The early season was a busy time for Bissell’s Head Mechanic Ben Oliver, known as BenO. In January, the team raced in the Tour de San Luis in Argentina followed by a  week long training camp which left him 10 days to get ready for the Amgen Tour of California working with the other team mechanic Jim Oliver.

“So it was just 10 days and we had some stuff show up late and I was building TT bikes that week and just kind of praying to the god of products.”

Every year, brand new equipment is received and bikes that fit each rider’s specification must be built. For the race in California, a total of 20 Pinarello Prince were built for the 8 riders on the roster.

“Every rider has two road bikes, a race bike and a home bike,  and fourteen time trial bikes in total. So for this race, there are 8 guys, 8 road bikes, 8 TT bikes and 4 spares.”

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BMC’s Jeff Louder is no stranger to breakaways, in fact he is an artist at the art of getting into a long move. Twice – so far – at the Amgen Tour of California, the 31-year old American has been in two long breaks for an estimated 178 kilometers, in the wind showing off his team colors. Louder was voted the overall Most Aggressive Rider at the 2008 Tour of Missouri for his style of racing.

Jeff Louder drives the break under dismal conditions.

The best chances at a result, unless riding for a GC spot or a sprint finish is the breakaway.

“You can follow all day and still get fortieth place or get dropped and at least if you’re in the front people come and talk to you and the point of a bike team is to get recognition and be exposed and there’s more that one way to do that at a bike race. I think that being in a breakaway is a great way to get publicity and it raises the odds for a good result. A lot of the best results I’ve ever had have come from putting myself out there and taking risks. Nothing ventured and nothing gained.”

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A soigneur is a massage therapist, and team assistant that is responsible for feeding, clothing, and escorting the riders. That translates to long days taking care of the team mostly for the love of the sport.

Australian Jonathan Coulter, known as Jono is the lead soigneur for the Bissell Team. A racer in how own right, Jono is joined by Lani Galyer, a freelance massage therapist to take care of the riders at the Tour of California.

Take me through the routine in the morning.

Jono: On a tour like this when the stages start between 10am to noon, I get up just before 7am and make sure between Lani and myself that the breakfast is all set up for the riders and then a lot of a preparation for the next day is done at night time so in the morning it’s just making sure that everything is sorted. We have other staff that do the transfer so they collect the luggage of the riders. For us in the morning, it’s pretty straightforward of loading the things that we need for that day into the car. Starting at 7 in the morning.

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Photo by Ken Conley

By Stephanie Gutowski

With much of the media focus squarely on the return of Lance Armstrong (Astana) and Floyd Landis (Ouch), Levi Leipheimer (Astana) has been quietly setting his eyes on an Amgen Tour of California three-peat.

“I’ve won the race for the last two years so it’s really no question that I am a favorite for the race,” stated Leipheimer at the Santa Rosa press conference last week. “There are other riders on the team who can win and you never know what can happen in a race. A breakaway can go up the road that has a team mate of mine in it and if it’s a combination that we feel that he’s the best rider in that breakaway, that he has the best chance to win and no one else chases it down, then that breakaway can go on, take a bunch of time and a team mate of mine can go on and win the race, that’s always part of cycling that’s the sport. You can’t always say that it has to be this person, but I will have every chance and every bit if support from the team to win again, for sure.”

“It’s (Armstrong’s return) certainly gained a lot of media attention, Lance has gained a lot of media attention and that’s all positive,” continued Leipheimer. “I think that he’s increased the pie of cycling media not necessarily taking any away from anyone or another team or whatever. It’s just that cycling is covered more so and there’s nothing wrong with that. We need that, it’s tough times and it’s great for our sponsors, it’s great for our team. I mean it couldn’t be any better, he’s such a positive influence on the team, like I’ve said before you got some of the best professionals in the world, you’ve got Alberto, Lance, Chris Horner, just to name three and it sets an example for the rest of the team, it brings that level of professionalism up for the rest of the team.”

