News 2008/03

27. July, Sachsen Tour

No less then 3 riders from our team felt ill this morning with stomach problems. Ludescher didn't start at all. Pollack and Musiol tried, they had a go, but didn't get very far. For the rest of us, we were aiming to get into a breakaway in this very tough stage today. We all had a go several times, but nobody got away until we got to the first mountain. In the climb we were all suffering from the previous attacks and a group of 5 got away without anybody from Team Volksbank. Then things settled down a lot. I didn't feel well all day. The pace of the peloton was neither fast nor slow, just uncomfortable. That was it, the outcome of the stage was decided. The breakaways didn't get caught and I finished in the peloton. After a few days of resting and recovering from the hard racing in this tour I should be able to get to a higher level of fitness.

26. July, Sachsen Tour

Before the timetrail a lot of riders still had chances to get a good place in the general classification. As 25. overall I had lost only 25 seconds to the leader. The parcour was 37 km long without any major difficulties. But a strong crosswind made it hard to find the right pace. These are conditions which I don't really like. I went too fast in the early part and had to pay for it on the last few kilometers. I just don't have enough experience yet in a long timetrail. Team Colombia dominated completly and filled up the whole podium. I finished 19. and lost 3.5 minutes - an eternity!

25. July, Sachsen Tour

Now the hot weather has also arrived in this part of Germany. Because of the high temperatures the pace was fairly slow for a long time. And everybody knew that the last part of the stage on a circuit with a hard climb was going to be very demanding. When with about 50 km to go the first attacks went off the front I went as well a few times. But we never got very far. I felt a bit better then yesterday, but I am not in top shape yet. I didn't have much left on the final 2 laps on the circuit, and consider myself lucky to survive and stay with the leading group. I hope it was enough to get a place in the top ten. I have a special motivation in this Tour because a small group from my fan club has traveled here to see me racing. My parents and my girlfriend are here as well. They are on holidays and travel with me on all the stages!

24. July, Sachsen Tour

A tough day! Inclusive neutralization 250 km long. Everything went well until we got to the last 50 kilometers. My legs felt better then yesterday. When the leader of the youngster classification stopped for a toilet break, I did the same thing. On the way back into the peloton I picked up a few bottles of water at the teams car for my mates. Just at that time we got into a crosswind and Team CSC picked up the pace. The peloton split up into two parts. It took a very big effort to get back into the leading group. From there on I was gone, I had nothing left. With a few kilometers to go a small group escaped to make out the stage win, but I couldn't go with them.

23. July, Sachsen Tour

The wheels of my racing bike are turning again. After not training at all for a whole week and not racing for almost one month I started the Sachsen Tour today. During the next 5 days I would like to get back into shape and get my engine running at full power again. The first stage wasn't too hard until we got to the last few kilometers. Only once a strong crosswind brought a bit of hectic into the peloton. A breakaway with 3 riders was caught not for from the finish and a mass sprint followed. My legs didn't feel very good yet. I hope it will get better soon.

29. June, NC Roadrace

The national championship roadrace was for me a rollercoaster of emotions. Already in the second of twelve laps a group of 20 riders broke away, as expected. My legs felt terrible, still tired from the last few races, and I couldn't go with them. My teammate Elias Schmäh did a lot of work for one lap to keep me in the race by keeping the gap to the breakaways as small as possible. Thank you very much! With the help of another rider it took a big effort to bridge the gap to the leaders in the third lap. The hot weather made the race very hard, and rider after rider dropped out. I used up 11 bidons which is 5.5 litres of liquid! In the end there were 6 of us left to fight for the title. At the 300 m mark I led out the sprint. Still a long way to go, but I was hoping to surprise them. I gave everything I had left. At the 150 m mark Beat Zberg went past me. Then Elminger, he rode very close to me and didn't keep a straight line. We touched, I lost my balance and I crashed hard. My hopes of getting a medal went down the drain. My helmet and sunglasses were broken as I hit the road. To the loud cheers of spectators I got up, still dizzy, and somebody pushed me over the finishline, directly to the firstaid tent. The worst moment of the day was still to come. As the doctor had a look at me, I watched my girlfriend collaps with a shock. An ambulance took me to the hospital in Baden. After a thorough checkup I was released at 21.00 hrs. Thank god, no serious injuries. After a long day I was allowed to go home.

25. June, NC Timetrail

At last, my first medal at the national championships as a pro! In Messen at the national championships we had to do 2 laps with a total distance of 45.4 km. The strong wind made it very difficult for us. At times I was barely able to hold on to the bike in the strong crosswind. My plan was not to go flat out yet in the first half. After lap 1 I had the fourth fastest time. Then in lap 2 I pushed hard and went right to the limit. The pain in my legs nearly killed me and at times I was thinking about getting off the bike. I felt bad, but in the end my time was OK. Most of the competitors started too fast and then hit the wall towards the end. My second lap was only slightly slower then the first one. I got the place on the podium on the last few kilometers. I was worth it, the pain is already forgotten ;-)

21. June, Tour de Suisse

Did I sleep last night - like a log. In the morning I felt really fresh and well recovered. Our hotel is about 5 km outside of Altdorf. That's perfect, we rode the bikes to the start of the stage. The rooms are large and modern. I am very happy to stay here for another night. The timetrail up to the Klausenpass was a big spectacle. As we got higher up the mountain, more and more people were lining the road. The loud cheering of the crowd sent chills down my spine. The organizers did a great job securing the road for us, well done. I wasn't going to go flat out in the 25 km long climb. But when I got to the top, I realized that I had given everything I had left. A timetrail of 1 hour going up a big mountain is really tough. Tomorrow will be the last chance for Team Volksbank to win a stage. Please keep your fingers crossed.

