@fjhoekie - Yeah it's a popular choice Yep I'm sure it will stand out - great design!
@Shonak - If only Thanks
@knockout - Couldn't agree more
24/02/21 - kandesbunzler said “I don't drink famous people."
15/08/22 - SotD said "Your [jandal's] humour is overrated"
11/06/24 - knockout said "Winning is fine I guess. Truth be told this felt completely unimportant." [ICL] Santos-Euskadi | [PT] Xero Racing
A total of three Xero riders were in action in our first ever World Championships. They were held in Krakow this year and were on a tough cobbled course with a few hills, a course that's longer than any, I think, in the CT.
Jonathan Salinas, riding in the B Road Race was one of Venezuela's arguable best hopes... at actually finishing. Unfortunately they're all very very very scared of anything flat, especially when it isn't sealed. So they all missed the time cut, which I didn't know existed in classics but apparently it does because Salinas missed it.
Tom Scully made the cut for the New Zealand Elite Road Race squad, and actually did some stuff, which was good, because Sam Bewley, the leader, was the ultimate favourite for the race.
Recovering from a crash
Working on the front.
In the end he was the third-best domestique of New Zealand, sticking around for a decent amount of time and doing himself and us proud to have helped set up Sam Bewley for the win!
Jamalidin Novardianto was our only rider in two races as well as our only rider with a hope of individual glory. After a dissapointing Indidividual Time Trial where he could have done well, it was time for the road race. I won't show you all the screenshots because the majority went like this:
Mark Kasperkiewicz's attack
Get caught!
This went on for a while until the last 10km when one stuck, he was off the front in one of these moves, looking on track for a medal when the last 2 kilometres were just too much for him.
Fifth in the end, a good result pre-race but dissapointing in context after looking strong for the whole race up until the final couple of kilometres. Overall a very successful World Championships for us, we just hope for an even more successful National Championships before our end-of-season rider reviews.
When we woke up this morning at Xero-Octagon HQ there was one thing on our minds - the upcoming National Championships. The first races around the globe have been held and we were proud to watch both Jordan Schleck and Marvain Tognama Kossouhorou take out Road Race and Time Trial titles in Uganda and The Central African Republic respectively, fending off amateur hopefuls. Hopefully over the off-season we can present to you what we're sure will be absolutely gorgeous National Champion jerseys, along with any others we may win. We hope to nab as many as possible through aggressive riding and get some glory.
However when we woke up this morning the thing we least expected to see was one of our riders nominated for Man-Game Rider of the Year, but we saw just that as Jamalidin Novardianto was added to a shortlist containing such legends as Sam Bewley, Andy Schleck and, of course, Sven Fritsch. He was nominated for his great amount of breakaway riding and of course stage, KoM, Points, U25 and GC successes stemming from said breaks. He also showed some potential as a very good racer from the peloton at the World Championships (above post).
Leading the KoM and Points in a home race for us - Tour of Southland
Second place on the stage, would go on to top 5 GC and win the Youth jersey - La Tropicale Amissa Bongo
Riding alongside two of the strongest young cobblers in the world -
U23 World Championships
*Stagiare
**Loaned in, actual wage 50,000
This was our squad for our first year in professional cycling and on the outlook it seemed like a pretty good one and I'm not going to get depressed again just now. Some of them performed admirably, some well and some were useless tools. Let's see who was who and how they did.
Simon Clarke
Taking third in our goal race - Barcelona Classic
Highlight: His consistency at coming on the podium Lowlight: His consistency at coming in the lower top 10 Points: 134 (57th CT/4th Team) Rider of the Month: 1 (May) Verdict: Did well under pressure after Scully unexpectedly spent the whole season in 12th pretending he was a GC rider. Was thrust into the leader's role for races he wasn't prepared for and performed admirably in many of them so that we could salvage something in the flat stages.
Tom Davison
On his way to the KoM win - Tour de Azerbaijan
Highlight: Winning the KoM in Azerbaijan Lowlight: Being part of some of those piss poor hilly races Points: 57 (122nd/7th) Rider of the Month: 1 (February) Verdict: Held up well in the hills and TTs (Benelux and Southland) and was tirelessly on the front of the peloton or the breakaway in many of the climbing or punchy days. Along with Jams was usually was the man doing salvage jobs when everyone else failed.