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Coming into the race as a bit of an unknown quality,  Team Type 1 is confident that their name and mission will be well known by the end of the Tour of California.   For the first time ever, two riders with Type 1 diabetes - American Phil Southerland and Australian Fabio Calabria - will be racing in the nine-day race. In its second year of existence, Team Type 1 continues on its mission to instill hope and inspiration for people around the world affected by diabetes.

Fabio Calabria is ready for the big race

“It’s going to be hard but I am very excited about doing it. I think it’s a good opportunity for this team to step up and show everyone in the world who we are and that we are a strong team.” said 21-year old Calabria.

“I’ve never raced at that level and caliber. My teammates that have done the Giro d’Italia, the Tour de France have told me how hard of a race this is going to be so I don’t know but I feel that I’ve done the training.” said Southerland.

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Sacramento, Calif. — Fans who turn out to show their support for Team Type 1 at Saturday’s prologue time trial of the Amgen Tour of California can win free souvenirs as part of the team’s “Signs for Sacramento” contest.

Representatives of Team Type 1 will be judging posters, banners and signs along the 2.4-mile (3.8 km) route that showcases the State Capitol, the Capitol Mall area and the well-known local Tower Bridge. The creators of the most original signs cheering on Team Type 1 will be awarded hats, T-shirts, socks and other official team memorabilia.

To be eligible to win, the sign, banner or poster must feature the words “Team Type 1.” Judging will begin a half-hour before the first rider heads down the start ramp (1:30 p.m.) through the conclusion of the prologue (approximately 4 p.m.).

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With the first race of the season already handily in their back pockets, the BMC Racing Team is putting on the finishing touches of preparation for the 2009 Amgen Tour of California. This year’s race roster has been touted as perhaps the greatest list of professionals ever to compete on American soil.

Even if that is a debatable point, there is no question that the 2009 edition will boast the best field ever for the California stage race. “While we can’t predict who will win the race, I can guarantee this will be the hardest fought race ever in California,” BMC General Manager Gavin Chilcott said.

Anxious to harvest the good form from a winter’s training

Having been one of BMC’s heroes in the 2008 Tour of California, Scott Nydam is looking forward to seeing how much he has improved from a year ago. “This time of year is always exciting because I feel like I’m sitting on a harvest and waiting to see what I can reap,” Nydam explained. “The team’s expectations of me are getting larger which is good because they parallel my own ambitions and goals.” BMC has made no secret of the fact that this year, they have raised the bar of their own expectations and anything less than a top 10 placing will be below par. “As with all the races we will be doing this year, whatever happens, we want to be in the top 10,” Directeur Sportif John Lelangue reiterated. “We will hold back from being quite as aggressive at the beginning of the stages and rather save the guys for the decisive portions later in the stages.”

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By Lyne Lamoureux

Time trial, finishing speed and aggressivity – the name of the game for the Bissell Pro Cycling team for the 2009 Amgen Tour of California.

We met with the squad during the training camp in Santa Rosa where the team, under the leadership of Team Manager Glen Mitchell and new Team Director Eric Wohlberg, were putting the finishing touches to its preparation for the big race. Seven of the eight names on the California roster had already raced either in New Zealand or South America to get their racing legs and get rid of the first race of the season jitters.

The team will be led by time trial specialists Ben Jacques-Maynes, who placed in the top 10 in the time trial for two consecutive years, and Tom Zirbel, who placed second at the US Pro Time Trial Championship in 2008.

“We’re definitely going to go all guns blazing in the prologue and then it will probably take one or two stages to shake out who’s doing what and then who’s aiming for what with every team but then after that, we definitely will be targeting a few stages. Obviously trying to save Ben and Tom a little bit for the time trial,” said Mitchell.

Returning from the Tour de San Luis in Argentina, B. Jacques-Maynes, who finished eight overall, has engaged in specific training in order to reach his goal of “stepping it up from previous years.”

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