Countdown to Vegemite!

I still can’t believe it myself, but I’m on day five of living half way around the world in Australia. It’s crazy! One day, my team was on the brink. The next, I was invited to join Verducci/Breakaway racing—an all women’s UCI track trade team based in Pennsylvania.

One day, I didn’t make the cut for the first two world cups. The next I was on the roster for Sydney. Then fairy dust fell, and a very generous man named Doug Zegel donated his frequent flier miles towards an airline ticket for me to race in Beijing. And just like that, I’m leaving on a jetplane . . . first to Sydney, then to China to race in the Olympic test event December 3rd!

And training, of course . . . I don’t think I even managed to brush my teeth before getting this visa pic done.

Still, I must be doing something right. Thanking the karmic gods right now is what I’m doing.

So here’s the rundown. I’m living in Canberra, Australia in the coolest home with the nicest family on the planet Earth. I’m almost afraid to publish their names, for fear someone might move in on me. And, to be honest, I don’t even know their address. It’s all been pretty organic.

I’m here with my teammate Jessie Maclean. Jess is a Junior Worlds champ in the 2K pursuit from 2003. We’re in Canberra because my team manager, Gary Ryan, is from here. He and his wife Theresa (Cliff-Ryan) spend half the year in the US and half the year here, training and racing bikes and dodging winter. Theresa’s a rock start inline skater turned rock star cyclist who I got to hang out with at one of the Talent Pool trials last year. I spent the summer training with Theresa and Gary in T-Town.

I pinch myself every day that I get to train and live and eat and laugh and ride bikes with these awesome people. I’m lucky, lucky, lucky. I only wish Lath was here. He’d like how peaceful and easy going it is.

That’s all I got for now, but stay tuned, subscribe, or check back from time to time.

And now a word from our sponsors . . . Vegemite is rich in vitamin B12 and protein. Every morning, that jar calls my name. It may smell a bit like you do after 3 days of traveling, but just a smidge on toast’ll keep you going.