Free beemers and suite living on the eve of the Tour of Qatar opening team time trial

For the past few days, Team Slipstream’s eight riders and seven staff members have been hold up in the luxurious Ritz Carlton in Doha, Qatar. For the week, the massive hotel is also home to the other 16 pro cycling teams, professional golfers and race car drivers. Then there are the people who can actually afford the rooms, the kind that leave their BMWs and Mercedes unlocked and running the way the rest of us might leave a beater bike unwatched.

After several days of intense training on the flat, busy roads of Qatar, the extra comforts are welcome by the hard working riders. Chris Sutton and Julian Dean are holding on tight to their lavish suite, though the hotel is trying to transfer them to a regular room.

But don’t think for a minute that the boys are getting soft in Qatar. After previewing the 6-kilometer team time trial course, the team is focused and ready to show the cycling world the importance of argyle.

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s stage 1 team time trial update.