Erik Dekker is the director for the Rabobank team, and already has his hands full with preparations for the upcoming season. Team building events and the team presentation need to be organized. The Dutchman is looking forward to an exciting season 2011 with his team.
Dekker says that things are going well for him this winter in the off-season. "This is a quiet period," he says in a video interview on the team's website. But there are still things to be organized. "The team building camp will take place end of November; the team presentation is on December 1 in Efteling. We will spend several nights there." Efteling is a large amusement park in the Netherlands, with hotels on the park's premises.
The riders are better off than Dekker this time of the season. "As a racer you really have vacation after the Cauberg clinic, two, three, or four weeks." The Cauberg clinic entered its tenth year when it was held on October 21, 2010. The clinic offers several events where the professionals are part of the team with non-racers. There is also a time trial up the famous Cauberg, the Amstel Gold Race finishes.
For Dekker, the period is not as busy as the season, but still not completely uneventful. "As a team director I can't really take off a long time. Racers will stop completely for a few weeks, at the end of October. But for us there are always things going on."
Dekker was happy with the way the team's new acquisitions. "On paper we did a good job on the transfer market. We lost Denis Menchov, but we got Luis León Sánchez. We are also very happy that Theo Bos is back, the only Dutch sprinter." Bos raced for the Rabobank Continental team in 2009, then switched to the Cervélo TestTeam for 2010. Dekker also says that other strong riders have joined the team. "The next season will be exiting!"
Many of the riders are already done with their break, and it is getting serious soon. "The team building will be a mix of power training, some riding and also non-cycling related events, such as the visit of a hockey game," says Dekker. The team, including Robert Gesink, Lars Boom, Oscar Freire, and Bram Tankink, will visit a hockey match between the Destil Trappers and the Heerenveen Flyers on Sunday.
Another important thing is the planning ahead. "We will also talk about things for the coming season," Dekker says, without revealing what these things exactly are. He can't give away too much before the bikes start rolling again.