The blog is back !

I believe it is about time I started to keep a record of my progress again. 
As an under 14 and under 16 it was without a doubt a great thing to do, but now I am entering the world of a high level cyclist, having a blog for people to follow is the best way to climb the cyclists social ladder.

This summer has been incredible, and it is far from over.

I won the Rhone Alpes road race which means I should captain the regional team but , as I'm not french, I cannot compete in the national events. So I have to compete in the UK at national level.

I've just arrived home after competing in the GB National Track Championships at Manchester velodrome.

After having placed 5th in the national road race 3 weeks ago in Yorkshire I was really hoping to do better. Which I did!

The scratch race on Wednesday was very fast (49.9kmh average speed for 80 laps (20km)) and in the final sprint a rider blocked my path and a back marker got mixed up too so I had to settle for 4th. The next day the points race was always going to be tough. Over 120 laps (30km) the European champion was possibly the favourite but
eventually came 6th. I was leading going into the last lap but, again, the sprint didn't go my way and I ended up 2nd despite being level on points with the winner as the final sprint positions decide in the event of a tie.

So. 5th 4th and 2nd in Great Britain.

I don't know whether to be very happy or very disappointed. 
It's bizarre because before the races I would have been over the moon to have achieved results like these, therefore, now the races have finished and I know I have missed out on winning a stripey jersey the feeling is not the same. 
I would have become the first person to win 2 different country national titles. Now that is what I call outstanding. 

I am also over the moon with my Baccalaureate results.. Equivalent to 4 A*s and I've been
offered a place at QMUL (Queen Mary University of London) to study maths and finance but I asked to
defer for the course a year. And they accepted ! 

In September I move to St Etienne and will join Team Ecsel, which is a DN1 team, to finish my Bac and get a higher overall grade and also to join the South East road academy as a first year espoir ("hope" in french terms).

I am now going to do my best to keep my blog up and running ! So please follow, share, post, like to help me find my way to the top !

Here is a link to the club I will be joining.  
http://ecsel-cyclisme.fr/

Madison season

 I had such a great time in Manchester with Tom ROTHERHAM at the national Madison race.

I flew over on the Friday to Liverpool. I had to catch a bus from Liverpool to Manchester and was supposed to meet my friend at the bus station in the middle of Manchester. It was all going smoothly. Suddenly, my bus stopped and I got off. I called Tom and he said he was just waiting for me at the bus stop. I looked around and there was no sign of him. I called him up again and he said that I had got off at the wrong bus stop. I didn’t even know there were 2 bus stops. He told me to stay put and he would come and get me. He arrived and told me that I was in the middle of Manchester gay town! Haha, such a good start to the week end.

Saturday was the big race day. I have to admit that nearly everything went wrong. We were warming up and Tom had a back wheel puncture and nearly fell off. He had to quickly change his wheel and go to the bike check. Then his bike was deemed illegal, which meant that he had to change his stem to a shorter one. He had to go to a shop to buy a new one and then come back and change it! By then we had about 10mins until the race started. We hadn’t done any warming up. 

We just got on our rollers to warm up and the commissaire told us to prepare for the race. It was a 40 lap Madison with 4 sprints. We won the first one and then got 2^nd in the second sprint. We then knew we had qualified so just stayed in the peloton and stayed safe. It was such an easy qualifier. We were not surprised about qualifying but we were surprised about being ready for the first sprint.

The final was another 4 hours away. I had just about enough time to meet some very nice people and some great friends.

It was 1800 and we were getting ready for the final. We were very nervous and we knew we had a good chance. There were some very good teams around though… The final was going really well! It was an 80lap Madison with sprints every 20 laps so 4 sprints. We won the first sprint! Perfect. I knew my partner and I had good chance. Until… I fell. It was such a stupid mistake. I think I was just not paying attention or something. But I jumped right back up and kept going although my handlebars were badly twisted. After that, honestly, I can’t really remember what happened. It was so tense. In the end, we came 2^nd. We were very happy! Great result!

Last week-end was also a great fun. It was the 3days of Aigle. The event that Anthony and I have been dreaming of for such a long time. On the first night I came 3^rd in the scratch that counts towards the individual classification. Then we won the Madison. The second night I won the elimination and we came 2^nd in the Madison race. That meant that I was in 2^nd by 1 point in the individual classification and we were in the lead of the Madison. The last night was pretty tense because firstly, I had to beat the guy who was in the individual lead and secondly because we had to beat the team in 2^nd place in the Madison. I came 2^nd in the points race with ease behind a guy who was far down in the general. Us and the other team were so busy watching each other that we let another team get away and take a lap. Damn. Which of course meant that they won the race. We got 2^nd.

I won the individual 3 days of Aigle and came 2^nd in the General Madison classification.

I am now more determined than ever to achieve my last goal of the year.

UK experience was amazing.

I also went to the UK to do the GB Nationals and interregions at Manchester and Glasgow velodromes. I had a great experience and absolutely loved the racing and meeting so many great people. The intensity and competition was really fierce, and there are some very very strong riders in the UK for sure! Overall I was disappointed because I got:

 1 x 3rd place (points race in interregional), 

 1 x 4th (scratch in the nationals),                    

 2 x 5ths (points in the nationals and the interregional keirin),                                                                     1 x 6^th (scratch in the interregional), 

 1 x 8^th (500m TT in the interregional),                                          

 1 x 9^th (in the pursuit national) and                                                                                                            a gold (in the team pursuit interregional).

