All Content

Editor's Note: Drew Geer is an endurance mountain bike racer who has been using a computer training log since 1998 and has hand-written training logs going back to 1972. He's been an Apple Mac user since 1984. Geer paid retail for each of the products he reviewed in this article.

The BH/Pivot Demo truck is hitting the road with its expanded fleet of technologically advanced bikes. The 35-foot trailer will carry all the 2009 road bikes from Spain’s BH Bikes and all the 2009 mountain bikes from Pivot. The demo tour kicked off Sunday in Plano, Texas. The rest of the year it will travel to festivals, races, dealer demos and tech clinics across the nation.

Double Paris-Roubaix winner Tom Boonen will join his Quick Step teammates this month for a training camp along the sunny Spanish coast. The team will converge at the Spanish resort town of Benicassim for a 10-day camp beginning January 12 to put everyone on the right footing heading into the racing season. Per team tradition, the squad will split into two crews for training rides of different intensity, depending on pending racing schedules.

Living up to the success of last season will be challenging for Saxo Bank, formerly CSC, but team boss Bjarne Riis is cautiously optimistic despite the departure of reigning Tour de France champ Carlos Sastre. Seven riders followed Sastre out the door from the triumphant 2008 lineup, including retired pros Bobby Julich, Michael Blaudzun and Brad McGee and workhorses Iñigo Cuesta, Volodymir Gustov and Allen Johansen.

Day 4 of the Jayco Bay Cycling Classic saw the top professionals punish the bunch with explosive and sustained attacks. The sound of popping was almost audible as the pace and surges whittled the field down. Finally the Australian criterium champion, Bernie Sulzberger of Virgin Blue, won the day, sprinting to the line ahead of a reduced field. Sulzberger said after the win: “It makes me very proud to win wearing the Australian champion’s jersey.”

Wilderness Trail Bikes, Inc., a global leader in bicycle components, is proud to announce a new partnership with legendary mountain bike racer Brian Lopes. Lopes will be riding and racing exclusively on WTB’s high-end saddles. Each of Lopes’ team-issue Ibis race bikes will be outfitted with WTB’s Silverado SLT saddles.

The BC Bike Race - The Ultimate Singletrack Experience is proud to announce the LUNA Pro Teams participation in the 2009 event scheduled for June 28th- July 4th.

The 2009 MERCO Credit Union Cycling Classic Presented by McLane Pacific in Merced, CA is pleased to announce that they have added and open Juniors’ Race at both the Downtown Grand Prix and the Foothills Road Race. A $500 Cash Prize list for each day will be awarded plus a champion’s jersey and rock trophy for the single winner of each day. Distances of the races are 20 miles (25 laps) in the Grand Prix and 48 miles (2 laps) in the Road Race.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Following an extremely successful 2008 season, the Webcor/AltoVelo racing team is expanding its Elite Amateur Men’s team for the upcoming 2009 season. The core of last year’s Pro/1/2 team remains intact, and will be bolstered by extremely talented additions to the roster. For the 2009 season, the Elite Amateur Men’s team will be divided into a National-level “NRC Squad” that will be focused on larger National Racing Calendar (NRC) events all around the U.S., and a “Regional Squad” that will focus on rider development and in-district racing.

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE BIKE PURE organization: After the torrent of drug scandals damaging our sport, we have all become accustomed to the annual headlines of another disgraced professional. The image of professional cycling is repeatedly tarnished and the public at large, after being fed so much bad publicity, took it that all cyclists were dopers. Such was the frequency it was no longer clear who was clean and who is doping.

Touchstone Cycling enters the 2009 season with an expanded roster and additional sponsorship. After an impressive 2008 season, Touchstone looks to increase their presence and podium appearances. Kelly McDonald, 6th in the Mogollon Road Race at Tour of the Gila and 9th overall at Cascades, returns to the team and looks to add to her impressive NRC results.

Editor's Note:VeloNews cartoonist Patrick O'Grady and web editor Steve Frothingham have offered some year-end perspective on this site recently. Now for a different take we turn to freelance writer Kathie Reid. Reid helped us cover some of the biggest races on the calendar in 2008, but saw some of the most memorable performances from junior racers at the national championships in California.

Speedgoat Bicycles, Inc., a leading Internet retailer of bicycles, announces the appointment of Don Belt as Chief Operating Officer. Belt brings more than 20 years of corporate management experience, including 15 years with ServiStar and True Value, and President/CEO of Internet-centric start up procurement service provider, MRO Direct. His first assignment will be to establish the management and operational processes within the company to support the scalability objectives of Speedgoat Bicycles.

PRESS RELEASE In response to a tightening economy, the makers of specialty bicycle line Litespeed are launching the bicycle industry’s first ever direct-to-consumer rebate program. Specialty hangtags are being distributed this week to all Litespeed dealers to launch and promote the campaign, in which parent company American Bicycle Group (ABG) will send a rebate check for up to $350 to any consumer who purchases a qualifying Litespeed bicycle frame, frameset or complete bike.

Do you want to contribute to Mailbag, a regular feature of VeloNews.com? Here's how:

• Keep it short. And remember that we reserve the right to edit for grammar, length and clarity.
• Include your full name, hometown and state or nation.
• Send it to webletters@insideinc.com.

