Sports-Pictorial.com
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Road
Trip!
Vaughn’s
Excellent
Adventure
at
the
Volvo-Cannondale
Training
Camp
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Friday
continued....
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This
team
is
incredible.
Even
if
you
thought
that
as
an
old
road
rider
(like
me)
you
weren’t
much
into
mtn
biking,
you
would
be
really
impressed
by
the
skill
and
endurance
of
these
riders.
And
you
might
be
surprised
to
learn
that
these
mtn
bike
pros
have
an
incredibly
high
regard
for
the
ability
and
skill
of
pro
road
racers.
My
first
impression
of
these
riders
is
how
incredibly
fit
they
are,
even
at
the
beginning
of
the
season.
This
is
apparent
just
by
looking
at
them.
Not
surprisingly,
each
member
of
the
team
displayed
the
class
of
the
pros
they
are
by
politely
and
patiently
answering
the
questions
of
the
journalists
present.
I
have
to
admit,
I
was
pretty
awestruck
sitting
around
with
these
guys,
and
so
I
did
not
conduct
formal
interviews
with
them.
Instead,
I
hung
out
and
chatted
informally
with
them.
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Stephanie
the
photographer
getting
a
group
shot.
Atop
the
fence,
L
to
R:
Tinker,
Christoph,
Anne-Caroline,
Lance
Seated,
L
to
R:
Tibo,
Craig
(Bike
&
Bean),
Cedric,
Kashi
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In
the
afternoon
I
had
an
opportunity
to
talk
with
a
number
of
people.
Jude
Monica
of
Magura
Brakes
Jude
is
a
pro
bike
mechanic
from
Magura
Brakes
who
assists
V-C
with
their
Magura
disc
brakes
at
races.
We
discussed
the
possibility
of
disc
brakes
for
road
bikes
and
Jude
told
me
the
major
obstacle
was
weight...but
Magura
is
working
on
development
of
a
disc
brake
for
the
road
and
Jude
said
would
keep
us
up
to
date.
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Eric
Wallace,
Team
Manager
of
the
Volvo-Cannondale
Team
Eric
recently
moved
from
event
management
into
the
team
manager
position,
and
he
says
it
is
his
dream
job.
Eric
has
16
years
of
racing
road,
mountain
and
cyclocross
under
his
belt,
and
he
is
also
an
announcer
for
major
events
such
as
Super
Cup
Cyclo-Cross,
Pedros
Festivals,
24
Hour
World
Championships.
Many
of
you
in
the
US
would
know
him
from
these
events.
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Thibaut
Marriaux
(Tibo)
Friday
afternoon
I
got
to
meet
with
Tibo,
the
newest
addition
to
the
V-C
team
from
France,
competing
in
observed
trials.
Tibo
gave
me
a
short
demonstration
of
his
skill
by
leaping
to
the
top
of
a
meter-tall
boulder
quicker
than
I
could
even
see
what
he
did,
and
then
launching
himself
and
his
bike
six
feet
from
the
boulder.
The
man
is
a
magician.
I
asked
him
to
do
it
again
so
I
could
get
a
photo
–
I’m
afraid
that's
the
only
way
I
could
begin
to
figure
out
how
he
did
it.
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Tibo
and
Eric
Wallace
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Tibo
and
the
boulder |
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Tibo
(Thibaut
Marriaux)
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Tinker
Juarez
Tinker
heads
the
2001
NORBA
National
24
hour
solo
category
and
is
a
recent
inductee
in
the
Mountain
Bike
Hall
of
Fame.
Chatting
with
Tinker
I
was
amazed
by
his
humility,
such
as
when
he
mentioned
he
thanks
God
for
the
blessing
of
being
able
to
compete
at
this
level
at
his
age.
And
that
hopes
he
will
continue
to
compete
at
the
highest
level
in
the
future.
He
won
his
fourth
NORBA
Champion’s
jersey
by
winning
the
inaugural
24
hr.
National
championship,
racing
216
miles
with
more
than
25,000
feet
of
climbing
at
elevations
above
9,000
ft.
Remember,
this
is
on
the
dirt
track,
not
the
road.
An
astounding
feat
for
a
20
year
old,
but
much
more
impressive
for
a
man
of
41.
Recently
at
the
24
Hours
of
Old
Pueblo,
Tinker
soloed
to
a
win
covering
almost
300
miles.
Tinker
is
an
inspiration
for
riders
in
the
over-40
years
class,
and
my
nominee
for
Endurance
Superman
of
the
Year.