Actually, to get 5th in the keirin was very satisfying!! I should be pretty happy but for 2 photo finishes which might have given me 2nd places instead of the 4th or 5^th places. I felt like I had a very unlucky time in the UK and to say I was annoyed is a massive understatement, and I did complain - but never mind. I need to focus on the next big goal. I have one last shot at getting a second national title. 

I'm teamed up with Tom Rotherham for the last national event of the year which is the Madison. I won this event in France and i know I have the endurance, so fingers crossed on the 28th September!!!

A national title !

Hi guys,

I’m so sorry that I haven’t updated my blog in a long time. I have had the busiest summer ever. I have been travelling so much. I have raced so much in the UK and in France. This is probably the first time I have opened my computer all summer. So here’s the story of my season.

I will only go through the most important events with you.

I was selected for the Rhône-Alpes team for both the road and track French nationals. A week before the track national, which took place in Hyeres down by the Mediterranean Sea, we had a 2 day camp to prepare for them. The camp was for all the selected people apart from the junior boys. The first day was very hard because we doing 500m reps and then behind the derny points racing. The second day we were Madison training. During the Madison training the other team lost concentration and when I gave Anthony the relay the other team went underneath me and crashed into me instead of going over the top of me. I ended up in hospital not being able to move. I was worried I would not be able to participate in the nationals. I was really scratched but recovered enough to travel with the team. But my preparation for the event had been badly disrupted.

I had 4 days off because of my fall. I was back on my bike for the first time 2 days before my first race which was the 3km pursuit. We stayed in a 3 star hotel. I was in a nice room with Anthony. I was in so much pain on and off the bike but I really wanted to race. My 3km pursuit time is normally under 3min40secs. My time in this event was 3mins48! I was shocked at how badly I did. At the beginning I thought it was my form’s fault but then I talked to dad and he looked it up. It turned out to be because of 2 different factors: the fall and the preparation (having 4 days off). Coming up to this event I was on the form of my life and then the inevitable happened…

The following day Anthony and I were not racing. So we decided to go for a nice long ride next to the Mediterranean Sea. It was such a nice ride! We rode up a 16% average col and I felt so much better afterwards. We were going to do 50km but ended up doing 75km. On the Thursday I went on a 1h ride and then met Anthony at the velodrome to practise our Madison changing via the shorts.

Anyway, the second race was the next day, it was the point’s race. The qualifiers were in the morning. I still didn’t feel like myself. I qualified easy enough. But the final ! It was so hard ! It was 80laps and 24 of us in the race. I can’t remember a thing about that race. I only know that I got 1 point in the final sprint and had the worst race ever ! I got 14^th in the end… very disappointed.

The last race I was entered for was the Madison. Of course I was buddied up with Anthony ! The night before the race we actually “prayed” to the Madison god! How funny? We asked him to give us a chance to shine because the nationals didn’t go as well as we hoped they would. Our first race was at 10 in the morning and it was the qualifiers. We so ready for it. We were buzzing on the start line. The gun went and we were off. For most of you who don’t know how the Madison works in France, it’s a co-op race and one of us is racing whilst the other is going as slow as possible at the top of the track waiting to take the relay. The relay in France is done with a foam thing in the shorts and the person racing grabs on to that and throws the other into the race (actually quite dangerous…). The qualifying race was 40 laps with 2 sprints every 20. The first sprint went badly and we were getting nervous. The final sprint was 3laps away and I threw Anthony into the race and he attacked. He got a small break and with 1 lap to go I came into the race to finish it off. We won the sprint and qualified for the final in 1^st place. We were happy that the Madison god listened. Lol!

With only 2h to wait before the final we decided to pray again to the Madison god since it worked out so well the first time. Just before the race we had a quick chat. We said that the race was ours to win and that we deserved it and we had been dreaming about it for ages.

On the start line I was nervous, I don’t know what Anthony was thinking but I guess he was as nervous as I was. The gun went and the race started fast. Anthony’s dad was besides the track telling us what do to when we were waiting (eg: slow down, speed up) so we could catch the sprint perfectly. I was sprinting and he was throwing me into the last lap and a half. The race was 80 laps with sprints every 20. On the first sprint we managed a good 2^nd place, the “pink team” won it. The 2^nd sprint we won and the pink team got 2^nd so it meant half way through the race we were in tied 1^ST with the pink team. The 3^rd sprint was hard. We won it but in the last corner I went between a team that was doing a relay. The commissaires didn’t give the results out on the speaker because they were checking that there was no error. In the end there wasn’t any fault (I knew that it was fine) so we got maximum points. In that sprint the pink team were nowhere! We were in the lead with one sprint to go!! I threw Anthony in the race and he attacked. We got away and one team managed to get across the gap and it wasn’t the pink team. We worked together and stayed away until the end. In the last sprint we got 2^nd. We knew we had won! At first I laughed and then burst out crying with joy.

In the end the nationals turned out to pretty successful. I won a national jersey!!! 

Champion Rhône Alpes - Track

The last time I updated my blog was ages ago but I have now, finally, found the time do so.

I have done four big races and some little ones.