MILRAM newcomer Paul Voß had a perfect season debut on Sunday in the cyclo-cross race in Vechta. The 22-year-old 'cross specalist from Rostock, who last year won the silver medal in the U23 road world championships as his biggest success to date, brought in the first season win for his new team.

American Rachel Lloyd (California Giant) was second at the Tervuren, Belgium, cyclocross on Sunday, finishing just behind former world champion Daphny Van den Brand. American Sue Butler was eight, Followed by Canadians Natasha Elliot and Wendy Simms in ninth and tenth. Lloyd and Van de Brand were battling for most of the race after gapping the rest of the group on the first lap when Van den Brand attacked into a sandpit and Lloyd jumped on her wheel. The two worked together for a few laps. Van den Brand crashed in the sand at one point and Lloyd rode solo for about a lap.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

History has a way of repeating itself. The Jayco Bay Cycling Classic proved that with Will Walker of Fuji Servetto taking out day 3 of the Jayco Bay Cycling Classic. Six years ago Walker as a 17-year-old won a stage of the Jayco Bay Cycling Classic with a courageous and powerful breakaway from the main bunch. Walker repeated that performance by breaking away in the last third of the race in an explosive attack and consolidated the gains made until the end.[nid:86289]

The list of riders who have suited up for the Trek-Volkswagen professional mountain bike team over the years reads like a who’s who of North American off-road racing: Travis Brown, Alison Sydor, Roland Green, Susan Haywood and Jeremiah Bishop, just to name a few. But after 13 years, the Trek-Volkswagen program is calling it quits. The news comes after Volkswagen declined to renew its contract with the Wisconsin-based bicycle manufacturer.

The second day of the Jayco Bay Cycling Classic was all about thrills and spills. Graeme Brown of Rabobank took out his first win of the season in impressive style leading a bunch finish which saw Robbie McEwen (Team Katyusha), Baden Cooke (Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team), Simon Gerrans (Cervelo Test Team) and Nic Sanderson (Rock Racing) finish third, seventh, eighth and tenth respectively.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

The rock and roll cycling style of Rock Racing has had its first ride on Australian soil competing at the Jayco Bay Cycling Classic in Victoria. The self styled ‘Venom’ cycling kit and painted De Rosa frames stood out in the blur of color. The team — consisting of new signing Aaron Kemps (formerly of Astana), Rahsaan Bahati, Justin Williams and Nic Sanderson — came to Australia for some of the fastest critierium racing in the world. Notable absentee from the start line for Rock was new team member Caleb Manion. Manion signed with Rock Racing after racing with Toyota United.

---

For I have always lived violently, drunk hugely, eaten too much or not at all, slept around the clock or missed two nights of sleeping, worked too hard and too long in glory, or slobbed for a time in utter laziness.— John Steinbeck, “Travels With Charley”

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Tour de France stage winner, Simon Gerrans, a new recruit of the new Cervélo Test Team, won the first stage of the Jayco Bay Cycling Classic in Australia, riding for the local O2 Networks squad on Friday. The race was delayed, in strange circumstances, by more than 90 minutes because Australian sprint ace, Katyusha's Robbie McEwen, had his flight cancelled and was late arriving for the event.

Do you want to contribute to Mailbag, a regular feature of VeloNews.com? Here's how:

• Keep it short. And remember that we reserve the right to edit for grammar, length and clarity.
• Include your full name, hometown and state or nation.
• Send it to webletters@insideinc.com.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Can you recommend a tall stem for a tall rider?

Why does my new bike tick?

How will Q-factor affect IB Band Syndrome?

Do you have any advice for correcting leg-length discrepancies?

USA Cycling published its 2009 National Racing Calendar over the weekend, with several surprises, including the Dana Point Grand Prix of Cycling, held April 26, the new Oregon Pro Cycling Race, the June 21 Tour of Winghaven in St. Louis, the July 26 Chicago Criterium and August 8 Tour of Elk Grove, and the San Francisco Twilight Criterium, held September 5. Gone from this year’s NRC schedule are the Sequoia Cycling Classic, the Garrett Lemire Memorial Grand Prix, the Sea Otter Classic, the AT&T Austin Downtown Crit and the Cox Charities Cycling Classic.

American junior Zach McDonald finished second to Dutch rider Corné Van Kessel on Thursday in the GP Sven Nys in Baal, Belgium. McDonald crossed 14 seconds behind Van Kessel to take the runner-up spot with Belgian Sean De Bie (Kon. Balen B.C. V.Z.W.) third at 0:21. In the elite men’s race, Nys (Landbouwkrediet-Colnago) won in 57:51, nine seconds up on Czech Zdenek Stybar (Fidea) with Belgian Niels Albert (BKCP-Powerplus) third at 0:25.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

Dear Explainer,
A good friend of mine recently got a contract offer from a bike team. While I am happy for her, I was floored when I learned that she would only get about $5000 a year for her efforts. Five thousand dollars a year? How can they sign someone up for what has to be less than the minimum wage? Even though she’s just happy for the chance to ride, how can that even be legal?
Marianne J
Westchester, New York