Rainy Days

Today was definitely considered a rain day. I decided I would ride into the Netherlands again and venture further across the border and closer to the coastline. My route today would take me to Breskens, Netherlands. I had a great night sleep followed by a nice breakfast of Muesli and bananas and a cup of coffee. Oh it was so hot and tasty! (If only I knew that’s all I would be thinking about the entire ride.) During breakfast I could hear the pitter patter of the rain on the skylights and see nothing but grey outside. So automatically I knew I would have to pull out the rain coat and heavy duty booties. I was mentally ready for the day. I met my teammate, Casey, downstairs, as we would begin our rides together but split up after we arrived in Sluis, Netherlands. We pulled the bikes off the hooks, opened the garage door, and headed on out splitting puddles, spraying rooster tails, and leaving narrow tire tracks on the wet pavement. Within the first 20 minutes my shoes were filled with water and my entire backside was soaked from the bottom of my raincoat down. It was okay for a while but I knew I still had another 3 hours and 40 minutes of being uncomfortable. The ride went well; Casey and I chatted and joked around until I had to begin my intervals just a few kilometers before Sluis. Once we crossed the Sluis town sign we said our goodbye and wished each other a good rest of the ride. Onto Breskens.

Once I was by myself it seemed as though I noticed the wet and cold a little more; constantly wiping my lenses, water dripping from the brim of my cycling cap, feet sloshing, gloves slightly squishy, spray, grit, and sand ricocheting off my down tube and coming to rest on my shins and shoe covers, and my face feeling slightly cold from the wind. But I pressed on following the signs to Oostburg which would then take me to Schoondijke and finally to Breskens.

I rode along narrow bike paths easily distinguished with bike signs and arrows. The paths were completely covered with a sheet of water which created a sheen in which I could look down and see my silhouette staring back at me. Looking out you see nothing but green fields, flooded wetland areas, and grey skies with unrelenting rain. This was about the time I began to think about that wonderful cup o Joe. How nice it would be to have a little warmth in my belly. After following the bicycle signs to Breskens, I found that the bike path would come to an end and leave me riding through a neighborhood. By this time I was too cold and wet to want to explore, so I turned around and began my trek back home. I followed the same route back to conclude my 4 hour ride. Nothing too spectacular to tell; I just wanted to share what the weather and riding is like, the majority of the time in Belgium, as I sip on this wonderful cup of coffee.

Challenge de Hesbaye-Trognee

Once again it is my off day and time to write in the blog. This weekend consisted of preparing for the UCI 1.12 Challenge de Hesbaye-Trognee race in Eastern Belgium. I spent Saturday evening packing my race gear into my travel bag and carbo loading the rest of the time. Sunday morning would soon come around where I would wake up at 6 in the morning and begin my pre-race routine of eating breakfast (Muesli cereal with bananas and 6 pieces of toast with jam). When I was stumbling around in the morning I couldn’t help but notice the snow covered windows. A small skiff of snow had blanketed the roof tops around Hertsberge during the night. The morning sunrise was scattered with pillow like clouds and blue sky was exposing itself. We loaded up the van around 8:15 and began our 2 hour drive to Trognee. On the way I would take a small nap until 9 o’clock rolled around where I, again, would eat 2 egg baguette sandwiches.

We arrived at the race start in the middle of small Trognee, a French speaking town, where we would park and go to a small heated tent to change. We spent about 30 minutes staying warm and changing into our race gear until we decided, as a team, to go back to the van to pin our race numbers on and to begin our warm up. After finishing the smaller tasks before the race, we began to spin around on the straight stretch through town. The weather was beautiful with blue skies, no clouds, little wind, but chilly. Smoke, billowing from chimneys in the distance, was rising vertically. It’s a rare sight to not see it streaking across the horizon. Soon we would line up for our neutral start where I made my way to the front, 2 rows back from the lead vehicle.