The first big race was the international event called the “Trophee Gaby Coche”. I was selected to be part of the Rhône-Alpes team. It was my first selection for them so I did not want to disappoint. I was doing the endurance events (the points, scratch and Madison race).

The points race went badly wrong. I was in “against time” which means I was doing everything at the wrong time. I felt strong but I was so nervous that I didn’t do well. The next race was the scratch race and I finally was able to get my game back up and running. I came 2^nd behind a guy from the French national team. It was a great race to watch, apparently. The whole team was happy with me and more importantly I was happy. Then, the Madison. The guy who I was with had never done one before so it was scary. I don’t know what place we came but we were with the best guys. Every time it was my turn I had to catch up what my teammate had lost. But in the end we finished and managed to get a couple of points.

The week after, there was the second manche (round) of the French inter-regions. It was such a week end. The race was over 2 days. The weather was horrible and the course was so hard. If you saw the second last stage of the Giro d’Italia, my race was the exact replica. The first day was a hard 75km. There were 3 hills; the first one we were on little tiny roads and we were flying up it. The second one was 3km long and averaged around 15% with the last 300m at 18%. During that hill someone in front of me moved out suddenly and I bashed my wheel on his back derailleur. I did the last 20km with a loopsy wheel.  From there I was in the front group and there was one guy ahead. It was a long fast downhill to the last climb. The last climb was long and hard. There were only 10 of us left with 3km to go. It came down to a sort of uphill sprint. I came 3^rd out of the group and 4^th overall. The next day, it was chucking it down from start to finish and it was 6°C. At one point in the rain it might have even started snowing but I was too cold to care. I stayed in the front group until there were little attacks one by one. In the end 4 guys got away and I found myself in the second group with 10km to go and the hardest hill to come. The last hill felt like trying to cycle up a wall. Little tiny roads up to the finish with a hard percentage. It came down to another uphill finish with 6 of us. I came 2^nd in the group and 6^th in the etape. Overall place in the 2 days I came 3^rd.

I am champion of Rhône-Alpes on the track at the scratch and the Madison. The track which we raced on is an outside 250m track and it feels like a BMX track. Normally the championships should have taken place over 2 days but it was raining on the first day so they reported some of the races to the next day. The first race was the points race. I was unlucky because some guy who no one knows gets a lap and cleans up 10 points. Whilst I was attacking, attacking and attacking to stop him from getting the lap. I was also getting all the second place points. In the end I came second because he did get a lap and was awfully lucky. I was so disappointed. In the only two races remaining I did what I went there to do and that was win. 

4 wins in a row.

Since the beginning of 2013 I have done 5 road races and a couple of track races.
The first Departemental race was in Scionzier and it was a hilly course. It was one of the races I really wanted to win because I wanted to put my name at the top of the list straight from the start of the season. It was a 70km race and by the first 15km a group of 3 broke away and I was in it. It came down to a sprint finish which I won.

I took delivery to my new Cannondale EVO Sram red 2. It was really easy to set up because it was just a slightly bigger frame to my old bike. I wasn't sure if I should race on it but I just couldn't keep my hands off it.  I dont think it could be any lighter - maybe it is  -  but it seems to accelerate even faster, and it looks fantastic!
This week end was the first french national track meeting so yet again I wanted to put my name at the top of the board, and to be considered for selection for the Gaby Coche which is an international invitation event. It was in Lyon and there were 18 of us on the 333.33m outside , concrete, track. There was a points race where I lapped the field by myself and I won all the sprints. The a scratch and death race, which I won as well. All went well that day. It was a lot of fun. I won all the flowers and now the house looks like "fleurist".
The next day it was my club local race so I had to win that! Not only win but win in style!
After a few laps, a guy from Chambéry ( the only guy from the region I havent beaten ) and I got away. We stayed together for a couple of laps. Than I decided that I had enough of him and it was time to drop him. I attacked! I did the last 6 laps on my own and "won in style". I won with a 3min gap.  The bike was amazing and felt so fast.  I was astonished with the difference. I felt so good after the race that I rode an extra 40km to come home. I have to admit that I was totaly destroyed afterwards. My dad said : "110km is 110km..."  But I still beat him to the last sign!

Out of 5 races on the road I have won 4 of them. On the track I have won them all so far.
Wish me luck for this week end!  

2 wins in 2 days.

Last week at the Criterium of Bouvent the weather was , once again,
cold and wet. The course wasn’t like a criterium really; it was a
closed circuit of about 6km with a long false flat and a few nasty
bends. About 45 starters and before long  a group of 3 had escaped and
got a gap of 1min. I was pushing hard in the peloton but trying not to
do all the work, although the escapees teammates were blocking too.
Eventually we caught the leaders and by then the peloton had shrunk to
15ish. Then with a lap and half to go I attacked 100% and got a good
gap. I managed to cross the line with 1:24 over the next guy. Yes!!!
So this weekend I had a race on sunday and another on Monday. The
sunday race was in Geneva and several good swiss were there, and some
guy who had come all the way from Germany. The level was higher than I
expected as I was hoping to save some strength for the next day. The
course was tough too, a 1km hill which I just managed in the big ring
on the last lap. 6 of us for the steep sprint finish and I managed to
get the win.
The following day was a race I really wanted to win. 60km at Scionzier
and very well organised by the Cluses club, and all the Haute Savoie
riders and some others were there. 3 of us made a break and shared the
work to get a big lead. With a strong headwind on the only flat part
of the course I didn’t think I could make it on my own so I waited til
150m to go then launched the sprint. It felt really good to get the
win and the prizes were very impressive 9included the biggest
chocolate egg I’ve ever seen). This was the last race on my EVO 2012
as I have the new one ready to go.
So 1st ride on the new bike tomorrow and to set it up for the race on
Sunday at GAILLARD.

