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Cody the Roadie: The Cody Stevenson diary 2008
Former Team Cyclingnews.com rider Cody Stevenson heads back stateside for a second season with a clutch of other Aussies on the Jittery Joe's Continental team based in Athens, Georgia.
Follow Cody's adventures from his Southern California base to cities across the USA, and his impressions of the land of the Big Gulp, the Whopper and opportunity.
March 12, 2008
Pitching tents
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It's time for a coffee, I am pretty cracked from riding me TT bike today. (it's a mix of it being a TT bike and that you generally have to ride them hard at some point!) I can't really think straight, oh yeah, it must be Thursday, I ride my TT bike on Thursday. We have been training really well, 8.30 roll out from Papa Shirles every morning, haven't missed a day in over two months. Big hours, easy on the mind, hard on the legs! To use a Jonny Sundt-ism, "motivation is like milk, if you take it out too often it goes off!" My motivation is still fresh!
Shirvo (Matt Shriver) has left San Diego and headed back to snowy Durango. Gumbo and Daisy, (my landlords dogs, they pretty much run the show) have accepted my rent for another month and will probably invest it in some dog treats or maybe a big park where dogs can roam leash free! Papa Shirles (Neil Shirley) is tearing me up out training....maybe we should stop going on those damn hilly rides?....I think a flat coast ride and a couple of sprints for town signs would be better! He says it motivates him when he can hear me breathing through "you know where" when he is half wheeling me. So that pretty much leaves it with what I am up to. I am looking forward to camp next week. That's where I am at!
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The past month or so has been very solid, training has been great, some things outside of cycling have given me a slightly different perspective on certain aspects of life in general, must be getting old, I got glasses, (really must be getting old!) I am still grumpy in the morning. Oh, and we have done some sick skids and wheelies at them there bike races!
We went to Valley of the Sun, new team mate Ben Kneller won the TT, then was crashed out in the crit with 5 laps to go. Not good. Broken collarbone. The whole weekend was of epic proportions and will be in print at a later date. The best way to describe it is without words, just a shake of the head will do! So that was the skids I guess, crikey it better be! Papa Shirles, Shirvo and I then headed up to Santa Clarita to do some sponsorship duties with Jittery Joe's and Garneau which included chewing the fat with all and sundry and riding our bikes for an hour! Oh yeah and there was this stage race going on as well.
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Neil and I where invited to Cycling Camp San Diego, run by Robert Panzera out here in San Diego. I enjoy doing the camps, meeting new people, and telling stories about riding bikes, and the coffee shop ride to Oceanside! Shirvo was heading out of town after that so we decided to do another trip to sunny Arizona and do a small stage race out there. I managed to win the crit after Shrivo gave me a half lap lead out and Papa Shirles came 2nd in the road race the next day. I guess that was the wheelies. Not a bad weekend, and it is looking like we are all having a good build towards the races in March.
We have camp next week in Georgia and after a good early season block. I am looking forward to a change of scenery and hooking into the racing season proper.
Papa Shirles has just arrived.....that coffee ain't gonna drink itself!
So goodbye for a while, I'm off to explore!
Cody
Photography
For a thumbnail gallery of these images, click here
Images by Cody Stevenson
- The fellas: Matt, Cody, Neil
- Neil is sporting the new team shoes whilst wearing jeans!
- I make babies cry!
