Monthly Archives: October, 2006

The last day at Grenoble Six Day 2006 isn't too hard for the riders, there's a points race, a time trial and then the big chase - 180 laps of the 210 meter track. I did hear guys complain though that the lack of warm-up races made for sore legs early in the Madison.

It's 9.30 and I'm just up, Kris sleeps in the camper van. He says it's more comfortable, but I think it's because I snore so badly. It was interesting at breakfast today; the guys were talking about what they did before they were full-time pro cyclists.

It was musical jerseys last night, Franco & Alex Aeschbach took over in the lead, Michael & Alex Rasmussen swopped the leader's jerseys for the points leaders maillot vert but Jozi & Martin lost the combine jersey to DeFauw & Van Mechelen of Belgium.

Sometimes, you wonder why you are doing this - OK, it's great being around guys like Franco Marvulli and having an insight into the inner-sanctum, but it's hard work, often boring and stressed guys aren't fun to be around.

Some times it's difficult to get an interview, especially if your target is World Road Race Champion, Paolo Bettini. He has a Quick Step entourage with him and he's testing his new Specialized road bike for 2007. But us VeloVeritas guys are persistent, and after stalking him all afternoon I was granted just five minutes of his precious time.

Grenoble Six Day 2006. 17.45: Where did the day go? They are playing Puccini over the stadium PA, the folies girls are rehearsing their routine, you would have to be here to appreciate it, but it's awesome.

11.20: Picked-up the Danish guys, Alex Rasmussen and Michael Mørkøv at Lyon airport. It's a hassle because it's hard to park the camper and security is tight. Alex looks slimmer than last season whilst Michael is still skeletal. We have to drive all the way back to Grenoble now. At least the sun is out and the scenery is good.

We caught up with Scottish rider Ross Edgar recently to chat about the World Championships and the British team setup; here's what he had to say...

Six Day races; they're all fixed, aren't they? Yeah, for sure... all you have to do is take a lap from Bruno Risi and Franco Marvulli when they are at 97.5 % instead of 'full-gas'. That's maybe 57 kph instead of 58 - Easy! That'll be how then-reigning World Champions, Bob Hayles and Mark Cavendish, were 34 laps down at Ghent last year: because it's so "easy". The truth is that the Sixes are 'choreographed', but if you don't have the legs, you can't win.

"What a difference a day makes," as Esther Phillips once sang. Tuesday afternoon, Charleroi, Belgium and it's cold, grey, wet and windy. We're on our way to the Grenoble Six Day 2006. It has taken us nearly ten hours on the motorway to get to Lyon having been battered by cross-winds and cut-up by manic East European truckers.

We caught up with Evan after he secured another medal at the British level, this time on the track in the Points Race Championship. Read on to hear Evan's thoughts on his achievement, and whether he's coming back to race on the grass too...

Jason MacIntyre made it a neat half dozen Scottish individual titles for 2006 with a 16 second winning margin over fast-improving Irishman, Raymond Wilson (Dunfermline CC) in the Scottish Hill Climb Championship on the Bonnyton Moor climb near Eaglesham on Saturday afternoon.

Kate Cullen's decisive victory in the British Track Championships is the strongest indication yet that those, including the selectors of the WCPP, who had written her off as 'too old', will have to reappraise her situation. VeloVeritas talked to her when she got back from Manchester.

After her win in the recent Trossachs classic time trial at Aberfoyle, we thought it was about time that we chatted to Pippa Handley, one of the Edinburgh Road Club's top women riders, a voracious trainer and top 10 place-getter at the British level.

Who else but Jason MacIntyre ran out the winner of this year's Tour des Trossachs classic time trial, held around Aberfoyle, Scotland. A solid minute and a half space between him and Evan Oliphant, with Ray Wilson in third a further minute back.