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Anne-Caroline
Chausson
from
Vars,
France
Downhill
and
dual
rider;
ten-time
World
Champion
–
4
times
as
a
Jr.
and
7
times
as
a
Pro.
Miss
Chausson,
2001
World
Champion
in
Downhill
and
Dual,
seems
shy
at
first,
but
when
asked
how
she
would
stay
motivated
for
the
new
years
simply
stated
that
when
someone
challenges
her,
she
is
motivated
to
work
harder
to
win...the
true
mark
of
a
champion.
Never
content
with
second…
driven
to
win.
Anne
Caroline
is
a
remarkable
and
lovely
Champion
who
is
looking
forward
to
the
competing
in
the
new
4X
event
in
the
new
year.
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Cedric
Gracia
from
Pau,
France;
racing
in
the
disciplines
of
Downhill
and
Dual.
Cedric
has
a
world
class
sense
of
humor
and
he
kept
everyone
around
him
laughing
and
smiling
throughout
the
camp.
Cedric
has
the
relaxed
confidence
of
a
rider
who
could
win
any
race
he
enters.
This
charming
and
funny
gentleman
will
certainly
add
to
his
impressive
palmares
this
year
and
challenge
the
competition
at
the
highest
level.
To
learn
more
about
this
world
class
cyclist
go
to
his
website.
Don’t
miss
the
photo
gallery.
Visit
his
site
here:
http://www.cedricgracia.com/
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Christoph
Sauser
from
Windigen,
Switzerland
Another
Class
Cross
Country
rider
we
will
surely
see
more
of
this
year.
You
should
visit
Christoph’s
web
site.
The
site
has
a
great
Biography
(would
you
believe
a
resting
heart
rate
of
36
bpm!!),
lots
of
photos
in
the
gallery
and
don’t
miss
his
diary,
where
Christoph
keeps
you
upto
date
on
his
race
experiences
and
great
insights
on
how
his
season
is
going.
http://www.sauserwind.com/
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Kashi
Leuchs
from
New
Zealand
Kashi
started
out
on
the
road
and
had
exceptional
results
as
a
Jr.
rider
and
then
started
racing
Mtn
bike.
As
a
Jr.
rider
he
competed
in
the
New
Zealand
Road,
Track
and
Mtn
bike
competitions.
His
first
year
as
a
senior
(1997)
he
was
rated
62nd
in
the
World
Cup
overall,
and
in
2001
Kashi
was
rated
8th
in
the
World
Cup
Overall.
Steady
progress
assures
us
that
Kashi
is
the
man
to
watch
this
year
as
he
rides
with
his
outstanding
team
mates
Christoph
Sauser
and
Tinker
Juarez
for
top
honors
in
the
Cross
Country
World
Cup.
Be
sure
to
check
out
Kashi’s
website,
and
check
his
Results
and
Reports
section
for
some
very
well
written
diaries
of
his
races.
http://www.kashileuchs.com/
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Lance
Trappe
from
Budd
Lake,
New
Jersey
USA
Lance
rides
Observed
Trials.
Entering
Mtn
Bike
competition
as
a
Jr
he
has
improved
his
standings
each
year.
What
Lance
can
do
with
a
bike
has
got
to
be
seen
to
believed.
Just
watching
him
goof
around
on
a
Cannondale
Scalpel
(which
is
not
the
bike
he
uses
for
Trials)
made
me
want
to
see
him
ride
in
an
exhibition
or
competition.
I
understand
that
Lance
and
Tibo
will
be
doing
exhibitions
in
the
US
and
Europe,
as
soon
as
we
get
their
schedule
we
will
post
it.
You
will
not
want
to
miss
a
demonstration
by
either
of
these
talented
bike
magicians.
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| Friday
Evening
Friday
evening
the
Volvo
rep
gave
a
presentation
on
the
new
2003
Volvo
4WD
SUV,
which
will
be
a
dream
vehicle
for
riders,
with
advanced
safety
features
including
anti-roll
compensation,
air
bags
that
protect
all
the
passengers
and
a
reinforced
roof.
When
I
think
of
Volvo
I
always
remember
the
TV
advertisement
from
the
1950’s
where
a
Volvo
was
rolled
down
a
hill,
then
it
was
righted
and
driven
away,
a
few
dents
but
the
roof
never
caved
in.
Soon,
through
the
partnership
with
Cannondale,
you
will
be
able
to
go
to
some
of
the
dealerships
to
see
and
test
ride
all
the
Cannondale
bike
line.
