For the past few days, VeloNews European correspondent Andrew Hood has been chasing feature stories on the Balearic Island of Mallorca, a big draw for professional cycling teams hoping to shake out their winter kinks under sunny skies.

Peter Van Petegem made his Quick Step-Innergetic debut on Sunday. The Belgian classics tough-man will be the

The Mallorca Challenge serves as an early season warm-up that boasts an unusual format, allowing riders to compete in individual races or to vie for an overall title. This weekend saw a victory by ace sprinter Oscar Freire, who hasn’t raced since August. The three-time world champion hopes for a big year after injuries have forced him to miss the 2005 and 2006 world’s.

The Challenge also marked the return of Phonak’s former rising star, Santiago Perez, who has just completed a two-year racing ban for illegal blood transfusions. He signed a deal with Relax-GAM and hopes to race the Vuelta a España later this year. While Hood has been concentrating his efforts on early season feature stories for VeloNews magazine, he did remember the web site and sent us a sample of photos from his flash drive as he jumped on a plane to head back to his home in León in Northern Spain.

Jose Luis Chechu Rubiera doesn't look too concerned that sponsor Discovery Channel is leaving at the end of th