NewsPosted by Linda Villumsen Mon, February 01, 2010 10:09AMI have been really busy with my new season starting earlier than normal. The European season starts in March and this is usually my build up/training period. However, the New Zealand meets are earlier.
My first stop was the NZ Nationals in Christchurch. My first race of the season was the ‘Time Trial’ and was a real shock to my legs. I was pedalling in eleven (the largest gear) the whole way and just could not find my rhythm. I came 3rd to my surprise. The day after the ‘Time Trial’ was the ‘Road Race’. This was a really gruelling and unforgiving course. This race is a lot about tactics and we had a really good plan for the race. Unfortunately our plan wasn’t executed to perfection and I came 2nd. I am really happy with how my season has kicked off. Obviously I want to win, however these races are a good building block for my season.
Straight after the NZ Nationals I travelled to Mallorca, Spain for my team HTC Columbia’s Training/Presentation Camp. I was here for two weeks and despite the jet lag the training went really well. The weather was great considering it is winter in the northern hemisphere at present. My body adapted to the weather quickly. Although the training went really well and the weather was great, I am happy to be back and training in New Zealand.
The announcement of my decision to ride for New Zealand and the weeks leading up to the NZ Nationals was my busiest week with the media in my cycling career. The spotlight was something new to me. I am not customary to this much focus on women’s cycling. In Europe there is more focus on men’s cycling and this is an aspect of our sport I really would like to change. I was really surprised that there was coverage of the ‘Road Race’ on television. This has made me think about sport in New Zealand in general. New Zealand has a very different mentality to cycling as a sport than European countries. There are more senior riders, more competition, and you can really see the desire and determination amongst the NZ cycling community. I wish this could be replicated overseas.
Coming up are a couple of weeks of training, racing in Hamilton, and the Tour of New Zealand. The peloton will be strong at the Tour of New Zealand and I am ready for the challenge. I am looking forward to working with my team to ensure we all succeed. I will update you all daily throughout my Tour of New Zealand.
Mel x
NewsPosted by Linda Villumsen Thu, December 03, 2009 08:07AMThis update is for my Mum, who constantly reminds me that it is time to update my blog, here it is, finally
It is hard to update on old news, but after worlds in September, worlds that I never forget, normally I never tend to forget just this race because it is so important, and I remember every single Worlds race I have done (or watched from the sideline because I being crashed out just before the races) But back to Mendriso 2009. It was a dream for me, reaching the podium, it really made me believe that there is a way, that way that goes all the way to the top of the world. With the right attitude towards training, the right preperation, the right support and the right day, everything is possible. Okay, I never actually made it all the way to the top, but the Bronze medal is not so far off, and that is a result I am determined to try to make better in the next years..
The ones who have been following, knows that I have made a big change in my life. For those who have not been following, the big change is something that makes me proud inside out, I have decided to ride for New Zealand in all future.. I know it comes suddenly and as a big surprise for some people. I have had some mixed comments mostly from the Danes, some that made me happy, some that made me smile, some that made me laugh and some that nearly made me cry.. I don't ask for everyone to understand but I am just happy that in this period I have really come to understand how important my family and friends are to me..
My season of 2010 will start a bit earlier than normally as I will now have to ride the national championships already in January, that means I have started training for that. It is good to have a something to look forwards to so early in the season as it sometimes can be very hard traning for months without having any races to look forwards to, hard to explain but it is good to have a few early races just to break that off heavy season training!!
Take care
NewsPosted by Linda Villumsen Tue, August 25, 2009 10:08AMI have started on about 10 updates in the last weeks, but I never made it further than that.. Yet another time my promise of updates has not been kept, and I better stop the promises all together.
The last weeks have passed with a little trainingcamp in Livigno, I am happy to come back there everytime, feels good to be staying with the same nice people, who are always happy to share a bit of their time to let everyone feel good and as home as it gets..
The camp have left me a bit tired though. I still have another week to recover till the "Holland Ladies tour" is beginning and I will need that week for sure. It has been a while since I did my last race, that was the world cups in Sweden,so I am guessing the first few days of Holland will be a shock to my body. My team has done well in the passed weeks, Kim Anderson won the "Route De France", I can talk for everyone when I say I am trult happy for her, and I always knew she could win a race like this..
People have for a long time been talking about the world championships, they are getting closer and they are getting closer really super fast. Before we know it the worlds week has begun, so I better get going to prepare for that. It is later in the season and it is easy to lose focus but i hope I can handle just another few weeks now...
Take good care,
Linda
NewsPosted by Linda Villumsen Wed, April 01, 2009 06:57PMMy promise of more action once the season started didn't really last, I am sorry.. Will try to make a late update on all that has happened the last weeks, at least there have been more action on the bike than on this Blog..
We have started the season with a bitof a loss, as Judith Arndt unfortunately crashed during a training ride and left us short of not one but two riders! That meant that we started the season with a training camp in Toscana, Italy, with only two riders and 3 staff, we got spoiled big time and even our staff enjoying the freedom and spun the bikes for a few rides.. We then became a full team of 4 and a half(which I thought was a bit mean, but a triatlete appearently only counts a half rider) anyhow, we races to get back into racemode and to get fit for the season. For me it was a bit of a test as I wanted to do really good since I had a chance really to race a bit for myself. My teammates had to help me find a good position before the climbs, as I have a bit problems with that! The joke is I can stay in the front all the race except before those climbs where I really need to be there, so that was my mission for these days too.. I did it well with a bit of help and ended up topping the podium on the very last day of the 3, I am happy with that, but I will admit too that is was not that easy as it sounds.. We had some damn cold weather out there and at one point just before one of the starts I swear it was even snowing..
