Injury Update:

Hi All,

Here's a update on my injury. The news is all good. I went to the specialist and the x ray showed the femur is healing better than expected. He was quite shocked by how much bone growth I had around the break. So I am now allowed back to training and have been hitting the bitumen on my road bike. I've also started back with my personal trainer Simon from Race Elements, and he's got me working out in the gym twice a week. I'm not allowed on my down hill bike just yet, but I'll be back racing in January and i can't wait. Having this time off has really made me hungry to get back on the bike.

I've got some more good news: I've signed on with a new team for next year overseas. I can't say which team I will be riding for just yet, as I'm waiting on the press release before I can say anything. I'm really looking forward to riding a new bike for a new team, and looking forward to taking on the best tracks in the world overseas. Its been great riding for Tomac over the last 2 years, but it was time to move on, and this new team offered me a deal that was hard to resist.

My goal now is to be right in time for the Australian Championships in Adelaide, which will be the 11th January. I know my fitness will be back to normal by then and it will be my first time riding my new bike, so I'm really looking forward racing again.

I'll keep you posted on my results.

Cheers
Rhys

Check out Episode 1 of Team Tomac!

WORLD CHAMPS - CANBERRA

Hi All,

Well the world champs are over for another year. Here is my run down of an amazing week.

After my first day's practice I had the first of and hopefully what will become and annual event, the pumptrack world champs. It was held in the backyard of local bike shop owner Gazza, where he had made the most of the little space he has and built a really tight pumptrack. This was an underground event as the yard could only hold a maximum of 200 odd people so it was invite only and with Northland boy James on the gate uninvited had no chance of getting in. By the time qualifying was about to kick the yard was packed out with people the BBQ was sizzling and the majority of the crowd was enjoying a few cold ones. Many of the top World Cup riders showed up to give it a go, there was the likes of Minnaar, Peaty, Bryceland, Lopes, Kovarik, Fairclough just to mention a few all there battling it out with the locals.

My qualifying run went amazing, this was the first time I've ever tried this form of racing and I surprised myself how well I went. Even though there was a no pedaling rule you still got up a huge amount of speed up and it became really hard not to make a bobble on a turn or in the rollers. Many riders took advantage of the rerun rule after crashing out, I went pretty well out there reppin it up and qualifed in 2nd place. No surprises with the fastest qualifying time going to Brendan Fairclough as he is certainly no stranger to a pump track with one in his own backyard in Guildford, with Sick Mick Hannah taking 3rd.

By the time finals rolled round the crowd was amped and they cut the finals to only the 15 best riders which made so some tough competition and for finals there was no reruns so there was only one chance. Many of the first few riders felt the pressure and made mistakes or simply crashed out. I was the second last to take the course and was going well well and increasing my speed through every lap. Unfortunately on my second last lap, my back wheel slid out and rebounded off the fence and spun me around. All I could do is kiss the $2500 prize money away . Brendan Fairclough was robbed of the win after his pedal disconnected the timing in his super quick first run and he was forced to do another one when he was already tired. Sick Mick Hannah took the fastest time and the 2 n half grand that went with it, in front of local hero Timmy Eaton taking home 1000-bucks and 3rd went to another local Dave McMillan who put down an amazingly fast time for a 15 year old kid certainly deserving of the 500 dollars cash prize money.

So what a way to kick off the Worlds week, thanks to all who made this event happen, and all the awesome sponsors who put together an awesome amount of prize money, and cheers to Gazza for putting it on in his own backyard. Hopefully someone continues it on next year at Mt Saint Anne Worlds!

Now for the reason why we were all in Canberra. It was great to wear the green and gold again and being back home after my season overseas. Everything went great during the week. My runs were fine although I did have a crash during the week and hurt my arm a bit. The aussie physio soon had that problem fixed come race day.

