Another day done and dusted. Full gas rain greeted us for the first 30kms, which just put everyone on red alert!! the first hour was covered pretty rapidly as is the norm these days in any pro race.. sometimes it just blows me away how fast the peleton moves.. you just got to follow that wheel in front and pray! everyone has so much energy at the start so you just got to roll with the punches and then after the first hour the race goes easy (sometimes!) then the real race starts the last 90mins.

Today it was exactly like that. mind you we raced over roads similar to belgium today. the roads were narrow and twists and turns everywhere.. so even when it was ‘easy’ there was still some tension and nervousness in the air.

I was pretty good today, felt super strong at times and on the circuit just did what i could.. our team was always present where we needed to be and we had renshaw join the attack on the circuits through some mad cornering.. you should have seen it! unreal! he made up a gap of about 200m to a pretty select group in one wet corner!

tomorrow the real race starts with some really hard circuits. this is possibly where the race will start.. if your good here you can go to the time trial with a shot at victory.. its my goal to be there so heres hoping.. i feel strong enough and that is what is needed to be a contender here..

some nice weather would be welcomed by all, but who knows what we will be dished. regardless everyone has the same conditions so thats a good thing..

the kiwi boys are all riding well.. holding their own which is good to see.. reckon we might have a few more pro tour riders next year which is great for our sport back in nz.. its only the tip off the iceberg though, so much talent back home and i hope they all get the chance to live their dreams too..

will update tomorrow.. thanks for reading!

ciao ciao

Hey there.

Well it was a pretty nervous day here in Denmark with wind and alot of tail wind for the most part of it.. We were also hit really hard with heavy showers heading into the criterium styled finishing circuits which was just chaos with many riders crashing, and crashing hard..

Our team today was super.. We never rode the front today till the end and the reason why is because HTC Columbia always rides.. So in the meeting today we decided to let the other teams ride and then we would try and be present when we needed to be..

The rain was really heavy and when we hit the finishing circuits the roads were soaked and slippery.. This is when we put the whole team on the front to try and gain control.. Reason why, well obviously for the sprint, but mostly because its the safest place to be in those conditions. You corner slower, you dictate the lines in the corners too which all helps in the run for the line.

We won today with Matt Goss.. Aussie guy on our team.. Great day really as we also had Mark Renshaw in 3rd and I along with one other were inside the top 10.. so all good.. At 1km to go we still had riders in the front so when i pulled off with 300m to go i was pretty sure that one of the two sprinters would win.. what a great way to start the tour putting the whole team in good spirits..

I was good today too, which i was happy with.. i still dont feel super and im struggling with a dead left leg but sometimes you just got to roll with it! i mean one dead leg is better than 2 right! i was pedalling circles today which was a massive improvement on san sebastian.. im still adjusting though after coming back to europe but each day is better so thats a good sign

Righto thanks for reading, ill try and update daily.. heres hoping for more success throughout the tour..

ciao

What a beautiful race… with good legs here and motivation i feel you could do a good race here.. with the lead legs that i had, it was purely watching the wheel in front and thinking of surviving as long as i could lol.

2 days in a plane and cold weather leading up to it was not optimal at all, but i still was not so bad either.. i never finished, i wasnt expecting to, actually the way my legs were after 20kms i would have been happy to just get to the feed.. but i got better and i was with the main group the first time up the jazkibel.. its a hard climb and the feature climb of the day.. i got dropped after about 190kms today, i did all i could in a field of tour riders but i was satisfied with this.. even though it was a dnf..

now the fun begins. the goals have been laid and the second half of the season for me is perhaps the most important.. i want to finish flying.. winning and having that real feel of satisfaction.. i want to be atop of the podium again and i dont even care where it is.. i feel all is coming together nicely and after a mental break back in nz with my son moses, i feel mentally ready for the challenges that lie ahead… i know my program but cant really tell you all yet till its official.. hey and after the tour im now just focusing daily on whats in store!

its great to be back though and it was a buzz to be racing in san sebastian.. the public love cycling like you wouldnt believe.. it was an amazing atmosphere to be involved in and the goosebumps you get are hard to gain anywhere else in this world..

onwards and upwards.. thanks for reading my friends.. tour of denmark awaits.. kiwi galore there too with bewely seargent and avery all starting.. will be good..

ciao

Hi there..

Well its been a long time since ive personally wrote on my site but here is a quick update as to whats been happening..