The bad weather followed us to Varese, where we raced the first world cup on sunday in what seemed to be a river falling down on us and a decrease of temperature to about 6 degrese, that was not really funny, and even the "don't worry it is the same for everybody, and they feel it worse" did not really cheer me up at all, or get me any warmer. After every down hill, I really had to fight to defreeze my frozen legs.. And for another time I did my normal race tactics which meant staying in the front all race except for on that climb where all the action happened and the first 5 riders of the day got away.. my plan B was to wait someone to chase on the downhills, but that did also not happen. All the other downhills were raced mad, and this one everyone decided to be careful, and as my legs where one block of ice I had to just sit there and wait for the missery to end, which it finally did and lucky the drive home was not so long..
This weekend coming up the trip goes to Belgium, more exact Vlaanderen world cup, it is always something special racing a "Mensrace" where there is more than 5 people looking at our presentation and what seems like thousands of people along the way to the finish.. We will be a full team again, as some of the girls are headingback from America, we will be greatful to have them back..
take care
Linda
NewsPosted by Linda Villumsen Mon, February 23, 2009 09:54AMAnother thing just came into my mind. This weekend also gave me a bit of fun as I had a journalist from Danish TV2 sport with me training. Have to admit that she did pretty well, considering it was her first time ever on a race-bike and in the proper kit. Aswell we had a 2degreese warm day and it all did not really fall into her taste as she decided after 10min to make a break and try get warm, she did the oposite of our practise and fell on the ground all stuck to the bike, we had cameraes on the bike so I am looking forwards watching this in the saturday sport(sorry that might sound a bit mean).. When we reached the 20min mark, the questions came less, as she had gotten too cold to ask, a good insight in our sport, when she kept asking, "so how can you enjoy this, and what makes this fun and enjoyable?" well that is what I keep asking myself when I am packed like a michelling everyday...
NewsPosted by Linda Villumsen Mon, February 23, 2009 09:46AMHave me excused for my lack of writing. The reason for this might just be that nothng much is happening, but as usual I find myself rushing through a day I wished had more than 24h.
I am right now in Denmark, only for a short period of time.. Simply it is not the most funny place to train at this moment, where it seems the sun peaks out if lucky 1 time a week and where a 5h ride seems like 10h becasue the wind somehow always comes from the front.. Yesterday I went with a sunday group of cyclist from one of my local bike shops, Per P cykler, but it was not like a sunday ride to me as I would have liked a bit of chat and happy days through the ride it was more like a constant 3h chain/echelons with me trying to talk through my huffing and puffing answering to the questions. I would sort of get a question or ask a question, then we moved in the chain/echelon and I got to answer the next time I was sitting next to the same person. On top of that fun we had a massive head wind, that again seemed to be there for far more than half the ride. Despite the weather conditions here all is good, I feel recovered from my crash and hope now I get a better start on the European season..
Take good care..
NewsPosted by Linda Villumsen Thu, February 12, 2009 10:36AMTime for a bit of an update! It will be a fast one as I am itching to go for a ride..
Our first race started a bit hectic, or just a bit unlucky? We all met up in Frankfurt, all packed and ready to head off towards Qatar. Then we discovered we actually did not have to fly out till the next day and had to find a place to stay over night. Despite the longer travel the spirit was still high, maybe because we stayed in a nice hotel with a good spa, or maybe just because as soon as we made it to Qatar we seemed to have forgotten about the trouble and just enjoyed living life like the rich and famous!
My beginning didn't start that good at all. First some French girl decided to slam into my rear wheel and broke it during he neutral, so all the peleton had to wait for me to come back:-) then I was unlucky to crash, and once I came back to a group of riders it has already split and I decided just to make it an easy day.. The last two days I felt better and better, but have to admit that it just was not my race at all and now I guess I have to start training a bit again!!
NewsPosted by Linda Villumsen Sat, January 10, 2009 10:24PMA bit of spare time on an "easy" day and I have decided to spend it wisely with a little update..
The Mallorca camp took off the 6th of January for most of the team. I should have been here too but due to the strange weather this winter, my plans were changed a bit and after a 30 hour travel to Mallorca it already felt like I had been participating not only in a training camp but a full ten-day stage race..
No time to sleep it out though. Time passes fast and we have had a lot to do, after today where we had the big team presentation we will get a bit more time just for training, which will be good.
The team is very small this time, as we have some riders of the mens team staying in Australia for Tour Down Under, some in California for the Tour and then we have a few of the women riders all over too, mainly also for the Tour and racing in California I guess. But even the team is small we are enjoying the time we get to train here. Like I wrote before today was going to be a bit of a day off for many riders, my day didn't seem to be so easy though as I started at 6am in the gym, The team presentation started at around 10 and after that there was time for interviews and pics, which for some guys is very busy but the rest of us made none or 1 single interview and met up to kill time till lunch was served and then thereafter we did a "spin" for a few hours. The easy part of the easy day went away when the boys got excided about there new TT bikes and kept the pace so high that when us girls hit the front we could stay there for about half a minut.. During the ride there was a lot of pictures taken, a few darering guys took the cold plunge in our new white pants after the ride and that was the end of the media day..
One long day made short, and I am off again..