Canberra has never been a track I really liked but after winning the Australian champs on this track 5 or so months ago, I knew I had the chance to taking the win. I personally like fast technical tracks and although I can pedal, I often find simple tracks a little boring and I find it hard to keep the concentration going when there's nothing exciting to look forward too. On Friday I qualified 5th. Most of the aussie boys except Shaun took it easy and didn't go all out. It was a new rule that we don't have to qualify anymore, we just need to do a timed run to race. I was confident that I could increase my speed in the finals. My Aussie champs time was a 2:35.00, so I knew I could blow my timed run to bits.

The finals was on Sunday. There were so many people there and a noticed a few "I love Rhys" signs. ha ha! There is nothing better than aussie support. I was having a few problems with my shock and Sram were kind enough to help me out. I ended up having to do 3 runs to get my suspension right before the finals and thats not something i usually do. I normanlly do one run and then relax until my race run. So I made my way up the track and waited around until it was my turn. I knew Shaun would go out strong but I didn't expect him to do much faster than his timed run and I was right. Danny Hart was the other rider I was worried about and Brook MacDonald. Aari Bennett wasn't a worry this time because he broke his finger in practice. (Hope you get well soon mate). So I take off for my race run and everything went well. My Primer handled everything the track was throwing at it. Once I got to the pedal section of the track, my legs went like jelly. Maybe doing those 3 runs in practice was too much and my legs couldn't pedal properly anymore. I was .8 sec behind ay the second split and I usually come home hard. Well today wasn't my day. I didn't come home hard, I actually came home soft and lost 2 secs. I ended up coming 4th. .05 off 3rd place. It's not the result I was dreaming of but when I put everything into prospective, The top 4 junior times were not far off Steve Peats winning time, so you have to be happy about that. If I can finish 13th at Maribor world cup, then I know I can be a top ten rider in the near future.

I just want to give a shout out to my Aussie team mate Will Gower. Will crashed in his warm up run on Sunday and didn't get to ride in the finals as he was taken to hospital. Unfortunately Will broke his back and it might be the end to his DH future. Get well mate and I hope you are up and running again in no time.

Last but not least. I just want to thank my sponsors Tomac, Sram, Hicks signs, KWT Maxxis and Revolution Mag for all your support. Thanks also to my personal sponsor Unit clothing. Also thanks heaps to all the aussie crew who helped us during the week. Thanks to the physio, our mechanic and to Chris our DH manager.

Cheers
Rhys

My Aussie Primer

Hi All,

Just wanted to show off my new paint job on my new Primer.

I decided to get Aussie colours for the world champs next week. Its looking pretty good.

Here are some pics:

Photo's from Bromont WC

Here are some pics from bromont. Thanks heaps to Scott Cartwright from Egg photography for all my photo's from the world cups and NPS races.

Bromont Finals!

Hi All,

Today was the finals for Bromont World Cup... I have to admit I was feeling good this morning. Got up early, had a good feed and headed off to the track for practice. Qualifying 31st made me more relaxed I guess and I took it easy in qualifying and was hoping to do alot better in the finals.

My practice was good... Knew what lines to take and the track was dying out nicely after all the rain we had on Friday.

I'm standing up the top of the track with riders like Sam Hill, Steve Peat ect ect and I started to get a bit nervous... I move into the start gate, wait for the count down to start... 3, 2, 1 GO.... Well I went alright... I went out way to hard and way to fast... I decided to go for it but went way to loose on this bromont track... The track was full of big holes and slippery because of the rain and I just pushed it too hard. I crashed up in the top section and then again in the rock garden. This has been a lesson well learn't and I won't make that mistake again... I just wanted one more good result before coming home but that wasn't to be. I ended up in 75th place.

So now its time to come home to get ready to race the world champs in Canberra. I'm home for a few days and then I'm off to Canberra for a training camp... Looking forward to seeing the changes to the track and looking forward to racing the track where I became the Australian Champion.

I just want to thank a few people since my trip is now over....

Mum and Dad: Thanks heaps for letting me live my dream and for helping me get to where I am today.

