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Hitting the big time: The Allan Davis Journal 2004
Welcome to the Allan Davis Journal. In 2003, the precociously talented Aussie hit the big time in his first professional year with Spain's #1 team, ONCE-Eroski. This year, "Alby" has chosen to stay with his former director, Manolo Saiz, at Liberty-Seguros, where the boy from Bundaberg will aim to develop into a potential Classics superstar.
A flying start
Home, Oiartzun, Spain, February 28, 2004
It's been a while since I last wrote... I guess the last time you heard from me, I just found out ONCE were pulling out of the sport, which wasn't the best news I've heard...
Manolo [Saiz, Liberty Seguros director, formerly of ONCE-Ed] told me to stay cool and he'd get us something by the end of the year. I trusted him chasing the sponsor and always thought he would, but at the same time, I was talking with other teams just in case, to concentrate on making sure I had a spot for next year. But I really wanted to stay with Manolo, and for him to get a sponsor like Liberty Seguros was awesome. As a rider, I feel like I can develop really well under him, and I was really hoping he could find something.
I've changed my preparation a little this year. Last year, the idea was to start the season well, and I did that, but I went into sort of a slump in the middle, and then came up again right towards the end - so I'm going to work hard on being more consistent, and not have such low lows, so to speak.
I think one of the major reasons why I had a fairly long period of poor form was due to last year being my first year as a professional, doing the bigger races and my body trying to get used to that harder style of racing. But already this year, I feel a little stronger again, so it's just a matter of developing throughout the season and getting another year of racing under the belt.
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I wasn't too disappointed with my ride at the Nationals; I did the best that I could, which is all I wanted to do on the day. Even though I came second last year, I wasn't marked as heavily as I was this year, and it was the best I could do on the day, so I walked away happy knowing that.
I felt I had a good ride at the Tour Down Under too; I felt stronger than the year before, especially on the climbs and just overall strength. For example, on the Willunga Hill stage, I went front group - I'd never been front group before since the race started! I reckon one of my team-mates at the TDU, Dave McPartland, will be a top rider one day too; he's always worked hard and he's not afraid to have a go, and now he's won a stage and is gonna be a pro [with Tenax].
The races in Mallorca, Challenge Illes Balears, were my first races in Europe with Liberty Seguros, so I really wanted to start well and get off on the right foot. I've never really been intimidated by riders like Oscar Freire and Erik Zabel, I think it's more a case of getting a little older and a little stronger. Then a few days later, my second victory was just as awesome; my team-mates did a really good job throughout the race, so it was a team victory too.
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Even though I beat some very good sprinters, I haven't really changed the way I see myself developing; I'm still concentrating on overall development. My biggest downfall is climbing - I need to improve a lot on the longer climbs to get to the finishes, so I'm going to concentrate on that to become a more consistent rider overall.
There's not one specific race I'm aiming for this year, but I'd like to be selected for one of the Grand Tours, particularly the Vuelta. But I also know in the back of my mind it's a long way off too, so I'm just trying to do things one step at a time. Next up, I'm scheduled to do Paris-Nice and Milan San-Remo. Manolo hasn't said who's going to be the leaders yet - he'll probably tell us at the race, with quite a few of the riders racing in Valencia at the moment.
I'm back with my fiancee Andrea and two year-old, Brooklyn, in the same town and same apartment as I was last year, in Oiartzun. The locals really get behind cycling around here and were watching the races in Mallorca on TV, so it was great when I came back. Andrea and Brooklyn actually came to Oiartzun before me while I was at the Tour Down Under, just to get settled in and back into the lifestyle. Brooklyn's only two years and three months old, but she's already going to pre-school and doing what three year-olds do, so she can play with other kids and learn the culture and the language; it's important for her to do that early, since we don't have any relatives over here.
Stevo [Neil Stephens] is still 100 metres down the road with his family, and is always really helpful in giving us a hand whenever we need things - I can't thank him enough. I haven't gone training with him this year, but we're definitely planning to. It's just a matter of finding the time, but we will for sure.
Talk to you soon,
Alby