1st Road Race of 2013

Well if you saw the Milan - San Remo race it was a bit like that. I was massively nervous before, anyway as it was my 1^st race of the year and my 1^st proper open road race on quite a tricky course with 2 serious climbs and a 70km/h descent. Plus all the good guys were racing, some I know but most would be new to me. I decided to mark a couple of the best riders as well as possible for the 1^st half and then just see how I felt after that. Dad and I drove the course in the morning and the weather was bad – I wasn’t sure what to wear or which wheels to use. Just before the race the heavens really opened and the temperature dropped to 2 degrees. At the start line we were held for about 10 minutes whilst they secured the course, by which time we were all soaked and freezing – and we hadn’t even started yet!

The 1^st 3km through the town was neutralised but as soon as we hit the “depart real” the race ignited. Attacks went off continuously and I found myself fighting to stay near the front and to stay upright. There were lots of crashes, but nothing too serious thankfully. There were 2 roundabouts close together after 12k and I wanted to be right at the front to stay safe and in contention when we got there, which I was – about 4^th I think.

Eventually 3 guys managed to stay clear and they gradually built up quite a good lead with me near the front of a chasing group of around 20. We were going very hard 1 minute then quite gently the next – I tried a couple of attacking groups but couldn’t get away. But on the 2^nd climb a small group attacked and I went with them, and with 3kn to the summit I launched my own bit to get clear  -  and I absolutely flew away from them. In 3km I got about a 500m gap and then I took a few risks on the very fast descent. It would be great in the dry but the surface was very slippery. Down to the flat and I realised I could catch the leaders. I caught them, and passed them with 4km to go. They got onto my wheel and I decided I had to push on as the peloton wasn’t that far behind. With 2km to go there was a group of 3 and me working together on the uphill back into the town. The last 500m was very steep and my legs just turned to jelly as I had pushed so much, but I was very happy to get 3^rd in such an important race. I know I have the level, and with the road season just starting I’ll only get better. Actually I felt pretty strong, and despite the cold I kept to the plan and stayed safe too.

Lanzarote!

Here we are, finally, in Lanzarote. My favourite place in the world. The place where all sportsmen want to be. Here is where the training really starts. Every day I’ll be doing at least 2 hours of quality training.

The first day we got here, Sunday, I rode 75km which was a great 1^st ride in Lanzarote because it is definitely one of my favourite routes, the El Golfo ride. Then at 16.00 I had a watt test. It’s a 10km time trial on a fixed bike and covers everything. Anyway it was my first test like that and had no idea how to play it so I started slower than I should have. I still managed to do a time of 15min36. After it we looked at all the data and spotted that my legs work 50/50 and my threshold is 187 bpm which I know I can improve. The thing that stood out the most was that I can produce 4.5 watts/kilo. I was really happy about especially after travelling and 75km in the morning. Nevertheless I am going to have another shot at it on Sunday to try and improve.

On monday I did 115km including the hardest climb on the island named Tabayesco. It was a very pleasant ride and averaged just over 30km/h. My PB for Tabayesco last year was just under 30min. It was windy down the valley so I knew it was going to be hard and so decided to start behind everyone. I climbed up and caught the front group who were flying up the hill. I overtook them but then they re-overtook me so I stayed on their wheels until the top. In the end I pushed a time of 27min dead. That was another goal I achieved.

On tuesday I did 55km in the morning and a 15km time trial in the afternoon. It was a very windy day and I wanted to save some energy for the time trial. I have to point out that DAD is the reigning champion of this specific time trial for the last 3 years. I started the race 1min behind my father and wanted to catch him before the top of the hill, and I knew it was going to be very hard because of the wind. It is simply a 7.5km hill and then back again. I was the fastest up the hill with the wind behind but as soon as I turned round I knew I had to kill myself to win. Of course I did, but I could barely even keep it over 40km/h coming down. I finished and didn’t catch DAD. He came up to me and told me that there was 4secs separating us. I got scared and knew he would have taken the micky if he would have beaten me. He didn’t. I won the Time trial in a time of 23min47s.

On Wednesday we left Club La Santa with a group of 12 including 3 pro riders who really pushed the pace on. The ride consisted of 2 of the hardest climbs of the island. It was a breezy day with clear skies and pretty hot. I felt tired at the beginning but managed to stay with the group the whole way. The ride normally should have been 165km but I knew that there was no point in doing that at my age so instead I cut the last 40km out and turned off homewards early zezaera. I still did 125km and the last 10km on my own into the wind. The average of the day was 29km/h. Can’t wait for a well-deserved “rest” day.

On Thursday I did a 100km ride with some of the Stratford boys. We rode south of the island round El Golfo and Playa Blanca and back through Femez and False Fire mountains.  It was a really nice day, blue skies, no clouds and warm. We stopped in Playa Blanca for a quick drink. After, we headed off to Femez which is the shortest but steepest hill. Before it, there is a long drag up to the start of the hill. I did it twice for the training. We flew back with a tailwind and averaged just over 28km/h.

