Are Cyclevox prepared for transfers?
Whilst the team manager has been very confident and vocal in the pre-season, with transfers now active, it seems that confidence may have been a facade. Reports suggest that team manager ANFreeman was seen whimpering under a coffee table, and wiping away tears with bank notes.

Time will tell if he is prepared to be a manager, or not.

Following taunts from other managers, A.Freeman reportedly got "completely trollied" and began wildly bidding on riders left, right and centre, all to prove he knew what he was doing. So far, however, the team roster consists of himself, his mother (also listed as the team's 'biggest fan' ) and a packet of half eaten jammie dodgers.

Meanwhile, the team have announced that they'd be willing to take on any loans of young riders looking to gain experience in the CT, citing it as a chance for the rider and team to develop easily, with the insurance of extra riders on the roster.

Indeed, it is with great pleasure and enthusiasm that the team are finally able to announce the first of their confirmed signings.

Two British names were mentioned by the team very early on, and with the upmost joy, Cyclevox can announce that they have secured the talents of both of them.

First of all, Evan Oliphant. The scottish sprinter will be looking to pick up a few wins of his own, whilst helping out his team-mates in the lead outs. At 30 years old, Oliphant has a wealth of experience, and for a mere €50,000, he comes as a bargain.



The second name is homegrown talent, Graham Briggs. Another sprinter, and a very fast one at that, Briggs is likely to lead the team in several sprints, and we hope he will be able to pick several wins throughout the season.



The third signing of the moment comes as somewhat of a surprise, as the team sign on the experienced French stage-racer talent, Sandy Casar. The frenchmen was bought from the Carmeuse - Boygues Telecom team for a fairly agreeable price. Whilst Casar is 33 years old, he still has plenty of talent for another season or two, and is exceptionally capable in the mountains. It is likely he will get several chances to lead the team in stage races this season, and will be an invaluable part of the teams stage race efforts.



Several more signings are expected to be confirmed thick and fast over the coming days, with talents from the UK and Australia being targeted in particular.

3 new signings.
Following the news yesterday of the team's first signings, 3 further riders join the ranks, including two brits.

The first is talented young Sprinter, Chris Opie. At 25 years old, Chris has a long way to develop, and feels the best place for him to do so is at the British Continental outfit of Cyclevox. He will be invaluable in the lead outs, as he learns and gains experience from the veteran, Graham Briggs.



The next British signing comes in the form of talented climber, Simon Richardson. Perhaps one of the best Brits in the mountains, Richardson will be helping out his leaders in the mountains. We are very pleased to have Richardson on our team, after some minor competition with British compatriots and rivals, Rapha Condor - Qhubeka.



The final rider joins us after riding previously for the Pirelli - Alfa Romeo squad, and was sold to us for a very modest price. James Lewis Perry is the South African time trial champion and brings not only a mass of talent to the team, but also a wealth of experience. Also, a nice, unique jersey to be worn in the TTs.



Even more signings are expected to come in the next few days, including a few big names.

This morning, management were pleased to announce a further 3 signings; and all three are set to lead the team.

The first is dutchman, Ricardo Van Der Velde, a talented rider in every single area. Whilst his strongest point seems to be his climbing, he is also no slouch in time trials and on the cobblestones. He will lead the team in a number of stage races, and indeed some one day classics.

The next two signings see two talented Australians join the Cyclevox ranks.

Trent Lowe is another strong stage racing talent, who will lead Cyclevox in a number of mountainous stage races. Slightly more experienced than Van Der Velde, we hope he will pick up several wins throughout the year.

And, finally is a talented sprinter, and a two time winner at last year's Giro, Mitch Docker. The Australian will lead Cyclevox in a number of sprints, and indeed at both the Tour Of Britain and the races in Down Under.

A wealth of new signings
Cyclevox have managed to acquire the talents of several more riders since their last announcement two days ago.

Adding to the already extensive British talent amongst the team are Liam Holohan and Dan McLay. Holohan is a strong all-rounder, with a very punchy sprint, which may see him pick up some victories from a lucky escape. Otherwise, he'll be helping out in the sprint train. McLay is a very talented prospect for the future. For now, he'll be performing domestique duties and gaining experience amongst a competitive peloton.

Joining the team from Ireland is another good prospect for the future, William Connolly. Acquiring the talents of this young Irishman was simple enough, requiring nothing more than a wage offer and pint of guiness. Of course, we hope he'll be able to stay of the booze this season, and learn from some of the team's more mature members.

This season saw many teams change sponsors. Amongst them was the Volkswagen - Siemens Cycling team, who, in an effort to please their wealthy German sponsors were looking to sell their non-Germans. This worked well for all of us here at Cyclevox as we were able to acquire the talents of Lithuanian superstar Tomas Vaitkus. He's a talented sprinter, time trialer, and can ride the cobbles fairly well, making him perfect for our team.


