WADE'S DOWN UNDER JOURNAL

January 7 , 2002
With the holidays already gone, I didn't get that much of a break. I raced a few races and started to look at some houses here on the Gold Coast, and also started up my training again for the coming season. I have had some trouble with my computer but it seems like all the bugs are worked out.

I have been riding my road bike a lot lately and ended up doing a crit race with some of the top Australia road cyclists and they suckered me into racing with them (grade A). It was an hour race plus three laps of the 1.4km course, which seemed fine to me, but I did not know that they were going to go flat out from the start. There were 4 other classes that raced that day and we all ended up being on course together. I was able to hang in there for the first 20 minutes with the A grade and then I had to call it quits. I then jumped on the back of the B grade riders and was able to have a little rest. During the last ½ hour I would just jump on the fastest group going by and just try to hang on with them. The lead group of A ended up lapping me 3 or 4 times. I was amazed how fast they go as this was basically my first crit race. Robbie McEwen ended up winning on the day, and for me I had a good day of training J.

The next day I went out and rode my dirt bike again and just had some fun. Stephen Gall (Australian Super Cross and Moto Cross legend) came out to the track and was kicking it at the bus and we planned on doing the New Years Day road crit race together.

Monday the 24th of December was the start of my 2002 training program and I hit the gym for the first time in a while with upper body and I was weak. It will all come back in time.

Christmas day we parked at the beach in the motor home and had a few friends come by for a barbeque and just sat back and relaxed; it was a great day.

The rest of the week I was training at the gym and getting back on my BMX bike for the first time since the Grands, and also looked at a few houses for sale. On the weekend I rode my dirt bike again and later that afternoon I did a Grade A Velodrome race. I won a few of the sprints in the longer races but did not finish the race; I did however get second in a 5-lap handicap race … I got passed on the line. I then went to go ride again Sunday on my dirt bike but I was starting to feel tired. We packed up and went to the beach.

New Years Eve day I ended up putting an offer on one of the houses I looked at and later that afternoon we a started to write up the contract. If every thing goes well, we will settle on the 31st of January. I did not have a big night as I was pretty tired from everything during the week and ended up falling asleep before midnight. This was not that bad of an idea as I did have a road race the next morning.

I entered as B grade but the promoter thought I would be best off in Grade C. I was like fine, so Stephen Gall ended up changing as well. This was a 40-minute race plus 3 laps, with 4 sprint awards. I tried to win the first sprint but I left too late and got 3rd. When the next time the bell went for the sprint I started to make my move, I hit it hard up the hill and made a break away and then slowed down. I then sprinted to the line and won by a few bike lengths. It took me a while to recover from the sprint so I decided to not try for the rest of the sprint awards. This way I would have something left for the final sprint to try and win the overall race. The plan worked out perfectly; I was just sitting in the middle of the pack and then gave it a good effort towards the end and won the race. My heart rate for the 40-so minutes average out to 167 beats per minute, my max speed was 42 miles an hour with an average of 23.2 mph. I had a lot of fun racing and can tell that this can only help with my fitness and endurance for the coming season.

The rest of the week I was back at the gym and on my BMX bike getting ready for the Gold Coast National at Nerang BMX track. I was surprised to hear that BMXpress Magazine went out and got Fox Sports to cover the race on TV. They are also making a 6 race TV series, with the first 2 being filmed for Fox on the Nerang Weekend. This is a big boost for BMX in Australia and also World Wide. The guys at Nerang did a great job with the track and I was looking forward in racing and using the weekend as some training as well. There are a lot of fast riders in Australia right now and this was going to make for some great racing.

We only had 2 motos so this made it tight to qualify to the main especially with 19 riders and no semi. Both days was crazy racing with Kamakazi (Redline's new AA Pro) getting out fast but ended up blowing up 4 out of 6 mains. Most of the time I came from behind and wiggled my way through the pack and the crashes and placed consistently 1st and 2nd, which gave me the overall win both days. I had a lot of fun racing and getting bumped around. Days like this make me realize how lucky I am to have a job that I love doing. The motor home was a total success at the BMX track as the kids, parents and spectators were always coming by listening to the JBL System and receiving free stickers and giveaways from the following sponsors: Trek/Volkswagen, O'Neal/Azonic, Vans, Oakley, ATI, Bombshell, AC, Marwi, JBL and Power Bar. So keep an eye out on Fox Sports and BMXpress magazine for coverage of the race. I ended up seeing riders and old friends of mine that I have not seen for years; it is always good to catch up with some of them and talk about the early days of racing.

For the next few days I will be back at the gym, riding my dirt bike, resting at the beach and then I will fly back down to Adelaide on the weekend for another race on the Velodrome.

So check back soon for more photos from my Tour Down Under.

See you soon,
Wade