19. June, Tour de Suisse

Virtual leader of the Tour for a short time Last night I saw the frightning crash of Franck Schleck on TV. I'am glad to see that he is OK! From the italian speaking part of Switzerland, to the french speaking part. In between the Nufenenpass with 2500 m. A typical stage of the Tour de Suisse. I felt good and got to the top of the Nufenen amongst the leading group. And it got even better! The time advantage of our group grew and grew, until I became the virtual leader of the Tour for a while. But riding into the strong headwind cost us a lot of energy. So when we got to the bottom of the final climb up to Verbier everybody knew that they would catch us. The winner of the stage wouldn't be one of us. For Team Volksbank the priority today was to defend and keep the white jersey of the leader in the sprint classification. When the peloton passed me, my fueltank was on empty. We changed into a new and dry set of cloths after the finishline and rode back down the mountain on our bikes. The teams campervan was waiting for us down in the valley. As a reward for todays performance I got a small gift from the team.

18. June, Tour de Suisse

To the sunny part of Switzerland. After a good nights sleep, the world looked much better for me. The sun was shining too, which is balsam for the soul of a bikerider. When we got to the Ticino, the sunny part of Switzerland, the temperature rose to 30 degrees. But then at first, in the early part of the stage, things didn't go so well for me. The pace was very fast in the first climb up to Flims. A group went off the front, and I didn't have the legs to go with them. But I kept a cool head. I knew that we would catch them again, because some of the riders in the leading group were favourites to win the Tour. So a lot of teams were working hard to reel them back in again. The last part of the stage was very though for us riders, with a very dangerous descent down to the finish. I hope to recover well, the air on top of the highest mountain of the Tour tomorrow will be very thin....

17. June, Tour de Suisse

I wanted to sleep, but my stomach wouldn't let me. I was only able to sleep for about 6 hours last night. We finished dinner at 22.30 hrs, but I couldn't get to sleep until arround 1.30 hrs because I had an upset stomach. In the morning I woke up too early for the same reason. It made me feel very weak, no energy at all. But luck was still on my side because today we had the easiest stage of the Tour. At the end of the stage, alI I wanted was going to bed to have a rest. My body needed to recover fast, because the first mountain stage was waiting for us tomorrow.

16. June, Tour de Suisse

We had a lot of time in the morning to hang arround, because the start was at 14.40 hrs. We will have to get used to this, because there will be late starts for all the stages in this years Tour de Suisse. I would have loved to ride up front in a breakaway group today. The first attack of 3 riders was successful, they got away. Amongst them was Rene Weissinger from Team Volksbank. That worked out well, because he got maximum points in the sprint classification and will wear the white jersey tomorrow. During the stage I was talking to Gregory Rast, and he told me that Kolobnev wasn't taking part in the Tour de Suisse. The legs I mentioned in yesterdays report belong to Kolobnevs team mate Arvesen. I just havn't got enough experience in the Pro Tour circuit. The weather today was horrible, but it was still a nice stage for me. To ride through my hometown and see all the people cheering me on was a an experience I will never forget. Thanks to everybody, but most of all to the members of my fanclub for all the posters. It gave me a lot of motivation to get a good result at the end of the stage. On the way to the hotel we had a quick stop in Aadorf to get some cakes from my fanclub. We will eat them as soon as we had a shower.

15. June, Tour de Suisse

A hard days work is done! 10 PM! At last, I am in bed, resting and relaxing. The fans today were again fantastic. Thousends of them all along the road, but most of them at the start, and then again at the finish. In a quiet moment during the stage the CSC rider Kolobnev caught my eye. He has the most impressiv legs in the peloton. A hard mountaintop finish is not really my cup of tea, that's why I rode for Florain Stalder. I got him into a good position for the final climb. He is the best climber of Team Volksbank. Then I just rode at my own pace. I wanted to get a hot shower as soon as possible. Our hotel was only 500 m from the finish of the stage. Perfect, we didn't have to stay in the cold, rainy weather any longer. Tomorrows third stage will take us through my hometown Aadorf. There is an AXA sprint there as well.

14. June, Tour de Suisse

There is no better way to start the day then having a breakfast buffet, with everything on it a hungry cyclist desires! After the meal I went back to my room to relax, then got ready to go to the start of stage 1. To get to the signing in desk we had to get through a lot of spectators. We certainly got a lot of attention from them. Right on time with the start of the race, it began to rain. But fortuneatly only a few drops. The first phase of the stage was very hectic. Then 3 riders got away and things settled down a lot. There was even time to talk to some of my fellow cyclists. In the 18% steep climb up to Chuderhüsi I was glad to have the 25 teeth cog on the back. My mechanics had installed it yesterday, after a short discussion with me! The atmosphere was fantastic with big crowds along the road everywhere. Then towards the end, when the pace got faster again, my team mate Elias Schmäh made some spectacular pictures for the viewers of the live broadcast on tv. He had a camera fitted on his bike, and when the big crash happend he was there. Not just filming it from a distance, he was right in the middle of it. Thank god Elias didn't get hurt seriously. I really messed up the sprint for the stage in the end. But I will get another chance soon. Because of the cool weather I got a bit of a sore throat. I hope it will be better by tomorrow.