Well, now in Thonon-Les-Bains, France – just 45 kilometers from Aigle, Switzerland. After a bit of driving on Thursday night and then some more today we made it to Aigle at around 2:00.

First stop was a bicycle store as I had a problem with my rear brake. Lucked out and found an excellent bike store called Dom Cycles and was treated to some amazing service by Stefan. Stefan fixed the brake problem, straightened my derailleur hangar, checked out my shifting, took my rear wheel apart and told me that the free hub was almost “kaput”, double-checked that I put the stem together properly and then did the same for my other bike. So both bikes are now in top condition with everything working properly. He definitely does not like the “lawyer tabs” on my front forks and offered to shave them off. Stefan showed me a special skewer nut that you can use if you don’t have the lawyer tabs – it still gives the security of the lawyer tabs but makes it easier to do wheel changes – though they don’t work well for cycle-cross (these skewer nuts were invented in France).

Got out for a great 60 minute ride today. Started at the UCI headquarters and jumped on some pretty awesome bicycle paths. The bicycle path system is comparable to that of the one in Holland. Had a great ride along a river with the mountains looming on either side. (Took some photos that I’ll post with the next post.) Took a quick look at the course – from what I can see it is going to be very challenging. Lots of off-camber corners/climbs. We ride on the BMX track over a part of the pump track. The elevation is pretty flat but there are very steep ups and downs (but short). Speed, acceleration and keeping a high cadence will be critical. It is super dry right now and I’m hoping it stays that way. I did see some guys running some of the cambered corner/climbs – hard to know what to do.

Planning on going to the course a bit early tomorrow so I can practice the key technical sections when it is not super busy. Took a poke around the UCI headquarters as well – the indoor velodrome is pretty swank. Lots going on with the velodrome, BMX course, cyclo-cross course, and the bicycle paths just behind it.

We are stopped for the night in the RV in a public parking lot with two other RVs. So far the RV is working out well. Plenty of space and it is super convenient to not have to worry about finding restaurants or hotels. Tomorrow night we’re staying in an Ibis hotel in Thonon-Les-Bains.

I’m feeling pretty good. The legs felt good today – I didn’t push it but I did a few accelerations to test out my body. So far so good. I think my body is responding to the iron infusions I had and the rest has helped as well.

Well, that’s it for now. (Sorry for the delay in posting but there is no free WiFi to be had and the SIM card I bought only works in the iPhone and not in my iPad. So you’ll get a bunch of posts at once – since we have WiFi at our hotel on Saturday… Again it might be a delay for a race report – but I’ll get Marc to post something on Facebook for me!)

Alright, time to shut this down and read a bit. Thanks again for all the encouragement and supportive emails. Looking forward to the race on on Sunday.

Just sitting here in the Frankfurt airport getting my bearings and waiting for my dad. Pretty easy flight. Had an entire row to myself so no complaints here. Tried to sleep but I find the Ottawa to Frankfurt a tough one to get any quality sleep on since you arrive basically at 12:30 a.m.

Nonetheless, the flight was uneventful. As usual I was tempted by the breakfast muffin. And as usual the muffin looked better than it tasted. Luckily I had a solid stash of Clif C bars in my carry-on so I didn’t have to soldier on with the muffin of unknown origins or flavor….

Bit chilly here in Frankfurt at 7:30 a.m. Around two degrees Celsius…

Just sitting here in the airport killing time. We had thought about going into Frankfurt but managing the train/bus combo is a bit much right now. So now we’re just kicking back for a bit. We can pick up the RV at 2:00 and then we’re hitting the open road, destination somewhere close to Thonon-Les-Bains, France. This is where we’re staying the night before the World Cup so to minimize too much travel/driving we’re hoping to get close to there today. Depends on fatigue, timing and driving conditions really.

Good news is that both of my bikes made it. Quite refreshing to see them waiting for me actually. None of that standing around and desperately hoping that the bikes magically appear from behind some big black locked door.

Not sure when I’ll get to post this. Hoping to post it tonight sometime. Definitely have to say I’m a fan of the iPad. I’ve got a handy little bluetooth keyboard which makes typing a breeze. Alright, next update will be tonight sometime I hope.

Pretty excited to be here. A little freaked out. I forget how big the World Cups are until I’m really close to racing one. But I’ve done it before and I know the drill. Go as hard as I can for 40 minutes.

Dudes, I’m feeling like I’m just so close. On the cusp of being back to my old self. Really only time will tell. Time to let my body fully recover and time to get some intensity into my legs and lungs.

On Wednesday I went for my second iron infusion. I have to say I was pretty darn wiped out for the day. No riding and truthfully hardly any moving was done! My legs felt a bit tight from Tuesday’s ride and I really just craved sleep. But Thursday was a brand new day. Still some lingering tightness in the quads but generally higher on the energy scale. So I did what any of you would have done…

I went for a ride. A great on-road/off-road ride. Just me my bike and the trusty Michelin Jets. I discovered more new trails, pedaled through some crazy water, and simply enjoyed being able to pedal and sing out loud at the same time. Yes, sing out loud… A few weeks ago, I could either pedal or sing/talk – but not both at the same time. So I chalk my singing capabilities to be a sign of improvement.

Looking forward to riding with the speedy young guns and fast and crafty less young gun tonight. I’m not expecting miracles from my body, rather just a chance to get out and have some fun. Racing this weekend in Brockville. Cool. Racing next Sunday in Aigle, Switzerland. Coolio.

Received an awesome box of goodies today. Many many thanks to Clif Bar for the support. The living room is full of pretty much every Clif Bar product there is. Looking forward to munching a cherry pomegranate Clif C bar and to popping some protein-packed Clif Shot Roks.

I can say that my season really only happens thanks to the generous support of my sponsors. And yes, I do write this a lot, but this is simply because it is true. I’m looking forward to getting back out on the cyclo-cross circuit and riding as I know I can. This is the best way for me to say thank-you to you, to Marc and to my sponsors for the support and encouragement.

Here are some words that I’m using as mottos these days:
One Life
Like What You Do
Do What You Like
I Can And I Will