few months, we made the cut. After personal best rides in LA this past weekend I had done all I could to demonstrate my potential value to the team. Now that I have been selected I have so much motivation to make the most of my dwindling training time. Not that I wasn’t motivated before but, this will add to my allready boiling vat of anticipation for the season to come. Time to get down to business.

You can Find Details about the Games at www.melbourne2006.com.au.