In 5 days I have done 530km.  

First fall of 2013

Last week-end was amazing! I did two big events. There was the 12hours of Geneva which I did with Aurelien, Yvon and Damien. We were called Team Vifian , and were the youngest team. We came fourth overall and did 3188 laps of the velodrome which is 531km overall without counting the warm ups.

The next day, there was another event called the Match Franco-Suisse. I was with the French team of course. The first event was the flying lap. I was very nervous because I really wanted to get under 10s but I had done a lot of cycling the day before. Anyway, I managed to squeeze a time of 9,997s (an average of over 60kmh) I was so happy!! I couldn't believe it so I had to go back round and check. Only 3 other u16s have ever gone under 10 secs. The rest of the day went according to plan and we were in the lead until the last few events. Then it started going down hill and we got absolutely pummelled and failed to beat the Suisse , none of whom had done the 12h the day before.

This saturday there was the third session of the Haute Savoie challenge. It was a 3km pursuit, which is the French National U16 distance, and is always really tough. The best junior (u18) did a time of 3m37 on our 166.66m track. Very good time. After that there was a Madison. I asked if I could do the Madison with the juniors since I had the level. I teamed up with one of my best mates. Yvon. He's a good cyclist who is a year older than me.

It was soon my turn for the pursuit. I told my dad my technique: “Start fast, gradually increase the speed, and finish as fast as I can” It worked! I did a time of 3m43s. I was astonished with my time. With this time I would have become Rhone Alpe champion last year. In fact it would also win the nationals too.

The next day I went back to the track to get some training in. Yvon was there and I jumped straight on to the track. We got to wait at the begining of the session doing pursuits. We were doing 10mins in front each and finished the first ¨round¨. We stayed on the track and started off for another one. It was Yvon's turn. 6 mins in I saw that he was starting to get tired. I commenced encouraging him. He was losing his concentration and in the middle of the corner he went down to the blue. Of course when you are at 50km/h you can't do that. Down he went. I tried to avoid him but his bike followed me up and dragged me down. I just accepted it and I must have slid more than 50m. There I was on the floor once again thinking “ NOOO!! My bike!” I stood up and checked myself. I had nothing to bad wrong with me, but my bike was in a right state! I picked it up and walked back to centre track. I took both wheels off and noticed that my saddle was twisted, my bars were chipped, my front tyre was punctured and both my wheels were loose. I just thought “Even the best fall down sometimes. But only the best get right back up.” And that is when I asked for another set of wheels, put them on and straightened my saddle. Jumped back on the track to get over it and finished of with a good session.

Meanwhile Yvon was still in shock about the fall.

Oh well, just another obstacle to pass! 

The last I would like to say is that I have a twitter account. So, please follow me: @TomCyclist

Start to the 2013 season

  The second Haute-Savoie track challenge was on Saturday. There was a flying lap and a 500m standing start. I was there by midday although my session started at 15.30. My dad's session started at 13.00. So, I asked one of the Suisse team guys who was there if he could help me improve my madison technique. I have done lots of madison races but knew I had to improve to get to the top level. Anyway, I was on the track for a good 45mins. I had another good 2 hour wait before my session so I decided to do a 1h30 roller session. Finally my track time so jumped on my bike and on the track I hopped.

  Since I had already won the first round I was the last person to try and achieve the best time. The best time overall ( even the adults... ) was 10.05s. Just to remind you, this track is a 166.66m. My goal was to get under the 10s barrier. It was a cold day in the velodrome. We have 3 laps to get the speed up and then the last one is the timed one. My time was 10.02! Everyone congratulated me yet inside I was so annoyed! 0.02 of a second is like 3cm! 3Cm and I would have been under 10s. I was still happy because I did the time of the day, it was aloso my PB. Oh well ! Next time I will smash it !

  Next race was a 500m time trial. On a 166.66m track there are 6 bends. My dad said that I would be in the 36's. I just looked at him and laughed ! I thought: « I've never been under 38s on a 200m track, so on a 166.66m track ! »

I killed myself and at the end lunged myself to the line. On the backstraight I looked at the board and... 36.4s !!! WOW ! I was amazed !! Couldn't believe it ! So went round again and checked !

We got home that night and looked up the 500m times in the french championship. We came to a conclusion after a lot of calculations that we could knock of at least 1.5s if I was on a 250m track, which would have given me the best time at the championship of France last year.

  Also, to add to one of the best days, my 2012 Cannondale sponsor sent me an E-Mail. In which they said that they had already accepted another applicant but had asked Cannondale if they could sponsor me as well. And they said YES ! I jumped into dad's arms and he said «  I'm so happy I don't have to buy you another f****** expensive bike now ! »

So I am still sponsered by Cannondale for 2013 !

  To me, it's a very good start to the season.

  

  Hope 2013 goes as planned.

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And pass it on!

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Happy New year and have a great season !

So, finally here. The 2013 season, the season that I've been waiting for.

2012 was a very succesful year. Actually it was more succesful then my dad and I had hoped. My best result was 1^st. But, the most shocking was my 2^nd place in the 4 days of Grenoble. I was so pleased ! Even though before the last race I was first...

