Hi All

Tim here. Just a quick message from London.

All has been going well over the last month or so of our prep and we are now looking forward to competition starting on the 2nd Aug with the TP and continuing on through for 4 days.

I was lucky enough to get a last minute ticket to the opening ceremony and it was truely amazing. So much going on that it couldnt all be put on TV but seeing it live was mindblowing. We could only stay for the first part of it (through until the march in of the countries) so that we could get back and get a decent sleep before the morning track session today, but very glad I took up the opportunity.

Sorry I dont have any pics at the moment. Its all pretty tight within the team for posting to Social Media, so that will have to wait until the end of the Games.

All the best to you all out there.

Catch up soon

TC

My best birthday present ever

For my birthday mum and dad said I could start horse riding.
Today I had my first lesson.
I need to do a few one on one lessons before I join a group so I understand the basics first.
Lucky Jack got to join in today too.

We had the best time. Our instructor spoke to us in both French and English.

I cant wait till next week!!!

From Jessica.

Hi De Hi, French camping styles.

After a week on the road the kids and I have returned to Leysin and back into a little routine.

Since leaving Bordeaux we have explored a little more of central France and got into the swing  of camping life, or should I say Hi De Hi.
As always our destination was left to the very last minute...in the Bordeaux hotel car park while we could still reach their wifi. Tim plucked a camp ground out of mid air for us to aim for. And as always he came through with  the goods.
Three swimming pools, a kids club type programme and loads of space, oh and of course the price was right.
With plenty to explore in the region we had loads of options to keep ourselves amused.

Each morning started out with aqua aerobics at 10. Well for the kids anyway. The pool was not exactly warm. It seemed to me that there was a set criteria for these aqua sessions too...a) you had to be under 10 years of age, or b) were rather well endowed in the chest department, to aid in flotation and be knocking on 60. Neither which I fit, so I played it safe and took up the role of life guard instead.
After a long and leisurely lunch we would head for the hills and hunt out the stunning chateaux. Most being from the 1200's or earlier and in differing states of renovation and ruin.

Boys and weapons...go figure.

I am picking this stained glass window is not an original.

Not the best shot, but trying to show the thickness of the castle walls. Not really the best spot for breaking and entering.

Another afternoon expeditions was to Chateau de Chazeron.

We learnt quite a bit on this tour as we managed to link up with a french guide.

One of Jacks favourites were why the stone steps going up to the sleeping quarters were so steep.

The reason being that knights in armour would really struggle to bend at the knee to ascend the stairs to attack while the Lords slept.

It was also used as a prison in the second world war

We wereled down a few secret passages and hidden rooms accessed by pulling or twisting the torch stands. The kids thought it was extreemly ceative for 800 odd years ago.

 And as often is the case there was a doomed love story to keep the girls happy. Where the Lord was forced to marry someone he didn't love to seal family ties, they had six daughters together. He was secretly in love with a servant woman and they ended up having a boy...our of wedlock, shock horror! He wanted to legalise the bastard son to carry on the family name and thus causing a few tense family meals in the grand hall. He was eventually formalised and given a family crest with the same design as his fathers but of different colour to show the world he was not of pure blood. 

The evolution of the castle..over 500 years

Check out the size of the kitchen fire place. If only these walls could talk.

Not a bad view really.

The kids have been super amazing at making the language barrier work for them and spent any extra time up at the playground with their new friends.

And of course there was the disco night, where all the camp kids put on a show. Not really up Jacks alley when he was told the boy had to dress up as girls and girls as boys. For some reason the french boys didn't seem to mind.

Thanks for reading our family blog. I hope you are enjoying checking out what we have been getting up to.



Happy Birthday Elvie. 62 Today!

Happy Birthday Grandma!!!

Hi Grandma,

Jack and I wanted to say A Great Big Huge Super Duper Happy Birthday!

We love you lots and lots.

From Jessie and Jack

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

oooooooooooooo

Updated Map of our Travels

Thanks BikeNZ

We were lucky to be invited to the team hotel for dinner on our last night and to get the chance to share with Tim (first of a few, I am sure) his formal farewell. With less than two weeks left till the Olympics and the full squad present it was a fitting time to pass on a few thoughtful gifts and kind words for all the hard work and dedication put in by not only Tim but the riders and support staff as well.
Jack mentioned in the car later that he had a wee lump in his throat from all the kind words everyone was saying about his Dad. How wonderful for the kids to see just a tiny part of what goes on both on and off the track. The man they look up to most in the world is a hero to them, as all Dads should be.
 It has been an amazing journey for all and we hope all the riders make themselves proud to be a Kiwi in London.

Great Sand Pyramid of Pilat

Our Final day in Bordeaux

Today we popped back down to the track to watch our final New Zealand training session. The team will be based in Bordeaux for another 10 days but we will head east tomorrow and explore Southern France for a few weeks.

It has been an honour to share Tim with such an amazing bunch of dedicated athletes and we were very lucky to be able to wish them all the very best for the London Olympic Games in person.

Simon's biggest...or maybe smallest fan!

Teams Pursuit Boys who are looking lean and fast!

Its not every day you get your photo taken with a

 three time Olympic gold medallist!