Tom Diggle
So close to victory in our debut race - Clasico San Cristobal
Highlight: A well played 2nd in the Costa Rican classic (above) Lowlight: Zuri Metzgete (no more detail because he didn't do anything but suck)Points: 218 (27th/2nd) Rider of the Month: 2 (January/April) Verdict: Always up for a podium finish. Also always up for being 12th or even lower when he was a favourite. A mixed bag but given the likes of Barbin, Klemme and Dowsett in the division we weren't expecting the world. Bit dissapointing but signs of potential in this one.
@Croatia - Cheers! Yeah three of our better performers for sure. @whitejersey - Thanks
End of Season Review Part II
Stats
OVL
Role
Wage
Tom
Scully
79 SPR, 77 PRL
75.31
Leader
210,000
Jonathan
Salinas
77 MON
74.33
Leader
80,000
Tom
Diggle
77 HIL
74.08
Leader
130,000
Simon
Clarke
79 SPR, 78 ACC
73.74
Lieutenant
50,000
Geremie
Nzeke
76 HIL
73.73
Lieutenant
145,000
Ole
Hirschlein
77 MON
73.72
Lieutenant
140,000
Matthew
Lloyd
75 HIL
72.75
Domestique
55,000
Aleksandr
Efimkin
76 HIL
72.29
Domestique
50,000
Marvain
Kossouhorou
Low 70s everything
72.08
Ultra-Domestique
50,000
Tom
Davison
73 HIL, 73 PRL
71.50
Domestique
75,000
Timothy
Gudsell
73 TT, 72 SPR
69.74
Domestique
50,000
Jamalidin
Novardianto
74 ACC, 74 FTR
69.44
Talent/Free Role
50,000
Kim
Ok Cheol
70 SPR
67.20
Talent
10,000*
Nils
Schomber
74 PRL
66.41
Talent
10,000*
Jordan
Schleck
67 MON
64.90
Talent
70,000
Jean
Helwani
67 TT, 67 PRL
63.85
"Talent"
0**
*Stagiare
**Loaned in, actual wage 50,000
This was our squad for our first year in professional cycling and on the outlook it seemed like a pretty good one and I'm not going to get depressed again just now. Some of them performed admirably, some well and some were useless tools. Let's see who was who and how they did.
Aleksandr Efimkin
He's hurting but so are the other riders behind - USAPCC
Highlight: Did some good work on hilly days early on. Lowlight: Couldn't channel his former self and be there in finales. Points: 4 (311th CT/12th Team) Rider of the Month: 0 Verdict: He wanted one more year as a useful rider after a few bad years under a manager who publicly criticised him on more than one occasion. Wasn't his former self or a great buy but his experience and power uphill was valuable to the team. Unfortunately will likely leave next year but not without some fond-ish memories. Fonder than VisitUkraine have of him anyway.
Timothy Gudsell
On the prowl - Circulo de Jaurez, Stage 3
Highlight: Taking an unexpected KoM win in Mexico Lowlight: Was part of some unflattering leadout work in a role he was admittedly unprepared for. Points: 21 (218th CT/10th Team) Rider of the Month: 1 (October) Verdict: He came with a reccomendation of being a good team player and was exactly what was said on the tin - a mainstay of TTT slaving or being on the front of the peloton be it in kilometre 0 or under the flamme rouge. Was always up for a breakaway when there was an opportunity which is pleasing to see for the team and for his own individual pursuits.
Jean Helwani
In the morning break - La Tropicale Amissa Bongo, Stage 6
Highlight: His growth in confidence and multiple breakaways in the last few months of the season. Also beating Schleck in the rankings. Lowlight: Was often dropped early on earlier in the year. Points: 1 (356nd/14th) Rider of the Month: 0 Verdict: Enjoyed his loan time here gaining experience in the CT and it was a pleasure to have him. Though he doesn't have a confirmed home for next year we'll be rooting for him to have a fine career. Didn't always have time at the front but towards the end of the season showed great progress and made huge strides in his confidence.
Ole Hirschlein
Putting the hammer down - Le Tour de Langkawi
Highlight: A hard-earned 4th in the competitive Langkawi (above) Lowlight: Apparently didn't like working for Salinas so it was overachieve when leading or drop early when lieutenanting. Points: 66 (111th/5th) Rider of the Month: 0 Verdict: Was inconsistent but proved his value when given a leadership role.