After the tour of austria i made the decision to make a mad dash back to NZ to see my boy Moses.. Oh what a great idea that was.. it really was special to see him again and he loved it too.. i was there to see his birthday also and we had a really nice family day in ashburton.. of course the star attraction decided he was having no sleep this day but he was full of it all day and never missed a beat.. he did fall asleep on the way back home, like 200m after pulling out of my mothers house!

It was cold at home. really cold and coming for 35 degree heat this was the only real test.. however i still did some good quality training and although it took the legs a fair bit of time to adjust to the temperature difference i was starting to really fly near the end..

And now im back in spain and in my team hotel waiting for the classic san sebastian to kick off.. one more awesome jet lagged sleep to be had and ill be good to go.. we checked out the climb today and lets just say its not easy.. mmmmmmm actually its rather hard.. but we ALL have to go over this so lets keep this positive so i do get through the race in one peice and happy..

i feel really motivated at the mo.. post san sebastian i have a few days at home in girona, then its on to denmark.. then back for 3 weeks training to get ready for the tour of spain..

great time to be motivated i say.. anyway ill update tomorrow night.. eyelids are so heavy right now its awesome hahahah..

ciao ciao

Hayden Roulston has signed to race with the Calder Stewart Industries team at this year’s Powernet Tour of Southland.

Roulston, a double Olympic medallist and three time winner of the event, is now eligible to ride in New Zealand’s most prestigious cycling race as it has lost its international UCI (International Cycling Union) status, and Calder Stewart moved quickly to secure his services.

“The status change is not a bad thing as it now allows New Zealand’s pro cyclists to race in the event and I really wanted to head back down there again,” Roulston said.

“We looked at our options and things came together well quite quickly with Calder Stewart. Southland gets right behind the event, it’s a good race and really well run and I’m looking forward to racing with the boys Calder Stewart are pulling together for a team.”

The UCI is the sport’s world governing body, and is not registering the six-day race as a 2.2-category event because of issues such as the lack of foreign teams, the use of composite sponsor teams and the charging of an entry fee.

Cycling Southland Chief Executive Nick Jeffrey said the week long tour will continue as it has before. He said it had renewed support from its main sponsor, believes riders will not notice any difference due to the change status and is very happy Roulston will ride at the tour.

“The good thing to come out of the UCI decision was we now can open our doors to our top professional riders like Hayden, which is great for the sport and great for us in Southland,” he said.

Sales and Marketing Manager for Calder Stewart Mike Tou said they were “ecstatic” at signing one of New Zealand’s leading road cyclists.

“Calder Stewart has supported the Tour or Southland for over a decade now and believes Hayden will fit well into the Calder Stewart Team environment. We believe any team in the Tour would be pleased to have a rider the calibre of Hayden and we are really looking forward to the Tour of Southland this year.”
Roulston was allowed to race last year as his professional team at the time, Cervelo Test Team, wasn’t pro-tour registered. His current team HTC-Columbia is, which meant if the event had stayed as a UCI registered event he would not have been able to race.

Roulston pulled out after stage one of last year’s tour after being involved in a crash. The Tour of Southland was first raced in 1956 and gained UCI status in 2002.

Ends

________________________________________
For more information

please contact:
John McKenzie
enthuse ltd
021 384 730
03 384 7338
Hayden Roulston’s media, sponsorship and commercial relationship management
________________________________________

Hayden Roulston gets the second half of his season in Europe underway with his team HTC-Columbia at the San Sebastián Classic this Saturday in Spain.

After spending 12 days at home in Christchurch Roulston returned to his base in Spain this week primed and feeling confident about his form.

“I got some good training in while at home. Even though it was cold, I did get some good miles in and feel like I’m in good shape for the rest of the season.”

Although disappointed at missing out on racing with his team in the Tour de France, racing in the Tour of Austria instead, he said he has moved on, re-focused and is looking forward to the racing ahead.

Roulston’s schedule is yet to be confirmed and released by his professional team but it looks likely he will race in the Tour of Denmark between August 4-8 after the San Sebastián Classic.

He says he should know in the near future what other races the team has him lined up for.

Ends

________________________________________
For more information

please contact:
John McKenzie
enthuse ltd
021 384 730
03 384 7338
Hayden Roulston’s media, sponsorship and commercial relationship management

Hayden left NZ this afternoon to head back to his base in Spain and races the San Sebastián Classic on Saturday then the Tour of Denmark. Other news about other races on the radar to come in near future! watch this space!