Joel Smith: Tomac owner. The Tomac Primer has been great all season. Thanks so much for giving me a great bike plus for donating a Tomac Snyper and Tomac Carbide to raffle to raise funds for Tamryn and I. I really appreciate your support.

Rodney & Bec - (Supersports Australia). Thanks to you both for everything... Thanks for helping me to get sponsors and thanks for getting me bikes/bike parts. You go that extra mile for me and I really appreciate it alot.

Thanks to my sponsors, Tomac Bikes, Supersports, Hicks signs, Sram, KWT Maxxis, Revolution Magazine and to Unit Clothing.

One more thanks... To the people that helped us to get overseas. Harvey & Ben Power from Summer Harvest, Gavin from Ashgrove Cycles and Digitextiles. Thanks so much for all your support. Tam and I really appreicate everything you have done for us.

Well thats it for me... I'm heading home and looking forward to seeing my family and friends before taking the best on in Canberra.

Cheers
Rhys

BROMONT WORLD CUP QUALIFYING

Hi All,

Just finished qualifying and all is good. Took it a bit easy because of all the rain and mud, but finished up in 31st position, which is great. I'm still feeling a bit sore from my crash last week but its not too bad.

Suppose to be sunny and hot tomorrow which will be great. I do like riding in the mud but not in the finals.

I'll give it all I've got and hopefully finish in the top 20's. That's my goal anyway.

Cheers
Rhys

Quest Newspapers Sports Award

Hi All,

On Tuesday night (28th July) my parents went to an awards night on my behalf.
I'm happy to announce that I won the Sportsmen of the year award. I've won this title last year as well and its a great honour to win it again. Not only do you get recognised for your sporting achievements but the best thing is doing voleenteer work like working at McDonald's for McHappy Day. I get to help raise money for sick kids and their families.

So thanks again Quest Newspapers for this great Award.

Cheers
Rhys

World Champs T Shirts

Hi All,

I've just found this t shirt from a company called Redbubble. They are doing up t shirts for the world champs this September in Canberra to support the Aussies racing. I was really stoked to see a t shirt named after me.

You can order this t shirt here: http://www.redbubble.com/people/ak37/t-shirts/3496120-1-rhys-willemse

Mont Staine Anne world cup

This pic was taken before I crashed.

Mont Sainte Anne Qualifying

Hi All,

Just updating you all about how things went in my qualifying run... I didn't make it to the start gate.

For the first time ever, I had managed to make the top 80 in the world list. I'm now ranked 53 in the world. This means that I am allowed to do an extra training session before the qualifying starts... So I was on course and riding well when I made one big mistake and came down hard on a rock... I ended up going to hospital because I had trouble breathing and walking. The end result is alot of deep tissue damage, pinched nerves and heaps of bruises.

I'm feeling a bit sore and sorry for myself but I've been put on painkillers and hopefully will be right to race at Bromont. This now makes my chances of wearing the UCI jersey alot harder.

Here is another video. I'm featured about 2 mins into the vid.

Cheers
Rhys

Mont Sainte Anne Video - Day Two

Hi All,

Just found this video from MTB Cut. I'm featured in the first 35 secs.

Hope you like:

Cheers
Rhys

Mont Saint Anne World Cup

Hi All,

We made it to Montreal yesterday after spending 4 weeks at Whistler. Whistler was alot of fun and alot of riding. I think my fitness is now the best its ever been thanks to all the tracks we've been riding there.

Yesterday was Tam's birthday and it must have been the shortest birthday ever because of the time difference between Vancouver and Montreal. Tam is now the big 18 and this means he's now legal...lol Poor Tam spent most of his birthday on a plane or in a car but we took him out for dinner once we made it to Mont Saint Anne.

Today was the track walk which was sick. The track has a couple of new sections with big jumps and heaps of berms. One of the jumps has a big enough lip you could back flip off it.

The rain has been falling since we arrived and looks like its going to be a wet race. I'm not sure if I am happy about the mud or not, but will know more tomorrow once we've had a few practice runs.

Sign on today was an all aussie occasion. I felt like I was at a National race because of all the aussies here. It's like I'm back at home...