The race began at noon. The neutral start was typical with riders passing the lead vehicle and guys jockeying for position. I managed to keep my position through the entire neutral section not allowing any other riders to fill small gaps in front of me. The official racing began approximately 3 km after we pulled away from the start line. That is when the peloton would string out in the front and echelon to the sides. Staying up front was a challenge but the energy you save, when in the right position, is a great deal. I would stay toward the front until the first long descent that began at about 25 km. I lost a few spots as we made our way through small towns avoiding traffic control devices and parked cars. We then hit the first big climb of the day where I felt strong and would move up quite a few spots, but not enough. The peloton would split and I found myself in a group of about 40 guys working together to chase the tail end of the main group. We pursued the group for about 20 km and caught them at the beginning of the next climb. Once again, I could not pass enough guys on the long ascent and the peloton would string out and fracture even more. I was once again in a group of 25-30 guys trying to chase, but we never caught them the rest of the race. We rode as a small group until we reached the local laps. We went through for one lap and then we were pulled as the main peloton was approaching quickly behind us. I made it 135 km of the 154 km race.

I almost finished, however it was a learning experience and I’m feeling better as I participate in each race. I learned, once again, that position is everything. If you’re not at the front holding your spot, you take the risk of never staying in the main peloton as breaks and splits occur. I have to practice not being nervous or anxious before and during races and just make sure I am always in the right position. My goal for the next race will be to stay at the front no matter what and to finish in the top 20. I think I am physically capable of doing such a task but I will force myself to overcome the mental aspects that dampen my racing potential. As always, it’s important to take as much experience and wisdom from each race and use that toward the next one. Just have to keep working and training (which includes just as much mental as physical) and eventually it will all come together. On that note, I’m gonna go rest some more and get ready for the training week ahead.

Gettin' ready for Sunday

Today was spent riding the bicycle for 2 hours easy, doing some laundry, and cleaning the ol bike hiding from the vindictive weather that has been blowing through for the past week. The last few days I have ridden through some fickle weather consisting of sunshine, clouds, rain, hail, and of course wind. The weather around Belgium tends to tease you quite a bit giving you a sense of liveliness one moment then dejection the next. It isn’t too bad; it just keeps riding very interesting and fun. Thursday was the only time where I would take shelter on the rollers only to observe, out the window, that it turned out to be a delightful day. But I did need to recover and have a nice spin so I wasn’t too displeased with the dry pavement and sunshine that I saw.

So now I am just recovering and preparing myself for the race this Sunday, the Challenge de Hesbaye-Trognee. I have been sleeping more consistently and my legs are feeling better from the training this week. My goal for this race will be to keep my position and finishing the race. The forecast calls for harsh weather consisting of rain, wind, and snow to compliment the name of the race. I am looking forward to it and will let you know how it goes. That’s all for now, tot ziens!

Training ride to Sluis

So today I had my first ride since my first race in Europe. It was a nice endurance ride with Evan and Casey in which we encountered beautiful scenery and some crazy weather. We decided yesterday evening that we would ride to Sluis in Zeelandic Flanders in the south-western part of the Netherlands. The ride there consisted of decent weather with some clouds and a slight headwind. But soon we would come face to face with an ominous dark cloud. It would decide to drop a little rain and hail on us as we looked over a bus stop map. But we decided to press on and find our way across the border. On our way we passed the town of Damme and connected to a canal road lined with tall leafless trees.

We passed little ducks and people catching fish. It was also the perfect place to do my intervals for the day considering it was such a long straight stretch of road. The slight headwind would also aid in my 1 minute efforts. After doing a couple intervals, we would come to the town of Sluis. It was a quaint little town in which we would enter on a small road of cobbles. It consisted of small shops and restaurants in which people were casually strolling along side. Small table areas were placed outside each restaurant in which people could gaze at the public walking by. We also saw a fascinating wind mill at the edge of town. There are so many details incorporated in every building. We would eventually take refuge under an awning from the heavy rain and grab a quick cup of espresso for the ride and intervals to return home.