We
will
let
you
know
when
Volvo
Cannondale
starts
so
you
can
be
the
first
to
present
yourselves
to
take
a
spin
on
the
Jekyl,
Scalpel,
Gemini
and
state
of
the
art
CAAD
7.
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Montgomery
of
Cannondale
gave
a
presentation
of
the
new
line
of
bikes,
including
the
CAAD
7
and
the
wind
tunnel
tests
they
did
with
Simoni
of
Saeco-Cannondale
in
Italy
this
year.
They
found
that
if
he
changed
his
position
he
could
increase
his
power,
and
cut
1:43
from
his
time
trial.
This
closes
the
gap
between
Simoni
and
Armstrong
in
the
ITT.
Apparently
it
hasn’t
hurt
Di
Luca
either,
as
he
has
had
a
strong
start
with
several
victories
in
the
beginning
of
the
season.
The
new
CAAD7
uses
the
new
Optimo
aluminum
tubing
developed
in
conjunction
with
Alcoa,
which
made
it
possible
to
make
an
incredibly
strong
and
light
frame.
This
road
bike,
fully
outfitted,
weighs
a
mere
16.5
pounds.
I
was
personally
impressed
by
the
quality
of
the
finish
on
the
frame
because
all
of
the
joints
are
perfectly
smooth,
unlike
some
bikes
welding
(that
looks
like
I
might
have
welded
it).
The
engineering
and
quality
show
through.
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also
explained
their
technological
development
for
their
bikes.
The
engineers
and
product
development
team
come
up
with
ideas,
they
build
prototypes,
the
prototypes
are
tested
by
the
pro
riders
to
get
their
input,
then
the
data
goes
back
to
the
engineers
to
fine-tune
the
design.
Then
it's
back
to
the
lab
for
strength
and
fatigue
testing.
New
prototypes
are
designed
off
the
testing,
then
it's
back
to
the
riders
to
road
test.
This
cycle
is
done
over
and
again
until
the
riders,
technicians
and
designers
are
satisfied
they
have
achieved
their
goal
of
creating
the
best
bike
possible.
Each
of
these
steps
are
part
of
an
evolutionary
process
to
build
a
better
quality
bicycle.
A
report
on
the
CAAD
7
will
be
forthcoing
with
some
of
the
engineering
data
and
testing
that
was
done.
But
Cannondale’s
overall
strategy
is
that
by
testing
and
incremental
improvements
they
evolve
the
highest
performance
bikes
for
Road,
Mtn,
BMX
or
just
getting
around
town.
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also
showed
the
newest
models
of
the
Jekyll
and
the
Scalpel
mtn
bike
models,
that
have
also
undergone
the
same
type
of
evolutionary
development.
We’ll
be
doing
more
reporting
on
the
Cannondale
bike
development
process
in
the
future.
You
might
say
that
the
Cannondale
motto
might
be
best
expressed
as
"technical
evolution
in
motion."
That’s
about
it
for
Friday
night,
except
we
all
went
to
the
bar.
The
riders
didn’t
spend
very
much
time
there,
of
course.
I
did
have
a
nice
chat
with
Scott
Montgomery
of
Cannondale
discussing
Saeco/Cannondale’s
strategy
for
Simoni
to
defend
the
Maglia
Rosa
as
he
attempts
to
win
the
Giro
this
season.
I
expressed
the
disappointment
many
of
the
Daily
Peloton
readers
have
expressed
on
the
message
board
regarding
Simoni/Saeco
not
being
guaranteed
a
slot
in
the
the
Tour
de
France.
(In
the
past
the
Team
of
the
winner
of
the
Giro
was
always
invited
to
the
Tour.)
This
is
especially
after
Lance
Armstrong
stated
earlier
this
year
that
Simoni
could
be
his
strongest
threat
as
he
goes
for
his
fourth
win.
I
told
Scott
that
I
felt
Lance
was
sending
a
message
to
the
Tour
organisers
that
Saeco/Cannondale
and
Simoni
should
be
given
a
berth
in
the
Tour.
A
mark
of
a
true
Champion
to
want
to
face
the
toughest
competion.
It
is
always
a
disappointment
to
me
that
the
TdF
organisers
do
not
attempt
to
get
all
the
top
competitors
on
the
starting
line,
and
I
am
sure
it
is
a
disappointment
as
well
to
the
Pro
Riders,
Teams
and
Sponsors
who
have
invested
their
time,
money
and
effort
to
only
sit
out
the
premiere
event
of
the
racing
season.
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(c)
2002
by
Daily
Peloton.
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