Florian Rousseau won gold in the sprint and kilo and teams sprint and sliver in the sprint between 1996 and 2000.

 What a legend!

Until recently he was the fastest man in the world...ever!

He now coaches the French National team. Could be worth watching come Games time.

The kids managed to have a little fun with their dad between the riders efforts. Actually I think it was more like Tim got to have a little fun with the kids. They climbed off the motor a little paler than when they got on.

Jessie on the motor with Tim

Jack not terrible comfortable going round the 47 deg banking with Tim. His yelps to slow down give it away. Little did he know the quicker you go the easier it is to stay upright on two wheels.

Hi family and friends.

Hi family and friends back in New Zealand we are having a great time in Europe . In Bordo (Bordeaux) we saw a ginormous water fountain. We went to go check it out but we got soaked right through because we were having way to much fun. Luckily mum had a change of clothes in the car. Otherwise we would have had to go back to the hotel in our undies.

Discovering Bordeaux

Birthday Girls!

July 12th

And Fee!!!

And Glen Thompson and Nicky Simmons.

Thanks to everyone who sent us such lovely birthday wishes...and presents.

We had a fantastic day watching the best teams pursuit team in the world train...the kiwis of course!

Discovering the sights and sounds of Bordeaux, and best of all hanging out with Tim.

Jessies 1st post

Kids Festival

Today Jack, mum and I went to a festival just down the road in a tiny village called Crettaz. They called it the Crette fete.

They hold the festival every 2 years and the theme this year was prehistoric. The whole village decorated their houses, gardens and streets.

We had loads of fun on the climbing wall, and on the tractor ride through the country side. We also won lots of prizes in the ‘guess what was in the buckets’…with our feet.

I got my face painted and Jack made a pair of stilts. We blew giant bubbles and ate the smallest ice creams we had ever seen.

It was a really fun day.

On Thursday we had our last day of school for the summer holidays. In the evening we had a parade down the main street of Leysin. All the children dressed up in costumes we had made at school. After the parade we had a huge shared dinner down at the ice rink. What an awesome way to finish off the school year.

By Jessica.

Leysin

Our home away from home.

The first mention of Leysin was way back 1232, a privileged place bathed in sunlight and hidden from site and unwanted visitors. In other words, off the beaten track.

What sparked the interest of doctors was the life expectancy of the locals here, which was much higher than places such as Berlin or Paris.

At the end of the 19^th century tuberculosis was raging throughout Europe (medicine was proving useless in the fight against the plague) and an experiment was conducted with the worst affected patients. Its amazingly fresh alpine air and natural sun terrace overlooking the Rhone Valley was the perfect combination for rehabilitation. The population grew from a few hundred to 6000 with only two residents succumbing to the illness in the 40 years it was utilised as a sanatorium.

By this point penicillin had been developed and was making great inroads in fighting the battle against the disease , and along with the stock market crash in 1929 deprived the village of its well to do clientele paying their way to rest and recuperation.

Finally in the 60’s Leysin made a comeback, this time targeting the tourist dollar and slowly shedding its TB rehabilitation label.

 Now it is a sprawling ski resort with over 60km of runs at an altitude of up to 2200m with access to 17 ski lifts. It also hosts the largest toboggan run and half-pipes in Europe. Within a half drive there is Les Diableretes with the Glacier 3000. Cable cars whisk you up the mountain almost to the summit at Scex Rouge. To ski from here back to Reusch (where the cable car starts) is a 2000m decent over 14km. I took the kids over to have a good look around during low season (it was so lush and vibrant…the land was, that is, not the town, it was very quiet) so we can compare the difference to its peak season in winter. Les Mosses is another ski station 20km from here. Whose weekly summer market was worth a look for its historical Swiss artifacts.  We made a few small purchases there to help us feel a bit more local.

A year round attraction in Leysin is the Kuklos, a solar powered revolving restaurant sitting atop of La Berneuse (2,048m). With impressive alpine views extending from the Eiger to Mont Blanc including the Matterhorn and Dents du Midi. The cable car takes you up past our back door into a winter (and summer) wonderland. Apparently there are over 250km of walking and mountain biking trails in the surrounding countryside.

Now home to around 3480 people Leysin is rather spread out and a little disjointed in places. Split between the old town at the top of the hill which plays host to world renowned International collages and The Swiss Hotel Management. Who have utilised the grand old multi story apartments from the TB days. To the more successfully positioned central tourist strip in the middle of the village which has taken over and left a handful of empty shops dotted around its upper reaches. It will take us a little while to work out what’s best and from where.

The drive to Aigle, where Tim will be working at the World Cycling Centre takes about 20 minutes or the Aigle-Leysin line provides a direct link by Cog train between the valley and the mountain, luckily it runs in all weather conditions.  The train works on a central cogwheel which engages with a toothed rack between the rails to provide the traction. This way they are able to climb and descend the steepest slopes in perfect safety…so they say! So there will be no excuses for Tim not making it to work on time….well except for maybe the 10 minute bike ride from the train station to WCC in the snow.

Well, that’s pretty much all I have learnt so far. In time we will learn the ins and outs of the village and no doubt some fascinating tid bits about famous characters that have graced these lands.

Better yet will just have to come and visit and check it out for yourselves!