After a couple minutes with our delicious warm cup of coffee we would begin our ride toward Brugge which would be the end of our ride and the beginning of our cool down back to Hertsberge. On the way we were once again met by that dark cloud in which it would pelt our faces and ears with hail. I couldn’t help but laugh hysterically as we road on with our heads turned down trying to protect our exposed skin. OUCH!!! Even a lady passing by would let out a little giggle at us. Eventually, it cleared up and we approached the town of Brugge. We rode through the middle of town, to connect to the roads taking us to Hertsberge, in which I had to snag a couple photos.

After finally getting through town we would finish our ride in Hertsberge only to begin the routine of washing our bikes and eating. Overall, it was a great ride in which I was able to see amazing views, ride with some great teammates, and get my workout in for the day.

Paris-Troyes

Today is my rest day, so I decided I would compose a blog during my recovery. This weekend would begin with excitement and some nerves. Saturday was spent packing all my race gear and necessities for the UCI 1.2 Paris-Troyes road race. I would frantically run around my room packing all my shorts, shoes, jerseys, warm clothes, cold clothes, and what have you into my number 4 issued race traveling case. After completing what seemed to be such an arduous task, I would go downstairs and help pack the bikes and gear as well as ourselves into the team vehicles.

As with my traveling to Europe, I obtained my window seat which is where I would make my groove for the next 3.5 hours to France. The drive went well. On the way, you can’t help but notice that all the drivers in Europe share driving qualities known as respect and courteousness. Nobody blocks traffic in the fast lane, everyone moves over if you speed up toward there bumper, and there is just one steady speed that you can maintain while driving the freeways. It’s AMAZING!!! I still have to experience the driving in bigger cities, but so far I am quite impressed. While gazing out my window, looking past those courteous drivers, you also notice the beautiful landscape as you drive through France. It is nothing but green rolling fields with castles and aged stone churches scattered about. Each church had a small village distributed from the center and then farmland separating the towns.

We eventually arrived at the hotel which seemed to come around quite soon from our departure from Belgium. When arriving at the hotel, I did not know what I was in store for. We unloaded our luggage from the back of the van and approached the small square shaped hotel with enthusiasm. Off in the distance was an amazing view of an old church where you could see all the flying buttresses and weathered stone used to erect it. When we went inside the hotel, we did our usual check in and went to our rooms. We typed in our own 6 digit combinations and would open the door and let out a little giggle, “Three of us our going to fit in there”. Beds were called immediately and we knew it would be a comfortable cozy night. The picture describes a lot.

After getting slightly situated in the room we headed out for dinner. We were going to go to a Moroccan restaurant but decided the spices might be a bit too much, so we ended up going to a Flunch. I wasn’t sure what it was really, but once you go in you realize it is a little buffet restaurant with amazing pictures of the dishes that the meal you receive does not match. Oh well, its fuel.

We finished our dinners and would return to the hotel to begin our slumber. The hotel rooms were quite small and did not have any bathrooms or showers in them. Those were located in the hallway like the good ‘ol college dorm days. They reminded me of small faded yellow porta-potties only much cleaner. Sooo anyways, the guys I was rooming with and I began a movie and then decided to pass out for the evening. Sleep went well until 2 o’clock came around. I was up for about 2 to 3 hours just thinking about the race and other random thoughts churning through my brain (can’t really remember what they were). I would fall asleep, finally, and then have to wake up at 6:45 in the AM.

Eating time began at 7:00 AM, in which the team strolled out into the lobby area for some baguettes, cereal, and some toast. It was actually quite delicious. I think I went through 8 baguettes, 2 bowls of cereal, a banana, and lots of jam, mmm. We then went back to the room where we would rest up a little more and my roommates and I would finish the movie we began the previous night. Anne and Bernard rolled up around 8 or 9 in which they brought even more food for us to eat. 9 o’clock was the official time to eat again, in which we each had a large bowl of plain pasta. I was definitely full by the end. We then got all dressed for the race that began at 12:30.

