Hansen back in Europe

After spending the off-season in Australia, Adam Hansen is back in Europe - and he's not really sure why. The Aussie's glad to be back, "despite the FREEZING cold! Doesn't make much sense to leave a perfectly weathered country to go riding your bike in the freezing cold of Europe," he wrote on his website, www.adamhansen.com. But he is looking forward to the Mallorca training camp of his new team, T-Mobile, and said he wasn't nervous. Not yet, anyway. "I think it's because I'm well prepared."

Europe may be cold, but Australia had its drawbacks, too. It seems that the wildlife isn't always cyclist-friendly. "You see in Australia we have these birds called magpies, and they like to swoop and try and attack cyclist's helmets. It's a common thing here, believe it or not. ... So here I am thinking that I wouldn't get attacked because of our magenta colour and I must admit, with the gloss over the top, it's quite bright, but, no, the other day I had a magpie that wanted a piece of it!"

Hansen wasn't the only pro in Australia, nor was he the only one with magpie problems. He ran into Gerolsteiner's Marcel Strauss in Cairns, and the two took a three-hour training ride together. "He was telling me about a magpie in Mareeba that attacked him. He was impressed by how aggressive it was!" Hansen was pleased to know he wasn't the only one with this experience. "I know some people in Europe wouldn't believe me when I tell this story, but to see a European experience it was ... funny!"