Will write more after the finals and hopefully have some pics.

Cheers
Rhys

Tomac team on Totally Wild TV Show.

Hi All,

Here is a rough copy of Tamryn and I on Totally Wild. We filmed this segment before we went overseas.

Cheers
Rhys

Maribor World Cup Photo's

Maribor World Cup

Hi All,

Just thought I would post this video (thanks Mum for e mailing it to me) up from my run today at Maribor World Cup.

I qualified today in 12th position. I couldn't believe I had done so well because I made a couple of mistakes in my race run. My time was 3.20.65

To top things off, I've just finished the finals and finished up in 13 position with a time of 3.10.04. In the video you will see me keep going at the end of the race. I thought I hadn't done well because I made had a small crash in the last section of the track. My foot came off the pedal and my bike and me spun around. So i thought I would of finished in 60th position. Man was I shocked and stoked when I looked up at the score board and noticed I had finished 4th on the ladder. The last 12 riders came down the hill and these are the guys that are super quick. To finish amongst the best Down Hill mountain bikers in the world is a dream come true.

I wasn't expecting anything great this weekend as I have been suffering from the flu for the last few days. To finished 13th is unreal and I'm really happy. This now places me 2nd overall in juniors and if I do well in Canada, I could take 1st position.

Tam and I are now off to Canada on Thursday. We will be staying at Whistler for 4 weeks before doing the last 2 world cups in Montreal, before coming home to race for Australia. I'm really looking forward to relaxing with the Aussie guys in Whistler before taking on the best in the world again.

This has been the best day ever.

Cheers
Rhys

Photo from Fort William World Cup.

Fort William World Cup

Hi All,

Just an update on how things went with the Fort William World Cup.

Practice on Friday and Saturday was not that great. I didn't get many practice runs because of a few mechanical problems. On Friday I busted a rim, my forks were playing up and I spent alot of time trying to get these problems sorted out before the qualifying run on Saturday afternoon. Saturday came around and I went up for my first run, 1/4 down the track I got a flat tyre. By the time I pushed back up the track to get the gondola back down to fix my tyre, it left me with only one practice run.

Qualifying turned out to be a dream come true. I qualified in 48th Position. My run was great with only a little problem of trying to get around a rider that had crashed. The track is long with alot of peddling. By the time you get to the last section, your legs are built up with lactic acid, your arms are numb and your trying all you can just to breathe. I managed to put up with the pain and did a time of 5:03:49. I knew I would have to improve on this time if I wanted to stay in the top 50's. I think I was in shock because not only had I made the finals, but to place 48th was something I've only ever dreamt about. My dream had turned into reality.

The finals:.
I was feeling really good... Got up early and had a good breakfast. I felt relaxed but a little nervious. I packed my bags and headed with Tam and Bernard to the track.

Wow what can I say about the finals?... I couldn't believe the amount of people there.. It was the biggest world cup I've ever seen. People lined the track, there were cameras everywhere, cow bells, horns, you name it and it was there.

Bernard and I headed up the hill for our final run. I knew in my mind what I had to do, and my focus was on my race plan. I lined up for my run and I have to admit that the nerves were starting to get to me. Once I hit that gate, everything changed and I just went for it... I had absolutly nothing to lose. My race run felt great and I crossed the line with a time of 4:56:45. I remember looking at the clock and seeing my time. My name had 4th place beside it. I think I was shocked for a while.. I knew I had done well but didn't expect to pull out such a fast time. My finals time was 9 secs quicker than my qualifing time. I didn't know how I made up 9 secs. I could only dream of a top 50 in the past. To finish 39th out of 82 of the best riders in the world, was and is a dream come true.

We are now heading to Kranjska Gora, Slovenia for the European Champs. Will write more when I find some internet.

