Belgian Vice-Champion Wesley is the Ozonys team’s No. 2 rider. He is in the world top ten and finished in seventh place in the 2009 World Cup after Finishing on the podium in Rotorua. In 2009 he was riding an Ozonys XR 26 and a Cannibal Black.
For a few weeks he has been riding the new Curve 26, putting it through its paces in the Middle-East, where he put on a series of shows at the Tour du Qatar and the Tour d’Oman with his brother Kenny (The brothers Belaey in the Middle-East). A few days ago he sent us a collection of photos of him riding his curve at an artificial training spot. We took the opportunity to ask him a few questions about his bike, his 2009 season and his goals for 2010…
Interview:
Here’s the interview, carried out on the 11th March…
Jébegood: Hi Wesley ! To begin with, congratulations on what you and your brother achieved with Extreme TV, it was crazy! You’ve both done something incredible for the sport. What are your memories from this fabulous experience?
Wesley: Hi, and thanks, but all credit goes to my brother for the show. He worked day and night on the project and it turned into something fantastic for our sport. We had great feedback from all over the world, which is really cool. I didn’t make it to the US or Hawaii as I had shows in France for Safety Jogger at the time.
Jébegood: How was your 2009 season? You’re the Belgian Vice-Champion, in the UCI top ten and seventh in Europe. Did it all go well for you?
Wesley: I can’t say that I’m not happy, the top ten in the world is the top ten in the world, but my real goal is to make it into the top five. There are a lot of riders for who this is a goal though! I’m going to give it my best though, don’t doubt that!
Jébegood: So your goals for 2010 are to ride as many comps as possible to get into the top five?
Wesley: Yeah, my main goal is to enter the World Cups, but this may be difficult, as I have plenty of shows planned for this year and it may turn out that I can only make it to a couple of rounds… I’ll have to do a lot of planning!
Jébegood: How is your preparation going? Do you train with Kenny every day?
Wesley: Well, I’m feeling good on my bike; I had the chance to keep training indoors over the winter while it was snowing outside. That was really good for me, as all we did was go bigger and bigger. And no, I don’t ride with Kenny every day; it’s not always possible as he’s really busy with everything that he’s got on and the fact that he’s his own manager. He’s just got home after five weeks of demos, it’s crazy!
Jébegood: Wow, that is crazy! You’re currently riding the Curve… What do you think of it? Better then your previous Ozonys bikes? We tested one for Trial Mag and were impressed by how well it sidehops! Can you tell us a bit about your impressions of your new bike?
Wesley: It’s easily one of the best bikes that I’ve ever had. It’s really light, and thanks to the high BB there’s plenty of clearance, you don’t have to keep checking to make sure your bash isn’t going to touch anything. Sidehops are really easy on this bike thanks to its short wheelbase. It reacts super-quickly and you can throw the bike about with ease. I like it a lot better than the XR because it’s shorter, making it fell a bit like a 20”. My bike’s built with V!Z parts, which are top quality, despite the low prices. It’s a real comp machine!
Jébegood: What do you think about 24” for natural?
Wesley: To be honest, I don’t quite know what to make of the arrival of 24”s on the com scene. I think that two categories is already enough, when I watch my dad setting sections I realise that it’s really hard to set a competition that is good for both 20” and 26” riders. If we add 24” into the mix, setting sections would be a nightmare! I think 24”s are best left to the street riders.
Jébegood: You were in Qatar and Oman not long ago, how was that? Did you meet any trials riders?
Wesley: Ha ha, no, not really. The first week, Kenny and I were in Qatar for the Tour du Qatar, a road cycling competition in which some of the best cyclists in the world were riding. This year was the fifth time that I’ve been to Qatar, so it wasn’t all that new for me. But the following week we flew to Oman, and that was completely different. At each of our shows there were about 500 spectators. And it’s such a beautiful country, which I wasn’t expecting. I can’t wait to go back next year!
Jébegood: How many times a week do you connect to Tribal Zine? What do you think of the site, good, or really good? ;-)
Wesley: I go on the Tribal Zine site every day, there’s always something new and interesting to see or read.
Jébegood: OK! Thanks for letting us talk to you and for the interest that you bring to the zine. All the best on your Curve and for 2010! See you soon!
Wesley: Cheers, see you soon!
Wesley in training:
Wes’ in training on his Curve on the 29th March, on some pretty big concrete obstacles…
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