As the first stage of my overseas sojourn with the national cycling team comes to a close, it’s time for my second instalment to the friends and supporters of the AGF.

After an epic trip that covered Adelaide, Melbourne, Auckland and an overnight in Los Angeles, I finally arrived at my destination of Philadelphia. I had to lug around two bike bags with my new Bianchi roadie and ‘my’ Bianchi TT bike and three sets of Bouwmeester wheels, plus my new Oakley suitcase and back pack. Every time I struggled with it I just reminded myself how much easier it was than boat loading!

Head Coach Martin Barras (‘Marv’) had organised a house in the Pennsylvanian countryside – real Amish Country. During the rides that I went on with the girls (Belinda Goss, Bridie O’Donnell, Carlee Taylor, Lauren Kitchen, Davina Summers) we saw many Amish people manually ploughing their fields and we overtook families rattling along the road in a horse-and-cart.

Contrast that with our first race in downtown Washington DC! There was a big purse on offer for the 21 laps around a flat car racing circuit. With Belinda, having being diagnosed with a wrist fracture the day before, we were without our sprinter so it was attack and counter the whole race! Nothing was getting away so when it came to a bunch sprint on the last lap, we lead out Lauren and she got up for 3rd: a solid result and a good race.

A few observations about the US – there’s an American flag almost everywhere you look, if you’ve been to a Wal-Mart you’d know that it truly is a land of consumerism and from people’s teeth to the window shutters painted on houses, it is a land of appearances. But, having said that, everyone who we’ve met has been pure gold.

The Sommerville criterium was the day after Washington. It was a rectangular circuit around a town in New Jersey with one really tight corner and a bumpy home straight. Before arriving there I was imaging characters from The Sapranos coming to steal our team truck and flogging off our beautiful Bianchi’s next to cartons of cigarettes and stolen car radios. But it was actually a lovely place for a bike race.

There was a big field and attacks came from everywhere. Nothing got away for more than a lap so it was down to a bunch sprint again. On the second to last lap there had been a major crash on the back straight that we had to avoid just before that last tight corner. Girls were coming from everywhere, including me when I had (unsuccessfully) tried my luck attacking up the other side of the road. Just before the home straight there was a crash that unfortunately took out Lauren who was on Davina’s wheel as per plan. Carlee also came down in the crash. Davina, not knowing that Lauren wasn’t there, did a great lead out for a girl from another team! Lauren and Carlee are both a bit battered and bruised but otherwise fine.

The next day we flew out to Montreal where we are to race the World Cup on Saturday. Ruth Corsett and Kirsty Bruon come into the team and Davina sits this one out – it being very much more of a hill climber’s race than a sprinter’s!

I shall fill you in on the World Cup and the upcoming Tours of Montreal and Prince Edward Island next time ‘round.

 Beth Duyrea, Lauren Kitchen, Amber Halliday, Belinda Goss, Bridie O'Donnell, Davina Summers, Carlee Taylor.