Salinas is rumoured to want him out but we would love to see him get some more chances next year, be it here or elsewhere (COUGH COUGH NEW GERMAN TEAM COUGH COUGH).
24/02/21 - kandesbunzler said “I don't drink famous people."
15/08/22 - SotD said "Your [jandal's] humour is overrated"
11/06/24 - knockout said "Winning is fine I guess. Truth be told this felt completely unimportant." [ICL] Santos-Euskadi | [PT] Xero Racing
We don't have time yet to go through all of the results from the recent National Championships but we do have one very special report of a win in Cameroon.
On the attack early in the race
Easily dismissing a Tunisian in the sprint for the race win and securing his national title.
It was a great victory for Geremie and he is very proud to be representing Cameroon in the peloton next year. Now for the moment you've all been waiting for: Our slick NC jerseys, courtesy of the fantastic the_hoyle!
Cameroon RR - Geremie Nzeke
Uganda RR & TT - Jordan Schleck
Central African Republic RR & TT - Marvain Tognama Kossouhorou
As you may remember after his stunning debut season as a professional cyclist Jamalidin Novardianto was nominated for the World Rider of the Year crown. Not purely to find the strongest rider but the best-performing, MVP, legendary rider. Some managers didn't know his name. They do now. He was voted 8th in the competition, which is certainly no mean feat. Congratulations Jams!
@Croatia - He did us all proud <3 Yep I absolutely adore them, beauties! @whitejersey - I know right
End of Season Review Part III
Stats
OVL
Role
Wage
Tom
Scully
79 SPR, 77 PRL
75.31
Leader
210,000
Jonathan
Salinas
77 MON
74.33
Leader
80,000
Tom
Diggle
77 HIL
74.08
Leader
130,000
Simon
Clarke
79 SPR, 78 ACC
73.74
Lieutenant
50,000
Geremie
Nzeke
76 HIL
73.73
Lieutenant
145,000
Ole
Hirschlein
77 MON
73.72
Lieutenant
140,000
Matthew
Lloyd
75 HIL
72.75
Domestique
55,000
Aleksandr
Efimkin
76 HIL
72.29
Domestique
50,000
Marvain
Kossouhorou
Low 70s everything
72.08
Ultra-Domestique
50,000
Tom
Davison
73 HIL, 73 PRL
71.50
Domestique
75,000
Timothy
Gudsell
73 TT, 72 SPR
69.74
Domestique
50,000
Jamalidin
Novardianto
74 ACC, 74 FTR
69.44
Talent/Free Role
50,000
Kim
Ok Cheol
70 SPR
67.20
Talent
10,000*
Nils
Schomber
74 PRL
66.41
Talent
10,000*
Jordan
Schleck
67 MON
64.90
Talent
70,000
Jean
Helwani
67 TT, 67 PRL
63.85
"Talent"
0**
*Stagiare
**Loaned in, actual wage 50,000
This was our squad for our first year in professional cycling and on the outlook it seemed like a pretty good one and I'm not going to get depressed again just now. Some of them performed admirably, some well and some were useless tools. Let's see who was who and how they did.
Marvain Tognama Kossohorou
In the thick of the battle for the stage - Le Tour de Langkawai
Highlight: His double NC win and beign a general beast on any terrain Lowlight: An early-season crash and subsequent abandon in the Benelux Challenge affected his season negatively and wasn't his fault. Points: 5 (296th CT/11th Team) Rider of the Month: 0 Verdict: Our "ultra-domestique" was a bargain buy at only 50k and proved his value in almost every race he entered with an aggressive mindset and valuable help on literally any terrain to our leaders. His attacking spirit throughout the season payed off in his National Championship double victory. Will be invaluable throughout his Xero career, which we hope to be very long indeed.
Matthew Lloyd
Second place reward for a tough sprint - Benelux Challenge
Highlight: His second place in the hilly Benelux Challenge as well as being a great mountain and hill domestique. Lowlight: Was part of The Swiss Race and other such... incidents. Points: 36 (156th CT/9th Team) Rider of the Month: 0 Verdict: Always up for a crack at a stage win, a breakaway or just making our rivals hurt in the hills or mountains, he's past his peak but still a quality rider with invaluable experience. Will take on more of a mentor role next year but will still be a fearsome presence on the front or up the road when said road turns uphill.