I joined my two new clubs. The Vélo Club Annemasse which I have already talked about. I have also joined a team in the UK. Bush Healthcare.

I don't dare write about my 2013 goals. There are so many ! A lot of races to do so I have to stay race fit, healthy. Most importantly I have to keep the training at a high level.

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas and I wish you all a HAPPY new year !

Wish me good luck for 2013 !   

New Club – Velo Club Annemasse

I’m very proud to have joined Annemasse.  Jean –Claude has been very helpful and knowledgeable. Although I don’t know the other cadets very well but I do know, and respect, some of the other guys  - like Damien Righini , Aurelian Paret-Peintre , Charles Desaleux and Sacha Gauzens-Chiesa                  (all top guys).  Nice Kit too!

So we had a little family holiday and dad and I rode 525km around Majorca which was great. Then , after flying back to Geneva early on Sunday morning I went straight to the velodrome to race the 1^st round of the   ” Omnium Genevois”. Unfortunately there were only about 8 cadets racing – although 4 were from the same club (Bourg en Bresse) - and I won ridiculously easily. I I lapped the peleton three times during the points race , and won every sprint too.

Then I had nearly 2 weeks off which drove me mad. I thought I would lose all my fitness and worried my motivation would go too. Mind you, at least I got some homework done.

So I jumped straight back into the deep end with a junior race at Aigle. I won the elimination and points race, and came 2^nd in the scratch.

 Which makes 3 wins out of 3 in cadet 2 with Annemasse so far!!!!!!!!

I’m very excited about next year. There is a possibility of getting sponsored by BUSH HEALTHCARE,

http://www.bushhealthcare.co.uk/

and i’m also hoping my association with Cannondale will continue next year too.

Current goals:

Getting under 10 sec for a flying lap at Geneva

Getting under 2:30 for 2km at Geneva in the pursuit.

Win the 2 days of Geneva

Omnium win

I won the omnium in Aigle!

Results:       http://www.velodromes.ch/index.htm

On the Thursday after the French national race I did an u18 event and I won the flying lap which I was very pleased with because I never used to be any good at that event. I won the scratch with a sprint to beat Killian Fournier who is champion of Romandie and I dominated the elimination (which is becoming my specialty and favorite race) and then came 2^nd in the points race which was a little disappointing because I sprinted at the bell and actually got it wrong as there was another lap to go... so I didn't get any points in that sprint.                                                                   

Overall I won the whole evening by 7 points.

Really very pleased – especially as my family and girlfriend were there to watch too; even Patrick Bovo was there to support me (Regional coach). Patrick and I are already talking about next year’s goals.

On Sunday we flew to Majorca for a family holiday and obviously brought our bikes too. We all needed a change of scenery.

We were worried the weather would be poor as it’s so late in the season but actually it’s 20+ and very nice, just a bit windy. We did 87km yesterday – dad absolutely died!!! – And 70km today, same again for dad. Haha! Who’s the DADDY now!? Hein?

FEEL GOOD!   But need a break soon.

The day we get back from Majorca I have my first big race in the Geneva velodrome. I’m very excited. Wish me luck!

National piste des jeunes 2012

The national piste des jeunes is the called the 4 days de Grenoble. It's the race I won last year which crowned me champion of France!  
It started on Wednesday the 24th of October and finished on the 27th. I only raced on the last two days. The friday and the saturday. There were only two different kinds of races. A points race and a scratch.
The 1st  race was a 60 lap points race with sprints every 10 laps. It started fast and gradually got faster and then finished amazingly fast. I scored points in every sprint but 2 other racers got a lap. I was pleased with my race because I came 3rd and it showed that I had a real chance of getting a good result from the competition. 
Only 10min to recover and then ...the next race. 
Scratch. 8 laps of 250m = 2km. 
It started very fast. 4 people got away. I took the front of my group to try and bring the leaders back with 5 laps to go. I caught them up with 3 laps to go. I looked behind and all of my group was just sitting on my wheel. 2 laps to go. Another racer attacked I managed to get on his wheel. A group of 4 flew past and I chased them and caught them! 
With 1 last lap to go I decided to kill myself! So I lit the fuse!!
I overtook 2 of them easily. And before the end of the last corner I snuck in front of the 2nd guy. Sadly I just couldn't get past the last one. 
I was happy with my race and it was the end of the first night. I was in 2nd place. 

The 2nd and last night. There was a 70 lap points race first with sprints every 10 laps. It was one of the hardest points races I have ever done in my life!!!! But when I got off my bike at the end I knew I had done my best and deserved my result I got which was 3rd. My main goal in this race had been to make sure that no one got a lap on me to score bonus points. I managed to prevent any attacker getting a lap and still got points in every sprint except for one. I beat the person who was winning the general so I moved up into 1st place with just one race to go.

Last race. The 8 lap scratch. Everybody was fighting for my wheel. It was just a flat out sprint all the way to the line. Attack after attack. Unfortunately I couldn't help but get pushed on to the front with just over a lap to go. Despite giving it absolutely everything 2 guys just pipped me on the line. So I lost the race and the title too. I was devastated and cried at the end until I realised that I became vice champion of France in first year u16 and still have another opportunity next year.

Hitting the track

The last 6 weeks has been all about the track. My goal has been to get to Grenoble for the National Piste des Jeunes and I knew I had to get my speed and cadence up. I’ve done several track races and my first official meets too.

