Cycling: Roulston enjoys a fresh start with the cream of the crop

For cyclist Hayden Roulston, the new year has brought with it a new team and plenty of fresh opportunities.

To start the year the Ashburton-born cyclist met six-time Tour de France champion, cancer survivor and team-mate Lance Armstrong.

Roulston left for the United States last week to start training in Solvang, California, with his Discovery Channel team-mates.

The team met for the first time at a launch in Washington, just 100m from the White House.

Roulston described Armstrong as the Tiger Woods of cycling in America.

At the launch Armstrong introduced himself to Roulston, who described the meeting as an honour.

Roulston said for all Armstrong had achieved, he was still just a normal guy.

"The team revolves around him, but that's just normal. He trains, he laughs, he eats and he sleeps - he's just one of us really."

He may be one of the boys, but while the team boarded a flight to Los Angeles, Armstrong took his private jet.

After finishing seventh in the madison at the Athens Olympics in August, Roulston's year was not all plain riding.

The 23-year-old was found guilty last month on two counts of assault on bar staff after an incident in Christchurch last June while celebrating his selection for the New Zealand Olympic cycling team.

Roulston decided to appeal as the case had the potential to jeopardise his contract with the Discovery Channel.

But those concerns appear to have been allayed since he started training.

The team have been split into two groups, with Roulston in the classics group and Armstrong in the tours group. Their days will consist of long training rides as they prepare for coming events.

Roulston's first big race will be the Tour of Langkawi in Malaysia, beginning on January 28.

His aim is to come out of the team's first camp feeling good and ready for anything.

While it was good to be back into training, Roulston said it was hard leaving Ashburton again.

"There's no place like home and leaving is the hardest thing."

The transition of teams had been smooth, and he said it was much easier to settle into the Discovery Channel team than it had been into the predominantly French-speaking Cofidis team.

- NZPA