Hi there,

Today was a heavy day in down under.. Harder than i thought it would be, and i think the peleton are all feeling todays effort.. Well heres hoping!

Again a break went up the road.. It was a good break this time, and getting away in the first hour meant that you had the legs for the break, plus more.. I averaged 340w for the first hour, and there was alot of descending there too.. It was full gas and on for every man. The break never got more than 2.30min, but they played us a bit and once they got this gap i think they backed off a touch, so we didnt hit the panic buttons! actually much similar to what my break did in denmark.. Its the way to win from a break but harder said than done..

Firstly huge congrats to cam meyer, and matty wilson. that was a stellar win and totally deserved.. all us kiwis know cam, he bascially made the commonwealth games his by ripping all races he did to bits.. he is a super talent and its great for cycling to see a young rider of this calibre in the lead.. secondly…. what are some of the ‘other’ teams thinking.. the break still had 90s with 20k to go and it was only really us, and radioshack (even lance!) pulling.. Lotto put one guy there but late in the race.. where was sky? All the top teams had everything to lose today, and lose we did… Our guys did a great job, we had 2-3 guys pulling all day so it was hugely disappointing to lose the jersey. But as i reminded the guys today, and from my own experience, the race is never over until you are over the LAST finish line.. We would have easily caught the break if some of the other teams with overall contentions put a few riders in with ours.. but they never… lets leave it there!

Tomorrow is the big day though, and anyone who went too deep today, or yesterday for that matter will suffer. Its willunga hill day and this is where the race can definitely be lost.. Our goal is to win this race so we will be ready for whatever comes our way.. It is a good stage for me, and ill do all i can to throw my hands in the air, but firstly we got to make sure we get that orcha jersey back where it belongs, well where i think it belongs .

The crowds were amazing today and having my mum, sister and cousin is here is great.. I get to see them alot actually, its hard not to with mum, she looks like the real tourist, with camera in hand getting all the signatures of some of my close friends.. Lots and lots of kiwis are here too, and i hear you all trust me! its a nice feeling i tell ya..

Ok so i just nailed a bag of lollies and feel like a big air balloon.. i was going to get 2 bags, one for each leg, but settled on one (big) bag! Need that fuel and sugar tomorrow so we can fight and battle!

Stay tuned tomorrow. its going to be an actioned packed day.. Im ready!

ciao
roly

Well its funny from one day to the next how fortunes can change.. Gossy regained the leaders jersey today, although there was panic stations hit big time with 13km to go when he flatted… He did get back to the group and did a great job in doing so with the help of the guys…. like i said, one day bad, the next day back on top.. nice!

I had amazing legs and showed them when i needed too.. I really feel im on a great level here, doing it with ease when alot of others are tiring.. I guess part of me knows that im good enough here for a stage win, the other part knows im here to help win the race, and there is even a part of me that thinks i could win he whole thing! im just taking it day by day, and at the end of the day i want HTC Highroad to win this race.. My goals lie with a stage win and i really think this is an achieveable goal.

Today was a hot day, and the finishing circuits really tested the peleton. A break went away early and team radioshack did a great job riding the front protecting their leader robbie mckewen.. With johann at the helm of that team they know exactly when to hit the gas, when not too.. He is probably the number one director in the world, and slight increases in tempo here and there during the race are all dictated by him so the peleton always has to work.. He is a big reason why lance won 7 tours and you can see why today..

There was a big crash again today and i think farrar went down which is a real shame.. The circuit was fast and the peleton was really nervous.. I kept my cool today and stayed well out of trouble and i did a big pull again for gossy to get him right up there in the mix for the win.. He run third and picked up vital seconds needed to take back the jersey.. so all in all it was a great day..

Goal for tomorrow is to conserve as much energy as possible, so we are ready for whatever is needed to be done on the hard day in willunga. this will be where the race is won, and there are alot still in the hunt.. myself included… I finished as best i could today and should still be on the same time as most of the top contenders.. Im still in with a hunt should anything go wrong with gossy..

Ill update tomorrow… its so nice to hear all the support out on the roads.. i reckon i get more shouts than the aussies which i also get alot of shit for too. lol…. its all good though, and i give it right back!

Im now on twitter too, i finally succombed to the pressure of the dark side! you guys can all follow me @HaydenRoulston to hear all the gossip as it unfolds…

tune in tomorrow for another report..

ciao ciao
roly

Hi there,

Well today didnt go as we had hoped as both Cav and Gossy went down with 4kms to go… It was a real shame cause Danny Pate and Grabschy did a great job all day keeping the break right where we needed it to be…. which was just up the road..

