"The ice is broken" for Jan Tratnik after transfer from Visma | Lease a Bike to Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe

Through a personal blog, Tratnik keeps his fans updated on his journey. "New season, new team, first race: Etoile de Bessèges. I have to admit that I had a very successful winter preparation, as everything went according to plan. I completed all my training sessions successfully, without any health issues."

"It was my first time competing in the Etoile de Bessèges, and I had high expectations," says the trusted domestique of Primož Roglič. I knew I was well-prepared and wanted to compete for the general classification."

"In the first two stages, everything went according to plan," Tratnik reflects. "The team and I didn’t make any mistakes, so I was looking forward to the next stages. However, due to poor organization of road closures, we were faced with cars on the course in the first two stages. In the second stage, we were lucky to spot a car in time and managed to react and brake safely." Tratnik avoided trouble, but his new teammate Maxim Van Gils wasn’t as fortunate, crashing into the roadside and being forced to abandon the race.

"After several meetings with the race organizers, we still started the third, rainy stage," he continues. "Unfortunately, the same issue occurred again just 10 kilometers into the race. At that point, the entire peloton stopped and protested."

"I won’t lose too much words on what went wrong, but I always put safety first and didn’t want to take unnecessary risks," Tratnik explains. "The team supported our decision, which meant that the race was over for us."

And so, Tratnik returned home, but with a sense of peace and renewed motivation for the races ahead. "Despite everything, the race was a good stepping stone into the new season, as I broke the ice with my new team and got used to riding in the peloton again. Now, a few tough training sessions await me, followed by the Volta ao Algarve—a race I have nice memories of from last season," he writes, referring to his third-place finish in Portugal.

After the Volta ao Algarve, Tratnik's schedule includes Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Strade Bianche, before he joins team leader Primož Roglič for the bigger goals later in the season.