Although it was the same number of races last year during Christmas, this year it felt like a lot less racing. Why is that? Perhaps different races, one extra world cup, not having 2 races the first weekend here, not being lost all the time, having Tim here and going to races for him. Who knows??? But yesterday was my 5th race since arriving and the last one for a while. And a really good day to have a rest, because I woke up to this:
Since I already wrote a race report for Tervuren for Cyclocross magazine, you can go and read it here. I also have a post at Monavie-Cannondale.com. It was fast and furious and way too cold. In fact, the body of water next to the course had ice skaters, walkers and even a few bikes on it. It must have been frozen pretty deep. I guess that is why it is snowing today!!! At least it waited for today, although it may have been fun to race in the snow! The BEST part of the race was Family Thijs. This is Katie Compton's host family, but they have adopted me since she is back in Colorado. Their daughter was racing too, so I was lucky enough to have the best support out there. THANK YOU FAMILY THIJS!
My euro cx campaign has been pretty average thus far. The biggest difference I feel this year is that I actually care how I do. Last year it was just an adventure. There was no pressure. I started every race in the back (for the most part) and I just did what I could. Granted, I always want to do well, and I had a pretty good go. This year, I came with a different objective and actual goals. So far, I have not achieved them. But, I have learned a lot, pushed hard and hopefully this will set me up for a great race in Hoogerheide. New experiences I have had so far: breaking a chain. That is no fun! But I still finished the world cup in 35th and squeaked out an additional 25 uci points. Lesson learned. NEVER quit. (Don't think I didn't think about it as I was running forever.) I have made some stupid mistakes, but they are in the past. That is all part of racing. The courses have been frozen and fast this year with a lack of any mud (except for Luxemburg), so a much different kind of racing. But, through it all, I still had fun. I really enjoy riding and racing my bike! Meeting new people, signing autographs and giving away trading cards, and when it all said and done, as long as you are having fun, it is all worth it! Thanks for reading! I will keep you updated on the fun times here in Belgium!
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