Two years ago, in an adventure like Sam's, I came to live in another country for the first time, and it was two years ago this month that I first met Sam on a ride to Kulai.  On the SACA website, those rides were billed as training rides for the National Team, and the rest of us were allowed to go along.  Other National Teams of other nations might have resented the intrusion of foreign tourists on their training rides.  Instead, Sam was the guy making sure everybody else was OK.  His big smile and big appetite made a big impression that I still remember.  He and Lippy fixed a flat tire for me on our first ride together!  He somehow got my e-mail address and sent us all photos of the trip!  It is too easy for athletes with talent to think the world owes them something for it.

I came to cycling too late in life to take it too seriously as a sport, but through cycling, I have met many people, and made many good friends.  My cycling friends are all people who love the sport.  But I have also been privileged to met a very few cyclists who love the sport, share their enthusiasm for it with others, and who win races and set an example for the rest of us to follow.  But I know only one who would get up at 3:30 in the morning to set up for a race and then go on to win that race, smiling the whole time.  Sam has already figured out at a young age how to win at cycling and in life.

So my hope for you, Sam, is that you will find good friends and good luck in Australia as I did here in Singapore.  If you don't find them waiting for you when you arrive, I'm sure you will make your own friends and your own luck.  Singapore's loss--and we will feel it deeply--is Perth's gain.  Be prepared to learn about math and science and Australian food, but also be prepared to teach the many people you will meet who need your example and big smile.  For all you have taught me about success and sharing it with others, thank you.