Vaitkus, however, won't be the only Lithuanian riding for Cyclevox. We are pleased to announce that we acquired one of our early season targets, in Lithuanian time-trial champion, Ignas Konolovalovas. His name on the cheque is just a little bigger than the wage we are paying him, which I suppose is good. He joins Perry in being the teams second TT champion, and will get to wear the unique jersey all season.

A third national champion also joins the team in the shape of Estonian RR champion, René Mandri. A talented all-rounder, with a strong punch, he'll be playing support and lead rolls throughout the entire season. He'll also look great in his custom jersey.

The final two signings come in the shape of Belgian cobbler, Kevin Pauwels and Danish climber Daniel Stenkjær, both of whom will be invaluable to the team in the coming season. Pauwels will be one of the main support riders in cobbled races, unless of course no one better is found. Then he'll have to step up massively to try and lead whenever Vaitkus is otherwise occupied.

That's it for now, though the team is suspected to be completed fully by this evening.

Cyclevox continues to expand, as they sign three more helpers, and a young hopeful for the future.
Thomas Rabou, Chad Beyer and Alex Coutts all join the team, bringing with them a good solid core for when the road starts to go uphill.

Also joining is young Brit, Peter Williams who hopes to develop and grow under the Cyclevox team.

Joining him in hope to develop is fellow Brit, Scott Thwaites and Luxembourg talent, Gilles Heymes. The two are on loan from pro tour teams, Wiggle - San Pellegrino Professional Cycling Team and Vesuvio - Accumulax, respectively.

Cyclevox are pleased to have made these deals with such renowned pro tour teams, and hope that they can do them justice by giving the young talents an adequate place to grow.

A German and 2 Irish riders complete team roster.
That's right, after almost two weeks of hard deals, Cyclevox are pleased to announce that their line up for the 2012 season is complete.

Christian Knees joins the team from pro tour outfit Café de Colombia and looks set to put in some solid performances for the team on hilly terrain, and the cobbles.

Joining him are Irishmen Connor McConvey and veteran David O'Loughlin, who's looking to end his career amidst our small British contingent, after a year at the 100% Me team. He also brings with him the Irish TT champion's jersey, though it is in no way the only reason we signed him. McConvey will be useful time and time again, and still has plenty of room to grow.

With the team complete, many of the riders began meeting for some first introductions and friendly rides in their new team kit. It was also a chance for them to test out their brand new Pinarellos. Safe to say, everyone looked great, and had a great day. Until Thwaites and Connolly decided to see who could drink a pint the fastest at a local pub. It's going to be a long season...

rjc_43 wrote:
Good ol' Thwaitesy, hope he won?

Just last night, it was announced that Cyclevox have been granted a wildcard to one of the Pro-Tour classics, and none other than the highly contested East Midlands Cicle Classic. Management have said that they are excited to go against the best of the best in their debut season, and to be on home soil makes it all the more greater an experience.



The team is set to send their best cobblestones lineup, and hope to make a few sparks in the highest ranked race in England.

Yesterday, the world was treated to the Down Under Classic, taking place in Australia. Cyclevox were amongst the starters, with a line up that included Graham Briggs, Thomas Vaitkus and, a favourite with the locals, Mitch Docker.

Briggs tried an attack that came to nothing, but showed the team's colours well. However, it was Vaitkus and Docker who shone the brightest. Docker, acting as a lead out man, dropped Vaitkus in a fantastic spot being Benatti (Puma - SAP) and Brown (Jayco - Red bull). The Lithuanian power-house was able to battle his way to 4th place, as defending champion Alan Davies (Hollister) took a convincing win.

Spokesmen for the team sponsors said the result was 'a dream start' and that the first win wouldn't be too far away: Perhaps Docker can grab it in front of a home crowd in the coming Tour Down Under.

Vaitkus is currently 8th in the rider rankings, and the team in 10th.

After the Down Under Classic, we moved on to the Tour Down Under, where Mitch Docker would be leading the team to hopefully, some high stage placings.

He didn't disappoint, securing top 10s in most stages, and battling his way to the front group on the decisive stage over Willunga hill.

His biggest success came in the final stage however: choosing to go it alone rather than follow the train, Docker got the jump on just about everybody. Only a dominant Alan Davis was able to catch Docker, giving him second in the stage. The time bonus that gave brought Docker into 6th place on the overall classification, jumping 6 places from where he started the day.



Docker also brought with him 62 Continental Tour Points, bringing the team's total up to 132, and a respectable 12th overall.

Rene Mandri was able to finish 9th in the overall of the Tour Of Wellington, by being at the fore of all the decisive stages. Managing to remain somewhat anonymous, the Estonian managed to hold on to the big names as they battled it out, to finish just 1'15 behind race winner, Flügel of Volkswagen - Siemens cycling. Mandri shared the time with a large bunch of riders, but secured his 9th place with a strong finish in the eventual bunch sprint on the last stage of the race.

This performance gave Mandri 29 points on the continental rankings. Simon Richardson was also strong, taking a top-20 finish and with it, 9 points.