Jamalidin Novardianto
In the KoM jersey already at the start of a special season - Tour of Southland
Highlight: Too many to choose but his U25 win and top 5 at La Tropicale Amissa Bongo was a special ride showcasing maturity beyond his years. Lowlight: Do I have to - fine, a lackluster result when he was favoured in the U23 World Championships ITT, proving my point that he never gives up or lets down the Xero jersey. Points: 138 (55th/3rd) Rider of the Month: 3 Verdict: Remember the name. What a fantastic debut season and his plaudits are well deserved - a versatile attacking rider, impromptu leadout man, domestique and cobbled leader. He surprised everyone, not least himself, on his way to being our third-best rider rankings-wise. We look forward to more of the same until he retires. What a legend.
Geremie Nzeke
A commanding win to secure the national title - Cameroonian RR NC
Highlight: His victory in the Cameroonian road race. (above) Lowlight: *Deep breathing* no it's fine I can say it: Zuri-Metzg-NOPE STILL CAN'T Points: 63 (112th/6th) Rider of the Month: 0 Verdict: We had to overpay to get him from a WT team and therefore was our only "victory" in the African market. He didn't quite make up for it but should do over the years to come. Was usually lackluster in terms of leading or co-leading or being there with less than 15km to go but had some individual success and when he did do some good domestique work it was great. Will certainly improve next year with the Cameroonian colours on his jersey.
*Stagiare
**Loaned in, actual wage 50,000
This was our squad for our first year in professional cycling and on the outlook it seemed like a pretty good one and I'm not going to get depressed again just now. Some of them performed admirably, some well and some were useless tools. Let's see who was who and how they did.
Jonathan Salinas
Soaking up our only win of the main season - Tour of the Middle East
Highlight: A hard-fought, aggressive 2nd place on GC in the Tour of Bulgaria. Lowlight: A few choices but this isn't hard due to the absolute wretchedness of that Tour of Southland performance. Points: 236 (21st CT/1st Team) Rider of the Month: 1 (August) Verdict: Our top point-scorer underperformed in places but never gave up and will only improve next season we're sure. Enjoyed no real help on the final climbs of days which never made it easy but did show his attacking spirit in races such as the ToME (above) and the Tour of Bulgaria, when he attacked race leader Tvetcov until the dying seconds and had one of the photos of the year in his side-by-side battle with friendly rival Anton from our friends at Isostar.
Jordan Schleck
Finishing his turn of the front - Tour of Colorado
Highlight: His double NC win in Uganda Lowlight: None really, asides from the NCs no individual highlights or lowlights Points: 0 (422nd/14th) Rider of the Month: 0 Verdict: A tough learning curve in his debut year as a professional but made good progress and was rewarded for his constant 110% efforts in the mountains with a very well taken double NC win. Will hope to do the jersey proud next year as he continues his devlopment.
Tom Scully
g]
Doing something - La Tropicale Amissa Bongo
Highlight: His second place in a sprint in La Tropicale Amissa Bongo (above) after a terrible first half of the season. Lowlight: Almost literally every other race Points: 52 (132nd/8th) Rider of the Month: 1 (September) Verdict: Was billed as our top points-scorer and home talent - was certainly much, much less. His future is uncertain but we
The Stagiares
Kim Ok Cheol and Nils Schomber both rode for our team from August onwards as part of our stagiare program (and our "oh shit we need another rider and we only have 20k left" program. They did their jobs well and enjoyed some individual time on the front,
be it in the CT doing domestique duties or competing with the best young talents in the world and doing themselves proud in the Tour de l'Avenir. both are great young talents and more importantly young men and have huge potentials and we can't wait to see them fulfilled, either on full contracts with us or another team
And now after we've reviewed every rider, let's ask you: Who was our rider of the season?
Who was our rider of the season? Like for Tom Davison :P
24/02/21 - kandesbunzler said “I don't drink famous people."
15/08/22 - SotD said "Your [jandal's] humour is overrated"
11/06/24 - knockout said "Winning is fine I guess. Truth be told this felt completely unimportant." [ICL] Santos-Euskadi | [PT] Xero Racing
Have been catching up with your debut season and really like the season reviews. I think I read somewhere in here that you were looking for teams from a particular country?
Yep I'm sure it will stand out - great design!
Thanks 
program. They did their jobs well and enjoyed some individual time on the front,
