27. oktober 2011

Back to Teletubbies Flemish

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After a week in the Czech Republic , was it last Sunday (23.10.11 red) time for the second Worldcup, in Tabor. The course was super hard, with some long pure power uphill passages, runups and not specific technical, es was this time more about the power in the legs.

After a really nice week with sun and blue sky – very good training weather. On the race day, the sky was covered with clouds and the temperature was only around 3-4 but because of the absence of the sun it felt much colder. After some hot cross races, the weather for the first time was set up as a proper cyclo cross weather.

After a good result in the Worldcup in Plzen, I knew that I would have the power to perform well again. I knew that I have the power to finish within the timelimit, which was something that I really struggled with last year. This is really nice to know, and it gives me more confident when I’m riding. Unfortunately I did have my best start in Tabor, the girl in front of me never drive when the rest of the peloton took off. So there I was all the way back in the peloton just like last year, but I stayed calm and found the hulls and powered my way further ahead. This cost a lot of my strength and I could see a larger group of girls just 10 sec in front of my but I wasn’t able to close the gap. Even thought I really wanted to and tried. Despite that I’m very satisfied my 25 and the start of the season. I felt that I had the power to do better, but the season is still young.

Just two days after the WC in Tabor, it was time for racing again. Nacht van Woerden – my first ever night cyclo cross race. The start was set at 20:45 – normally a time where I’m relaxing with my computer talking to Jacob on skype. So it was really strange and for me difficult to get my body and mind in racing mode.

After a good start where I was around the top 10, I had a crash, which shook me a bite, and I need a couple of laps to shake it off me. But it I never ended feeling good on the course, and after 3 more small crashes I ended as number 18, after I for a while I had riding for the top 15. But now I think about the result now, it was ok, I had an off day and still ended up as 18.

The last two days has gone with resting and taking care of my body, watching a lot of Flemish Cartoons in order to pick up some more Flemish. I really need that to get focused and relaxed again. Next races on the menu are the Superprestige in Zonhoven and the famous Koppenberg cross.

Thanks to Luc Van Der Meiren for the great pictures.

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19. oktober 2011

Czech Republic

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How do you "measure/describe" the size of a city? I tried yesterday to explain to my boyfriend, what the city where we are staying was like. Everything here in Czech is just a little bite different then back home. This city we live in, feels more like a small village because everything is so squeezed together. I took a walk today, and discovered 3-4 bigger supermarkets, restaurants, a gymnasium, an emergency, -I think it was clinic of some kind but, I don't read Chech, which I also tried to tell the policemen who locked my car in Plzen... But that's a hole different story.

So back to the original story, we live in an apparently medium size city, just about 20km from Tabor where next worldcup will

couple of days.be held this Sunday. The area for training here is great, you got like rolling hills, small roads without all the cars, forests and to top it all we had great sunshine and blue sky the first

If I turn the time back a bite. Then I arrived after 8 hours of driving in Plzen late Thursday evening, and quickly put the bike together and headed out for an easy spin, thinking that time was only 18:30, so I easily could get an 1 hour of spin, but after only 30min of riding, the dark came sneaking around the corner and I had to go back to the hotel. But hey 45 min is better then nothing right??
I knew the worldcup course from last year, where I didn't perform the best, we all know how last year was. With this in mind, I did my warm- up the trainer sunday. That this year I wanted it to be different! And after an okay start from 4row I found myself in the
top 25, after the experience in Ruddervoorde wo I just push the pedals way to hard to first 2 laps and then got too tired the final laps. Instead of I tried to take it as easy as you can when you are riding a worldcup the first 2 laps. Just staying in the windshelter from the other girls, as some
of them got more and more tired I could keep my speed
and overtook a few, so that I could sprint up hill to the finishline with my first top25!

It was such a great feeling seeing that I was the last one coming over the finishline, for the first time i 2 year, I didn't have to fight to make it to the final lap and I wasn't last when I finally crossed it. All this really motivated for me for the next worldcup in Tabor on Sunday, hopefully I can make another good result, but most importantly I had great FUN while riding and I keep on reminding me, that is all that matters this season.

I'm gonna end this blog post with some good pictures vibes from the area.
















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7. oktober 2011

Hot summer in the city!

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I know, there's been a while since I did my last blog post, but so many things have happened during the last 1½ month. First and most important the cyclo cross season has begone :-) and it was with some butterflies flying around in my stomach that I started the my season in Baden. Now all that training had come to the first test. I could feel already when I did the warmup that it would be a hard race because I still had 3 weeks trainingcamp in my legs, and besides that the course was super hard and great. Despite that I ended in the top 10 with a solid 9th. so it was a good start at the season.

This season I have told my self that I what to ride to my max everytime, just keep on pushing my self. I just want to ride free and enjoy it. Last year still stands as a very clear example of how I do NOT want this season to be like. So this year it's all about the fun of cycling! With this in mind I pack our car for 5 months of living and cycling in Belgium and rode after only 4 days home to Belgium. 2 days later I stood once again on Belgium ground waiting for the whistle to blow.

It was 30 degrees, full sun, no wind - perfect for a training day on the road - NOT for racing cycle cross. I have done these kind of super summer hot cyclo cross races before, and it's tough, really hard work. There is good reason why cross riders in december is riding in skinsuit, and shorts... The weather for next race on sunday looks more like a decent cross weather.

After the race in Kalmthout my boyfriend went back home to DK, so now I'm all alone a big house. Luckily some funny Danish guys have invented something call skype! We like, indeed we like, it saves me for a huge phone bill. :-) When the budget is low, you can do the math. It's nice.
As the intelligent reader you are, you have properly noticed that I don't have the fancy pink clothing any more. 2 month before the season took off I was told that the team couldn't provide me with new and smaller bikes, because that didn't know whether they were gonna close or what would happen. So all of a suddenly I had to start from zero and rebuilt my entire cyclo cross season. I got new cyclo cross frames from a german manufactore http://www.brothers-bikes.de/. The bikes works great, really good handling and I like the aggressive geometry.

This year I'll be riding for my Danish club http://www.bovcc.dk/index.asp?DocumentID=738 - therefor the new blue and white color combination. So new season, new bikes, new clothing - it's gonna be fun ride - looking forward to it.

But stay tuned, now the action start -cyclo cross is here!!


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