A new chapter

Now that Track Worlds are over, this blog will revert to a Canberra based Para Cycling updating tool with an occasional inclusion from further afield no doubt!

So what do all aspiring Paralympic cyclists do after a long hot summer working towards World Championship medals? Sleep in every morning for a week?  Take a well earned break on a tropical island? Sit back and catch up on a month's worth of TV, DVDs or emails?

No, in fact none of these. Well not the Canberra contingent anyway.  Because of the timing of various championships, the focus turns immediately to road racing.  In addition to getting back into their full time day jobs, everyone is straight into training for the Australian Para Road Championships in Queensland on 9-10 April, then the following weekend, the Oceania Para Road Championships. These championships are very important because they're an essential stepping stone to a place at the Road World Championships a few short months away in Denmark (in September).

The timing is so tight, with only three weeks to find their "road legs", Brandie, Kerry and Sue all raced last weekend in local club competition. I can't say there was immediate success but the outing certainly helped remove the last vestiges of jet lag and provided a wake up call to the bodies that yes, in fact track season is over and now you no longer have to keep pedalling all the time you're moving like you do on a fixed wheel track bike!

At the Road Championships next month, the track trio will be joined by Jing, who is C2 above knee amputee and Richo, who is transferring from wheelchair racing to hand cycling, so the ACT will be well represented.

Stay tuned for more progress reports and results from various events. Can't guarantee as regular blogging as the last three weeks, but hopefully regular enough to sustain interest!