But first I had to qualify for Grenoble. About 37 cadets assembled at the Palais des Sports on the first weekend of September to get one of the 9 qualifying places. It’s just a scratch race and a points race but I managed to qualify in 6^th place overall and I am the only 1st year u16 to qualify so I am extremely pleased and have been training very hard to improve my level since then.

I did the 2 days of Eybens which was on the tricky and bumpy outside track – and the weather was poor too. But I finished 2^nd in every u16 race so i was pretty happy. And overall the team got 3rd. 

Despite having a bad cold for a few days and missing a big race in Lyon I think I’m in good shape and ready for next weekend.

My sprint is way faster now than 2 months ago and dad tells me that the high miles I did during the summer are now paying off.

The highlight of the last few weeks was the 3 days of Aigle. My 1^st “pro” event which included individual races and a Madison competition. My partner Anthony and I came 3rd and 4^th in the individual overall but our lack of experience and practice showed and we came 5^th – out of 11 teams – overall in the Madison. But to be fair, we did get a very good 3^rd in the Madison on the last night. And in the last sprint Anthony gave me the relay and I flew round to win the last sprint. Thanks to that, the French national team coach came to see us and chay.

In one week I have the 4 days of Grenoble which I won last year!  But I am ready and on form for it. 

Wish me luck!

Track season on it's way!

It’s been so long since my last post but you can be sure I’ve been so busy! Lots of races and training which has finally caught up with me and I have bronchitis so am very miserable.

The highlights of the summer include an amazing holiday in Bourg D’Oisans which is where all the famous cols are, including Alpe d’huez and the col du Galibier. The first day we arrived in our camping car (rental). We made our bikes up and shot up Alpe d’huez in a time of 54mins. The second day we decided to go and do the Galibier so our friend drove us up 20km of the route and we got out and climbed the col du Limousin with a deathly head wind to reach the col. At the top of the col du Galibier we turned round and shot down the valley back to our rentalchalet. The 3^rd day we did an amazing 110km ride with 5 tough cols that I don’t know the name of. The next day we went to do a col named Glandon followed with col de la croix de fer, then we blasted it back down, very fun!  My record up Alpe d’Huez is 51mins. My mum did the triathlon on a very hot day and I rode up next to her all the way – I think she took nearly 2 hours!

So, Manchester.

 I went to the GB point’s race track nationals back at the beginning of September. It was a 32 lap race of a 250m track. There was a sprint on the 12^th, 20^th, last lap. In all sprints I got 4^th 5^th and 7th. So, I didn’t get any points. 12 people qualified to the finals. 11 different people got points in that race and I got 13^th. If you make that calculation, I didn’t qualify.

The week end after I went down to Grenoble to try and qualify for the event I won last year (French nationals). There were 35 people trying to qualify, and only 9 athletes could go through. Like last year there is a scratch race qualifier and final and a point’s race qualifier and final. I qualified for both finals easily and did well in the finals so I qualified for that event in 6^th place. In fact, I am the only 1^st year u16 who qualified. So my main goal for the remainder of this year is to get a podium!

I got 2^nd in Grenoble on a criterium type circuit. Some good riders and 1 guy made a break and we – the peloton – never caught him . But I won the sprint which I was really really proud of. I beat Gabriel Thoulouse , who is Champion of Rhone Alpes on the track and who got 4^th in the French national road race.

The Haute Savoie track team qualified for the inaugural competition at the new Roubaix indoor track. I was competing in the pursuit and the “vitesse” (standing start 3 laps 3 man).

We knew we were going well and had high hopes for a good result. Unfortunately the team had a bad start in the flying kilometre and came 12^th. But we got better, and climbed up to 3^rd place with 2events left. We came 2^nd in the pursuit in 3,34 for 3 km, an average of 51km/h. But the vitesse didn’t go so well and we came 5^th overall eventually. But 5^th in France is not too bad. I am worried about next year though as I don’t think I’ll have a strong team around me.

I did my 1^st invitational race on the track at Aigle in the Trophee Raspoutine

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xthugq_trophee-raspoutine-pmu_sport

 and am looking forward to the 3 days of Aigle in early October.

My first inter regional.

I was chosen to join the Haute-Savoie track team. Yesterday my team and I went down to Marseille to try and qualify for the team nationals. We got in the team car and drove down to Marseille. It took a long 4 hours.

We have a 5 man team. Aurélien PARET PEINTRE, Andrea COSTA, Damien RIGINI, Maxime MOREL, and ME ! 

Aurelien did the death race, the pursuit, and the vitesse.

Damien did the scratch, pursuit, and the flying kilo.

Andrea did the points race, the pursuit, and the flying kilo.

Maxime did the flying kilo, and the vitesse.

And I did the pursuit and the vitesse.

We had a 45min training session on the track to get use to riding it. After that we got to the hotel had a very nice sleep. 

Got up the next day at 8 in the morning, had breakfast, got our stuff in the car and set off for the track. We got to the Marseille velodrome at 10am. It was an amazing day, blue skies, 32degres C. I had to be very careful to not get burned. 

The first race of the day was the flying kilo. We got 2^nd and did it in 1min08secs.

The second race was the points and we got 4^th.

The third race was the death race and we won that.