Cheers
Rhys





Another Video:

1st Place - British National DH Series - Rnd 2

Last weekend, Tam and I, headed up to Wales to compete in round 2 of the British National Downhill Series at Liangollen. This was a new track and I have to admit that it was hell on wheels. I thought Italy was tough, but this track was the steepest, most technical track I've ever had the pleasure to ride.
This track was not a place for clips and unfortunately, clips is all I had packed in my bag. I felt my chances of winning this was not so good, as I was competing against some of the best junior riders in Britain and trying to unclip at every twist and turn was not going to make life easy.
I felt good during my practice runs and I knew I was going to have to go for it in the finals. One mistake on this track was going to hurt, so my mind was on staying on the bike and trying not to make mistakes. I let loose in the finals and just went for it. I have to admit there were a couple of scary moments, but I managed to stay on my bike and cross the line in 1st place.
My team mate Tam, also made it onto the podium taking 4th position.

Its going to be sad to leave England because I've had a successful run here. It feels great to win the 4x and DH and taking the titles away from the Brits. They can't wait for me to bugger off back home. lol

Tam & I just want to say thanks to our sponsors.... Tomac Bikes, Super Sports, Revolution magazine and would like to welcome our new sponsor MSC Maxxis. Alot of Thanks must go to Emond from KWT Maxxis for hooking us up overseas. Also I would like to thank Harvey and Ben Power from Sunshine Harvest, Digitextiles and Ashgrove Cycles for all your support. We really appreciate it. Last but not least, I have to thank Unit Clothing. I love wearing Unit clothing, Its the best!!.

We are now in Fort William, getting ready to take on the best in the world cup. Will update you all after qualifying.

Cheers
Rhys

4x podium

Nps 4x Rnd 2

hi all
this past weekend i raced the Nps national 4x Rnd at bridgenorth in England.
i was lucky enough to find a bike for the weekend which was kindly lent to me by bernard kerr. the track was very wide and fast with big banked up turns and nice flowing jumps. through out the day i won all my heats, then in the final it was a close race, i got an alright gate start but i was second to the first turn and from there i followed the other rider till the last straight where i decided to make a move, i went out wide on the Bern and held it open, than it was a sprint to the last straight full of jumps which i managed to get ahead of the rider and take the win and finish 1st position in junior.
i will have some pictures up soon from the event!!
Cheers
Rhys

Race run- Andorra

This is my race run from Andorra. unfortunately i got a flat tyre, but Im still really happy about making the finals and feeling confident about making the finals in fort William.

La Bresse

Hey
Just finished the weekend of racing in La Bresse, practice went really well for me in the mud but the conditions were always changing and by the time that qualification came around it was already dry. the dry track was a lot of fun but a bit slippery in areas. in my qualification run i had a good clean run and i was pretty satisfied. but with 231 other people racing on the track i knew it was going to be hard to qualify. it came down to the last 20 people and i was nudged out of the top 80 and ended up placing 86th with a mere 0.2 separating me from qualifying...

but off to the new track now in Andorra and im hoping for a placing there. we walked the track yesterday and it is looking really good, a lot of technical and fast sections. and with a fair bit of snow on the mountain is sure to keep the track damp and cold.

Rhys

World Cup Rnd 2 La Bresse

Hi all,
Just here at the 2nd round of the world cups in La Bresse ,France..
after walking the track today, i am quite happy with the track and have been sorting out lines for the race. The track is awesome it has steep sections and really technical parts, but the forecast is for rain Friday, Saturday and Sunday, which is going to make racing quite interesting. I have practice tomorrow from 8:30 to 2:30 so will let you know how everything is going ..

Cheers
Rhys

Leaving today

Hey everyone...
just spending the last few hours at home packing and getting everything organized before i leave to catch a plane to the 2nd round of the world cup series in La Bresse, France...
hope to keep you updated and talk to you soon
Rhys

3 Days Till Europe

Hi all,
Welcome to my new blog page. ill be updating and posting blogs after races and events.
looking forward to leaving in 3 days to take on the world cups and a few other races in europe and canada with my team (Tomac Racing Australia Team)
I will update the day i land in Europe and be sure to inform you of whats going on.
Cheers
Rhys