Hey dudes,
Its taken me a while to get a post up saying “I’m back to Australia now!” I got back last Tuesday after a lot of flying time, and have just been settling in, getting sorted, and trying to organise things.

I am definitely missing Keally already, but luckily we have been finding time to chat on the phone each day. It is going to be hard for the next few weeks before she gets here, but it means i am already looking forward to December!

My flight out of Atlanta was at 6am, so the 3am alarm was not very welcomed, especially after getting to bed at 1am! Atlanta looks like this at night:

It took a few goes to get the photo right, because with no flash it goes all blurry!

So after nine hours of flying on three different flights, i got to LAX, at 12pm. My flight out was at 11.40pm. Great. Luckily, my good friend Marc, who i lived with for a while in 2005 when i stayed in SoCal, came and picked me up, and we headed down to Laguna Beach for the next few hours. It was my first time back there in two years, so it was actually really great to see all my friends who i met there!
Here is a picture of Marc pointing out the Laguna Beach in the background:

Our good friend Patrick, of Laguna Cyclery, who did so much to help me race in 2005 was around, and it was great to see him and his daughter Lauren again, aswell as his new son Luke! Patrick has these huge long dreadlocks all the way down his back, and it looks like little Luke will follow in his Dad’s footsteps and grow the same do! He is already sporting a few dreadlocks of his own, its so cute and cool!

SO the eleven hour lay-over in LA didn’t end up so bad, i got to catch up with some great friends, and kill some time before the sixteen hour trip home. The jet-lag got me pretty good this year, and i didn’t wear Skins on the flight back, so my legs got all puffy - i had to wear pants for three days before i gained the confidence to have people see my legs!

It is alright being back to good old Melbourne, and i am back on the bike and already able to appreciate the amazing Beach Road - we are so lucky here being able to ride in the amazing surroundings of Melbourne! What is also great, is that my long-time sponsor Fitzroy Cycles is helping me out for the Australian Summer, and have got me on a brand new Specialized S-Works, with SRAM. Wicked!

On that note, if anyone wants to buy my team bike from this season, my training bike (great condition), it is for sale! Call me or email me if you are interested, and i am sure we can make a good deal. My email is huckfactor@hotmail.com, and my phone number is 0432 213 590/9568 0060. The bike is listed on the Carnegie Cycling Club website.

I am looking forward to catching up with friends in the coming weeks, as well as getting back into some early season training.

Laters…