After packing our luggage and getting the bikes all ready, we set off to our race start destination. The rain began to fall and the flags outside were extended out horizontally. We all knew it was going to be an interesting day. We arrived in the parking lot which was about 7 kilometers from the hotel. We gathered as a team and went to sign in on the stage. The French announcer was talking about the race and teams, I presume, as we went up the stairs and scribbled our signatures down next to our names. We stood in a line, looking as professional as we could be as random citizens would snap photos. By this time I was getting very ancy to begin the race and was trying to bring myself at ease with all the professional and amateur teams scurrying around the parking lot. Once it was closer to the start time we grabbed our bikes and rode up and down the start stretch road. One last leak next to a tree and we were off to get our starting position for the neutral start. As we waited for them to send us off, several people were in front of the peloton shaking hands and hugging most likely sharing thank yous and all that jazz. I couldn’t tell, I was too far to hear anything. After the lead car pulled up it was just moments after they sent us off. The race has begun.

The neutral start was chaos to say the least. Riders were passing the lead car, people weaving in and out of riders to jockey for position. I was comfortable as could be and relaxed, since I was forewarned about the aggressiveness of European riding. Before I knew it, within 500 meters of the start, a guy pulled right in front of my front wheel. My tire tapped his wheel until it basically was stuck to it and I could not get my balance to pull right. Instead of him stopping or moving back left, he did the opposite and kept moving right, most likely unaware that my wheel was in his rears presence. There was nothing I could do as his rear wheel pulled my front right out from under me and I went down taking a couple of my teammates out with me. It was both humiliating and demoralizing. All I know is that it wasn’t my fault, I DID NOT PANIC, or hit my brakes as I have been in that situation before in my 9 years of racing. It’s simple, he took out my front wheel with an unexpected move. I was quite distraught about it. But I got up as fast as I could and received a new front wheel, since I sustained a front flat, and would press on to catch up with the peloton to begin the actual race. When I caught up we would soon be at another stop in the cold, rainy, unforgiving weather. My side was quite achy and I already knew my difficult day has only begun. After about 5 minutes of just standing, we began our race with the sound of a vehicle horn. It was an insane pace where the throttle was down and you were pacing and drafting behind guys trying not to lose position and hide from that ever insulting headwind. It seemed impossible to move up during the first 30 minutes of the race. I would pass a few guys here and there then they would pass me. It was exhausting. I could not put anymore power into the pedals as I was pushed all the way to the nose of my saddle squeezing every ounce of energy out of my legs. I would stay with the pack for about an hour yo-yoing from the back and going through the caravan until I finally popped after passing a couple small towns. I would be by myself for a while until a teammate eventually joined me. We rode together for a while until a small group of riders being followed by the broom wagon (sag wagon) would join us. As they approached, a voice yelled out, “Welcome to Europe boys”! Oh he hit the head of the nail on that one. We would ride together for another couple of hours until, eventually, I could not go anymore again. I was stuck riding climbs and rollers in my big ring the whole day due to a malfunction from the crash. I was then by myself with the sag wagon until I was able to meet up with our team van in one of the feed zones. I pulled off completely upset and demolished from my first European racing experience. Anne gave me a bottle and some food and told me to change and get warm. Once I finally was settled in the back seat, I had a slight breakdown. I was a little frustrated at the fact that I hate quitting and just being completely disappointed with my performance. Anne and Noel would then comfort me and make me feel better. Thanks guys! I regained my composure and would watch the rest of the race from the sidelines hoping everyone else was doing better than I had done. After Anne and Noel finished feeding the guys still at the head of the race, we drove to the finish. We were greeted with a parking spot close to the finish line. There were people everywhere, huddled around the stage and finish line. Drummers were banging away and dancing and BMXers were jumping around on their make-shift spray painted ramp. The guys finally came through, and would grab their luggage to take showers. We all ate some more food that Anne had prepared for us and drank 3 bottles of various supplemental fluids. It was time to recharge the mind and body. After everyone had come through the finish and were all changed we began our drive back home to Hertsberge, Belgium. We finished off the night with a plate of lasagna and a night of deep sleep.

