Tim Gudsell

Hi all

Didn’t get time to check in the other day as after an hour and a half bus drive, 8k neutral, 240km stage and 45min transfer after the stage, massage, a little dinner and my day was done.

It was a pretty impressive stage though, as the UCI limits the distance of stages in races to 240km, so we had to do 8km neutral just to get to the finish town. But the peloton didn’t muck around, we arrived with an average over 45kph! That was enough to suck almost all the juice out of my legs.

Yesterday we hit the hills in southern Poland, and also some typical Poland weather, rain, and lots of it. It was a sketchy day to say the least with fast descents, dodgy corners, and some cobbles thrown in as well just to mix it up a bit more.

I finished the stage in the main grupetto and was pretty happy just to be there to be honest. Lotto, the leading team didn’t let the break go far so it was fairly full gas all day.

Today is the hardest stage of the race with something like 13 cat1 climbs, they aren’t like the Pyrenees but still they aren’t easy with some nasty ramps thrown in there too.

The goal is pretty much survival today, so all going well I’ll report in again soon.

Thanks for reading

Tim

Yesterday as the peloton rolled out the start we saw a road sign that said “Lublin 211km” Lublin was the finish town and we were taking the main road there. It really set in that it was going to be a long day at that point.

The break went away fairly early, so it was another very controlled day with not a lot of action until the last 40-50km. So what do you do during these long flat kilometers? Talk, eat, talk and eat some more! It’s not always like this I can tell you, and in a couple days when we hit the mountains there will be very little talking.

Australian Graeme Brown is one of the peloton’s more lively characters, and is often causing a little havoc. At one point we were lined out in the gutter he hit a hole and almost took down a bunch of us, then as the speed eased up all we heard was Argentinian Juan Jose Hueado yell out in his classic accent, “Brownie you f##king idiot learn how to to ride your bike” Everyone just cracked up too as his accent made it sound so good.

Well folks it only gets longer today 240km, so I’ll be packing a lot of food for another long day out.

Back soon

Tim

After some incredible thunder storms last night that must have woken up the whole of Poland, this morning we were met with clear skies and another warm day.

Racing in so called east Europe is truly amazing, here we see a lot of country side and the huge variety of how people live in countries like this. To bring the Pro Tour here has got to be a great thing, the people just love it. Today’s finish circuit was just insane, 6km long and there wasn’t a barrier space left. I wasn’t racing up and down the Champs Elysee last weekend but today wasn’t to far from it.

All was going well for me today, legs felt good, lacking a little speed but other than that I enjoyed my day out. Only until a mass pile up on a small cobbled section on the finish circuit caused chaos in the bunch. I was a little behind the crash but before I knew I had someone falling on me from the left and from the right, so stuck in a bike sandwich down I went. Welcome back I thought. Anyway nothing broken just a few bumps, so fingers crossed that will be the last of that for a while.

Tomorrow we are in for another long one 230km so a better hit the hay and get some recovery in.

Bye from Poland

Tim

Hi all
Well yesterday I was back in the pro tour peloton for the first time since January and damn did it feel good!
Stage 1 was a circuit race around the Polish capital of Warsaw. The sun was shining, the polish public were out in there in the 1000′s and a fast flat course made for nice spectacle.
It was great to catch up with some of my colleagues I haven’t seen all year, and along with the adrenalin of a circuit race made for a great day. The sprint finish was a little sketchy for me first up, but from here on its all go. We have one sprinter in the team here, Sebastian Chavenal. Though where possible I will be having a crack myself.
Will back again soon, well as soon as we have covered the 220km they have put in front of us today.
Cheers
Tim

Hi folks

Sorry if it feels like i’ve gone a bit quiet on here lately, but i’ve been getting stuck into something else…………  No not croissants, but TRAINING!  And what a treat that has been after being on and off for the past 6 months.

After some consistent solid treatment on my piriformis muscle over the past two months, I have found the relief I have been looking for for over a year.

Chronic pain can become as much mental as it is physical, and for me that has been the hardest part to deal with.  The days where a small muscle twitch would make me think I was back to square one, and the way neural pain can be misinterpreted have made me learn a lot about myself and the different ways of dealing with prolonged rehab.

So, recently there have been some long lonely miles in the hills around Provence, and some solid time spent behind the scooter in an effort to get me back up to speed for my first race at the Tour of Poland starting this Sunday in Warsaw.

I am really excited about getting back into the peloton with all cylinders firing.  I will do my best to keep you posted during Poland, with some real grit from my office.

Thank you all for your support over this difficult time, it has been truly appreciated.

Righto time for me to pack the suitcase and get on the road.

Back soon

Tim