The fourth race was the pursuit of 3km. And we won that in 3mins50secs, and the team who came second were 5secs behind.

The fifth race was the scratch and we came 5^th.

The last race was a 750meters standing start. We got 2^nd and did it in 56secs. The 1^st team did it in 56secs as well.

And overall we got 1^st place!!!!!!!!!!!  The whole team was so happy!   That means we have qualified for the nationals and have a very good chance of winning!!!!

Tough start to the season!

Well it’s been a tough start to the season. 

After winning my very first u16 race, with 3mins 28secs on the second guy, I probably expected too much but even in my next race I started well and was feeling comfortable. It was the St Geni Pouilly race. During the race I was jumping from wheel to wheel, and keeping my place in the front group. Before I knew it we had done 60km and I heard the bell ring and it was already the last lap!! I was amazed, it went past so quickly! On the last corner I was behind this guy from Besancon. We were flying! We flew round the roundaboult with 200m to go.  It came down to a sprint and I came 5^th!!     I was so Happy!

Before the first race of the challenge Zambon ( Overall champion after 10 big races in Haute Savoie ). I was really nervous. We started off very fast. We were 2 laps in the race coming up the hill when suddenly my handle bars got locked with another riders bar and down I went. It hurt like hell but I realised I hadn’t broken anything but had removed quite a lot of skin from various places on my body. My bike was tangled and the paramedics insisted I got treatment. By the time they had patched me up I felt ok so I rejoined the race. Of course by then I was 1 lap behind but I did manage to join up with the leaders and finished in the sprint. The next race was the next day and I learned another valuable lesson. I was feeling nervous so I didn’t eat much breakfast. So even though I had a couple of gels I ran totally out of energy. It was a particularly hard course so I thought maybe it was just tiredness, or a reaction to my crash the day before, but I think I just ran out of fuel.

I had been looking forward to the race in Divonne. It is a very easy course around a beautiful lake; 3km and flat – 22 laps. It was a really fast race with attack after attack. After 5 laps Aurelien managed to get a break with Maxim, Loann and Sacha. So the peleton followed but the teams of Cluses, Annemasse and Evian wouldn’t chase so it was mostly me doing the work. Incredibly I got a break with a few guys and we caught the escapees. There were 10 of us in the final sprint and I felt really good, I went for it, really killed myself, and then got cramp 100m from the finish just as I thought I had it!! 4^th................... really cross!! Missed the podium by one place!

The best bike of 2012 is the CANNONDALE EVO, with SRAM RED 2.

And I HAVE ONE!!! WHAT A BIKE, beautiful and incredibly light. I am now sponsored by CANNONDALE, with the support of CULTUREVELO in THONON-LES-BAINS.

I have been selected to be part of the Good Fight Team.

http://www.thegoodfighters.com/GoodFighters/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Cannondale-Good-Fighters/115749715165255

This is a fantastic opportunity for me to ride the best bike and receive great support.

Massive thanks to Laurent Sillon at Club La Santa! Merci mille fois Laurent.

Already the help and advice I’ve had from the shop CULTUREVELO has been invaluable, and their attitude has really encouraged me. Just knowing my bike is in great shape and tuned perfectly is hugely positive and makes me feel I want to repay them with good results.

The 1^st race I had the chance to use my new weapon was the departmental championship race at Samoens. I was the most nervous I’ve ever been. Almost immediately after the start Cedric and Arthur got a break and disappeared into the distance. Again I was frustrated because that meant Cluses and Evian wouldn’t chase. It’s a massive disadvantage not having any teammates to help and I couldn’t get any other teams like Passy, Annecy or Annemasse to chase. So the gap grew to over a minute and I thought we would never catch them. Then Aurelien attacked which I should have expected but it seemed too late. We were flying!!  He got a small gap on me on the last big hill but not too much, then, as I changed to my big ring, my chain came off and got stuck. I had to jump off and fix it, by which time I was back in 7^th or 8^th. I think I had a real chance of a podium but probably hadn’t got used to SRAM properly as I’ve always used Shimano before. I went to CULTUREVELO and the mechanic adjusted the front mech correctly. My fault as I had changed wheels for the race and not thoroughly checked the tuning. 

Next race, Passy.  A tough course but I liked it as it had everything. Long flat bits, a fast descent, a punchy climb, but no twisty corners and the last 2km was fast and downhill. I was disappointed to come 8^th but, as dad said, it was always going to end up between the powerful guys and I need to remember that I’m up against guys much older and stronger than me – watch out though ‘cos I’ll win it next year!

So, today.................... Bourg En Bresse.............. 2^nd place!! Very happy. It was a 2.7 km course that we did 20 times. A total of 54km. It started very slowly. But then with 10 laps to go I looked behind and there were 8 or 9 of us! I knew that I was feeling good! With 4 laps to go I decided to go for it up the hill. I killed myself! And at the top I looked and there was still 5 guys with me! So told myself to stay in the wheels and wait for the sprint. With one km to go I got on the guy who I thought was the best in the group. Stayed on his wheel all the way until 150 meters to the line and tried to get past him but unfortunately had to settle for 2^nd place!

I have a busy weekend coming up and next week a track race at Aigle, then some big events in June.

I also will be taking a week off to go to my uncle’s wedding in Cornwall.

Now I’m going to go and clean my CANNONDALE EVO!