I think the biggest thing I took from my first European racing experience is that there are a lot of good riders out there. European racing is so much faster and aggressive. Belgian racing is an all out effort right as the gun sounds. It's a business here for riders. Pain and suffering is the way of life in cycling in Belgium. I learned that I need to stick to the front to save energy and just try as hard as I can. Neutral starts really aren’t neutral. I think they are more of a race than anything. I have to be more aggressive and put on my mean face when it comes to jockeying for position. But I think I got a lot of nerves out of the way getting my first race here over with. I know what to expect now and will be ready for the next one. You just have to pick yourself back up and give it your all the next time with what you have learned. There’s always room for improvement! You can’t always have astonishing results but you can always learn from your experiences.

New Place New Adventures

So I arrived in Hertsberge, Belgium on Wednesday. The traveling here consisted of being slightly nervous, excited, sad and ecstatic, confused, hurried, and so many other feelings that ran through my brain. To begin, my trip began in Redmond, Oregon where I experienced going through security and waiting for my plane on my own for the first time. I must say I felt a little flushed saying goodbye to my mom and giving her a hug goodbye right before I would continue on through the metal detector. I then waited for an hour until my small plane would arrive and spin its propellers up to the gate entrance. As I entered the plane, I took a deep breath and said goodbye to the mountains, Bend, my family, and my girlfriend. The takeoff was smooth and the flight attendant was very friendly and made for a comfortable flight. After sulking for about 30 minutes in the window seat, I became more excited as I approached San Francisco International airport. The landing, again was smooth, and finding my way to the next security station and gate in San Fran seemed to go with ease. I arrived at my gate and would have five hours to mull over the idea of leaving all my comfort behind in America. Needless to say I phoned my girlfriend, Meg, and my parents quite a bit while patiently waiting. After trying to avoid nodding off for the last hour, my seat was called to board the plane. Again, I took a deep breath, and excitement took over. I thought to myself, “Wow, I can’t believe I am going to be flying across the ocean. Such a large body of water”! Our takeoff was during darkness, so watching the runway speed by as I was pulled back into my seat was near to none. Just a bunch of blurry, colorful dots speckled the darkness. San Francisco is so beautiful at night. So many orange lights and grids packed into that bay area. During the first hour of the flight we encountered some turbulence, but I was not too concerned since I was so content with watching my new fave move, JUNO! I would watch the film and have a nice little packaged dinner then fall asleep. That was seriously the most uncomfortable, back wrenching night sleep I have ever had. I seriously need to help contribute to the public and invent a more comfortable sleeping seat for airplanes in the ECONOMY section. I would wake up at 4 am Bend time and notice that it was so sunny outside my window. OY! I arrived in London 20 minutes earlier than expected and got to go through security yet again. I learned to just follow the signs around the airport and everything will be okay. I also got to take a bus to get to my next terminal. That was soooo cool considering it was my first time driving on the left side of the road; legally. I then found my gate, again, and was greeted my two very nice English flight attendants. I boarded the plane an hour later and would be on my way to Belgium. Almost there!!! After napping, I woke up and there was only 10 minutes till our landing. When we got there I was able to collect my luggage easily and cruise right on through customs. Now the interesting part!

I was able to get to the train quite easily but, getting on the correct train was a different story. I hopped on the first train that came through the central station and scurried to find someone that spoke English. I found a man and wife about in their 50’s who took me under their wing and would eventually tell me that I was on the wrong train, but going in the right direction. We got off the current train and they told me exactly what to do and which train to get on after waiting at the station. They eventually met their train and were delighted enough with me that they gave me a business card to call them if I ever were to be visiting Brugge. My first friends here in Europe! I finally found my correct train and would click along the tracks until my final stop in Tielt, Belgium.

I would wait there for my team director, Bernard, to pick me up. He met me about 20 minutes later right as the train station closed and shuffled me out the door. We made our little narrow road drive on to the JBCA house where I was given my room and would begin my cycling aspirations.