It was a typical european finish today with crazy corners with shingle on them, a bit of oil, and guys thinking they are on rails heading into the bloody corners too! The most important thing though was that both our guys got up, gossy got back to the main group and lost no time, cav a little worse for wear though looking like a rapper out of Harlem rather than a cyclist.. We had to laugh though, and he was laughing too walking to our rooms with a bandage around his head and his cap to the side. haha, i was wetting myself actually as bernie and i let him have it! thats the beauty of this team.. although it was a disappointing day, we can still laugh about it and let it go.. although right now i can hear cav getting his wounds washed.. again, a wee laugh to myself never hurts

I had great legs again and really feel super on the bike. Tom we have a very hard day. We did this stage last year and it was in peices at the end and to be honest i hope for the same tomorrow.. They are saying its going to be hot too so the harder it is the better for me..

you have to always take positives out of negatives, well thats what i do nowadays anyway. Today i guess you could say the positive is that gossy got back to the group and lost no time… And tomorrow the team get the ‘day off’ from riding the front which is really good due to the difficulty of the stage.

Ill update tomorrow evening.. Tomorrow is a new day and i feel something special brewing! heres hoping!

ciao
roly

Hi there,

Well the off season is done and dusted for yet another year!

Today was the official start of the Tour Down Under here in adelaide and the team started with a bang! Gossy won the stage and has now taken some important seconds plus the golden jersey to lead the race.. Its a great feeling and the team are all very happy…

It was a pretty non eventful day really with a small break getting away after 25kms. They only ever got a maximum lead of 3mins as we had one of our guys riding on the front, along with a few other teams which was nice to see..

I had a bit of trouble mid way through when a rider threw his feed bag into my back wheel, it brought me to a quick stop, and got me thinking ‘idiot’… It was a friend of mine so all was ok not long after. It did however rip my rear mech clean off, so after a quick change of bike i was back in business in the HTC train…

I felt super all day. great power and really that special feeling when you know your at a good level.. It was a super hard finish though and required all i had to pull the boys into a winning position. With 2kms to go it started going uphill with the steepest part being about 1200m before the line.. My leadout started about 1400m out trying to hold out the SKY train, this time i won that battle i think! i pulled to about 800m to go, then bernie took over, followed by renshaw and gossy.. A great day for the boys and a reminder to the others that we are here to win this race and it was there for everyone to see..

So now tomorrow will be a little different as we have the jersey so our team will probably be the only ones pulling at the front.. Its a flat finish tomorrow so we will do all we can to bring either Cav, or Gossy to the line in first. I also am fighting to stay on the same time as the other non sprinters which is easier said than done when youve just pulled one last time, your legs are full of lactate, then you got to swing back in and get sucked to the line! its important so we have a back up plan should something go wrong with Gossy, and also with the hard stages on stage 3 and 5 i also need to be ready if a dangerous break goes up the road…

I feel great, my form is good and im really happy to have started the season. After my nationals win everyone is impressed with the kit too, which is really cool.. Even cav likes it, and so he should the wee pom.. Its totally kiwi, and with all the support out on the roads you would be mad not to love it lol…

will update tomorrow with what i hope is more good news.. thanks for reading, ciao for now!

roly

Hey there,

Well ive settled into adelaide now and its great being back with my team… Alot of kiwi/aussie/pom/german/yank banter being flung across the table which is very interesting at times. grabschy the german is here and he cops a bit in our worst german accents known to man! it makes dinner fly by and a bit of banter never hurts anyone!

The team are all in good spirits and ready to start our first race of the year together. This sunday we have the criterium which is more just a hit out for the crowds than anything else, then tuesday starts stage one of the tour down under.

I had the whole day off yesterday, i was in bed all day crook as a dog. i even slept 5hrs! which for me is a huge afternoon sleep! think life has caught up on me, or something like that anyway! today i rode 3.5hrs and im still not 100% but i am feeling better. I hope tomorrow im back to my normal self so im ready to race come sunday.

I rode my new bike today for the first time and it feels good. Same bike as i had at nationals, just a different paint job. I really like the specialized bikes and cant wait to get my hands on the new aero bike that we will recieve in europe in time for Milan San Remo..

i really want to thank everyone who messaged me for my birthday and also re nationals. i had so many great messages and i read them all. Its great to know i have so much support back in NZ, and europe for that matter and ill do all i can to bring the Nz jersey to the top of the podium this year. Speaking of which, i still dont have the new kit, but it is coming… It looks cool so heres hoping it all fits!

Will update after the criterium on sunday so keep following me..

thanks again,
ciao
roly

Hey there,

Well I did it! I won! I am a very proud man to have that jersey on my shoulders for the 2011 season for many reasons.. But i guess the biggest reason of all is because I won having the weight of expectations on my shoulders, and doing so solo made it possible for myself to really enjoy it, and soak up that incredible atmosphere of the tour de france like crowd. it was unreal!

