Great ****. The olden days were ace.
https://www.prendas.co.uk/blogs/news/safir-team-at-the-giro-ditalia
https://www.prendas.co.uk/blogs/news/safir-team-at-the-giro-ditalia
Nice, i'm racing in Aalst in about 3 hours
Might see if I can get some money from that brewery!
Nah should be right mate
Raced near Kortrijk on sunday, finished basically last in what was left of the main bunch. 3 hours of red lining it in 35 degree heat. Hopefully I go ok back home after getting my **** kicked over here for 2 months!
I'm bored of cars. Let's try boats.
View: https://youtu.be/Rnjkgm6EdkU
View: https://youtu.be/oKEd3ro3Z4I
View: https://youtu.be/Rnjkgm6EdkU
View: https://youtu.be/oKEd3ro3Z4I
Yeah mate, done a few and getting my **** absolutely kicked. A few of the guys here might know a bit more about racing here than I do (@classic1 ?), it's way different to home. The depth at any race is mind blowing, pretty much everyone starting is a hitter (except me) and capable of winning. Fields are normally 100+ with a rolling road closure and good size crowds. All they do is attack, every corner, every hill, every crosswind - attack attack attack. It's like racing a 3 hour criterium but with twisty winding narrow little roads with really **** surfaces. Every race i've done has been won from a break.
I've come over here reasonably fit, i'm down to about 74kg, 6-700km weeks most of the year, my threshold power is 372 watts and I can ride 300-330 watts for hours on end. But i've found every race harder than anything i've done back home and usually by mid way i'm down the back in the gutter redlining it trying to hold the wheel in front of me.
I'm going to try getting in some early breaks next week, hopefully that suits my strengths better. If not, i'll just keep plugging away.
Also if i'm lucky toward the end of the month i'll get a start in a few pro kermesses. The club I'm a member of here has a full calendar in late july/aug and will be running short of good enough riders
will keep you guys posted if you're interested.
That's very interesting to hear. Please keep us up to date on your exploits.
I have wondered about the race scene in Flanders. Is there racing for people of more modest ability?
I can just picture the racing. The back roads are so narrow and there are so many intersections and changes of direction that positioning must be everything and that's hard to do in a big field of strong riders.
Are you in Oudenaarde?
I have wondered about the race scene in Flanders. Is there racing for people of more modest ability?
I can just picture the racing. The back roads are so narrow and there are so many intersections and changes of direction that positioning must be everything and that's hard to do in a big field of strong riders.
Are you in Oudenaarde?
It'll come. The speed there is the killer. You'll need a couple more races to adapt to the higher rythmn and get that speed in your legs, plus navigating big bunches, but it will come. They aren't supermen and youre a good bike rider. I've seen you race years ago, huge potential, and you'll learn to relax in the big bunches and move up using the wheel moving past.
****, even in amateur opens here I used to need to ride at least one before I could adapt to the higher speed. Flogging around Gippsland combines with 30-40 riders got you fit and the racing here was hard as **** sometimes, but I'd front up at wodonga in April or May racing blokes who'd been riding vfl park crits in 100 up fields. When I was younger I wasn't great in big bunches or positioning on the track either, but I raced bugger all after 1990. I think I was better at that **** when I raced half a track season in 1992 or 1993 and again in 2000-2001.
I heard Rik Flood say the step from amateur in Aus to amateur in Europe was huge and even he took a while to adapt. Then I think he won Paris-Troyes or something but he was a gun and riding with ACBB..... He also reckoned the jump from amateur to pro in Europe was like the jump from U16 to pro in Australia!
****, even in amateur opens here I used to need to ride at least one before I could adapt to the higher speed. Flogging around Gippsland combines with 30-40 riders got you fit and the racing here was hard as **** sometimes, but I'd front up at wodonga in April or May racing blokes who'd been riding vfl park crits in 100 up fields. When I was younger I wasn't great in big bunches or positioning on the track either, but I raced bugger all after 1990. I think I was better at that **** when I raced half a track season in 1992 or 1993 and again in 2000-2001.
I heard Rik Flood say the step from amateur in Aus to amateur in Europe was huge and even he took a while to adapt. Then I think he won Paris-Troyes or something but he was a gun and riding with ACBB..... He also reckoned the jump from amateur to pro in Europe was like the jump from U16 to pro in Australia!
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We were in Oudenaarde for the first few weeks, now we're up the river a few Km in a smaller town called Gavere then at the end of july we move across the river to Zingem. Oudenaarde is def the place to be, there are 4 or 5 aussie teams staying there right now.
There is a great bunch ride that leaves Gent every day at 9am Scheldepeloton (http://inrng.com/2014/01/schelde-river-path-fietspad/) I'll often do it for a couple of hours then go do my own thing in the hills or do it on a recovery day. There are usually a few pros and it can turn into a mock race. Today Laurens De Vreese from Astana was there for about 70km. I sat in the wheels all day and my ave. HR was about 100bpm. Average speed on today's ride was 38kph - so it's as hard or as easy as you want to make it. It's also the best way to meet some locals, besides going to a pub
.On the weekend they go up through the hard as fark bergs, it's the most nuts bunch ride i've ever done, it's hard and as close to a race as you can get without being in one. The cannondale team drilled it for 120km a couple of weeks ago and the 200 or so at the start was down to about 25 at the end.
Racing wise, i'm not sure. I'm only doing amature elite races, i'm told they're much harder to win than NRS races back home and also harder than domestic pro races in the USA. However, I've got NFI if that's a good comparison or not. One thing's for sure, they hurt me a lot.
There are also masters or Gentleman's races, they're usually about half the length of elite races and you'd get around those OK. The few i've seen are split into riders under 40 and 40+. It doesn't look too different to vets or masters back home and generally between 15 to 30 riders in each race. Any old guys who are any good race the elites.
The races are all on circuits that are between 4 and 10km long, there is a rolling road closure so it's really safe compared to home, where the psychotic ***** race on open roads most of the time. Obviously less red tape to get permits!
It's a great place to holiday if you're into bikes. The spring classics are fantastic, we missed them this year tho. We'll be back again next year, maybe a bit shorter stay, most likely 6 or 7 weeks. I wouldn't mind buying a small apartment in Oudenaarde or even Ronse (quite a bit cheaper).
cheers
Said it before and I'll say it again. Heaps of our second string pros who can't get on pro tour teams SMASH CNUTS in the US.
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