Right now I am in spain training with my team Cofidis.  Things are going well, apart from a few hemmys I have popped out due to the suffering I have done over these god forsaken mountains!

My off season was so so.  Nothing great, did a bit of training, rode a few crits but generally I just lived the life of a normal human being (and loved it!). It was a good break, but now I am back in business and concentrating on the huge year that I have ahead of me.

Spain is unreal.  Everything is so cheap, the terrain and the weather is superb.  At the moment we are in the middle of winter and we are training in shorts and tops.  Its been 20 degrees, blue skys most days so I can see why 70% of the pro peleton either live here or spend dec/jan training here.  We have done some killer rides over some big ass mountains and my ribs are starting to re-appear (because the disappeared over christmas!) and the form is coming along nicely so I am happy.

We have a few problems concerning our team at the moment.  Most of you would have already read about it on the net.  I just want to say that the riders in question are not in our team now.  They both rode for us last year but never got re contracted, as they were not getting the results.  Our teams name is being dragged through the mud over this.  Our team doc had his family home raided, and also our headquarters too.  The team is gutted over what has happened, moreso the fact that they are not in our team anymore but in the headlines read �cofidis raided� etc.  so there you have it.

Anyway, I have just got a hold of my program for the year ahead. I start off in Marseillse, a one day race in France on Feb 3.  Then I go to the Tour of the Med (ouch!), then on to Haut Var, Classic Haribo and Het Volk.  I'll be riding the Sydney track world cup this year also, then will stay in Australia for the worlds.