It is more difficult than i can even tell you to win a race like that in new zealand when people see your fit, and expect you to win.. julz and i both joked on the startline, that the nz nationals is now not a guaranteed win like it has been a few years back. Everyone knows the prestige the National jersey now has and you have to be ready to race on the day with good form. Especially on that un forgiving course.

The race for me went perfectly. Although at times i wondered if i was actually good enough to win. the first few laps i was far from super, but i knew this would happen, and from there, lap after lap i got better and stronger. A race of this length over this course is always won late in the race, and even though there was a group at 6mins, another at 3mins i always knew that there was plenty of time to pull them back.. BUT and a big BUT, it would take all i had to do it..

I basically decided to start my race with 5 laps to go.. I tried many times to get away, with what were more test attacks rather than a full attack.. I wanted to see if they would let me go, or would i have to go full gas on the climb… I had a few small stabs up the climb to try and get the bunch a bit smaller and eliminate some of the big teams i was racing against, but funnily enough i got away on the flat.. At first i only went out to 30s, and it was running through my mind whether i should sit up and conserve, or fully commit.. I decided to go. Put all my eggs in one basket and chase alone..

I was very lucky to have a great mate in the middle group of marc ryan. I caught his group after he dropped off it and pulled as hard as he could for me. He was unreal, and i cant thank him enough.. he was also on his last legs, but knew he could do the job required then it was his day done.. he actually stopped the race, had a beer in hand with his family by the time i crested the top! I knew that they were chasing behind, but as i was gaining time, i was also catching riders, groups and they were also pulling too.. At this stage of the race, everyone was still in for the win, and i guess thats why guys wanted to ride.. I then was making my way towards the front of the race where sam bewely and jessie seargent were. 2 very close mates, but both also pro tour riders and having the jersey on their backs was something they both wanted too… I never spoke to the boys before the start, but when i got to them they pulled full gas for me too, knowing they didnt have the legs to win, but also knowing they could finish high up.. plus the fact we are good friends and they new i was alone without the other ‘favourites’ of the race so it was on like donkey kong…

With 20kms to go i was with one other rider. the very talented michael vink.. i really wanted to take him to the line with me and as he was a u23 it was a no brainer for him either… he pulled like a true champion and i take my hat off to him.. He did a super ride and won the u23 title. I had to go alone up the last climb though, as i wasnt sure who was coming, and which riders had formed the dreaded ‘money combine’ to chase me.. I had over a minute at the top of the last climb and then with 4kms to go i had 27s. So a certain someone had his cash in his back pocket … from here though i knew i had it, and i celebrated in style.. It was an emotional win, and turning into the finishing straight it all hit me.. I felt like i was in europe, the crowd was pumping and i really got to soak it all up.. like i said, i was very proud to win!

So now as i write this im laying on my bed in adelaide.. Life of a pro huh! The tour down under starts on sunday with the criterium so the team is all here training getting ready for that. It starts with a criterium which isnt actually part of the race. The real race starts on tuesday and that is the first time youll see me in my new kit..

The kit! Well the team were on to the design straight away.. And after a few suggestions from myself, a few emails to and from it is now being made hopefully arriving before the start of the tour.. It looks great and i am also hoping to have mock kits made so anyone can have a set.. Looks super sharp though and ill be ripping that parcel open as if santa has come.. when i get to europe i will probably get the full kit all in the colours of national champ.. the bike, helmet, gloves, socks, shoes.. you name it, the team will try to do it.. Thats the beauty of a pro team, its great publicity for them too..

Ok enough from me.. I just want to say a huge thanks to all those who have been involved over the past bit.. Thanks for all the messages of support, congrats too.. I read them all, and try to reply to most..

will update soon.
ciao
roly

ps- i just about forgot.. someone asked me if i was motivated on sunday by jack bauers comments on one news? I asked which comment.. they said the one where he said he would drop you on the climb….. i just laughed as 5min had already passed and still no jack.. bit of banter never hurts anyone, and like i said, you have to be ready to win nationals on that course… jack won last year and totally deserved it.. this year i was the winner, and for one of the first times in my life i can say i deserved it!

As National road champion Hayden is looking forward to wearing his new HTC Highroad strip bearing the Silver Fern which will be ready when he suits up for his first pro-tour ride of the season at the Santos Tour Down Under that starts in Adelaide on Sunday.

He beat a star-studded field in Christchurch yesterday to win his second national road crown in 4hr 43min 29sec, and will take the jersey to Europe where he will ride on the pro circuit for HTC Highroad.

Hayden really wants to make the most of time in a jersey he fought hard for, and has already approved a design of the jersey that he says should be ready later this week! Great work from his team to get it sorted so fast – along with a black themed Specialized bike!