Four weeks in. Yep, I’ve been here for four weeks now. Amazing. Crazy. It doesn’t really seem possible. The time has whipped by. Yes, there were some quiet days when I just rode my bike, came home and didn’t do anything or talk to anyone. But this is the life of a bike racer living far away from home.

I admit that it is not easy. Some days after a tough race or even a quiet day – I would question my decision to be here alone. I used to scoff at riders who said it was so “hard” to come to Belgium and live and race. In the past, I couldn’t relate to this sentiment… But now that I’ve been here alone – I totally understand where these guys are coming from. It is one thing to come here with your spouse, best friend, team mate, etc – and a completely other thing to come here alone.

But, I’m glad I did it alone for a bit. It has made me a stronger person and bike racer. From getting the flat tire on the first day, to being responsible for all my own bike maintenance, to getting to the races, finding pit help, and just simply getting on with the business of racing my bike – I’ve learned a lot.

Really, it has taught me that, I can do this. I can race my bike here in Belgium. I’m not winning any races. But I’m not out-of-place. I can think on my feet to adapt to the race conditions and most importantly recognize when things aren’t coming together. I think this has primarily come from not having a “shoulder to cry on” after the tough days. I’ve simply had to learn to suck it up, listen to the hard advice “your starts are terrible”, “you’re too tense on the descents”, “yep that was a bad day”. Truly these are all things that have been said to me after races. Tough words to hear, but I’m really thankful that people took the time to give me this advice.

I think this is what can make or break a stint of racing ‘cross in Belgium. You really have to be ready to have some hard days and to hear the sometimes brutally harsh words after a race. There is no coddling here. You have it. Or you don’t.

I like to think that I’m on the path to getting close to having it. I’m learning each and everyday. Now the next big step is to make these things second nature… For example: always a high cadence, don’t grind through the mud and sand, look ahead, don’t use the front brake, light on the saddle, sprint out of everything, start wide, go slow to be fast, don’t stop pedaling when you’re thinking/nervous.

I’m looking forward to a good couple of weeks of training. I’ve got two weekends of smaller racers happening. Looks like this weekend I’ll be chasing the junior boys around. The following weekend I’m off to Holland for some races with the girls. Then the big races happen with Scheldecross, two World Cups, Azencross, etc. Fast times indeed.

I have a feeling the next four weeks are going to be just as good. My head is ready for more lessons. My heart is feeling strong. My legs are fresh and want to keep pushing on the pedals.

And in typical Vicki fashion, I’m already thinking ahead to next season and how I can swing coming here in September… Yes, September. I need to be here racing and training to reach the level I want to be at. Just need to work on that money tree! All kidding aside, I am serious about coming in September – so if you have any ideas/suggestions – I’m all ears.

Oh, Marc brought some goodies with him yesterday. Most importantly my Fatcyclist.com cycling hat and socks. Lets just say both items are super hot. Love the pink detailing on the cycling cap. And the socks – perfect height – not too high and not too low -black with the Fatcyclist.com logo on the back. Very cool. Marc, also brought me a super gift for achieving the UCI points I need – a Sony eBook Reader. This is the coolest gift ever! I am a book lover. I can’t get enough books. And now with Sony eBook Reader, I can cart around up to 350 books on my handy little device. Perfect gift for a book loving bike racer living far away from home. Thanks Marc!

Sorry, not much of a post today. Today has been a very busy and good day… Marc arrived today! We got home at around 12:30 from the Brussels airport – and luckily the bikes arrived.

Bit of lunch. Some unpacking. Some bike building on Marc’s part. Then we hit the fresh air for a little roll around. I had only a recovery ride on the schedule today so it worked out nicely for Marc. We pedaled around some of our favorite training roads – enjoy the bright blue sky and the sun. Not too shabby for late November.

The rest of the day went by in a blur.

I’ll have something more thoughtful about the bike racing life tomorrow (I hope). But in the meantime, click on over to Pedal Magazine to read my article about the UCI Cyclo-Cross Training Camp.

I’ve received many kind and thoughtful emails and comments from you guys the last few days. Greatly appreciated. Your support really does help me keep the pedals turning. I hope I can do the same for you!

Had a super ride on the ‘cross bike today. Inspired by the on- and off-road we did on Thursday, I decided to link up my own such route. What a fun time. I pumped up the jets to a solid 40 psi and rolled out the front door. Quick pedal later and I was in the Averbode nature preserve. This is an awesome place to ride. It has everything – big heavy muddy fire roads, sandy climbs/descents, twisty muddy singletrack that traverse a pretty sizeable hill, uber-fast descents. I rode around in this cycling heaven for an hour or so and then popped across the street to the Averbody Abby.

The Averbode Abby is a popular riding choice for a lot of mountain bikers. It also offers a wide range of terrain with a pretty good network of linked trails. There is a ‘cross race at the Averbode Abby next Sunday so part of the course is already marked. I rolled around on it for a bit and then headed off deeper into the forest. Ended up riding on some pretty deep and muddy fire road/horse trails. Popped out eventually in a little community called Veerle Laakdal. Picked up the forest trails again and roamed all around. Then did a bit of road riding ending up on the edge of the Blauberg Forest. Dove into the Blauberg forest and roamed all over the place – some more singletrack combined with deep muddy roads and a bit of sand thrown in. Eventually popped out onto a road and rolled home.

All in all, an excellent two hour romp on the bike. It was so relaxing to be out riding in nature. I saw the odd cyclist, a few horses, some runners, and a few dog walkers. It was super stimulating to be surrounded by nature. Perfect opportunity for me to clear my head and focus on getting better technically. At times I found myself reverting to my old ways of grinding through the mud… Luckily I caught myself and reminded myself to get my feet turning over and repeated the “pedal, pedal, pedal” mantra over and over in my head. I also worked on riding on the tops of the bars – this helps me keep my hands away from the brakes and allows me to practice pulling up on the bars to help get through the heavy conditions.

Bit cool today with some sprinkles of rain, but in the woods I didn’t notice the weather. Just me, my bike and my trusty iPod for company. Could have stayed out longer but I got a couple of serious soakers and my feet were a bit cold – as well my stomach was rumbling.

Really looking forward to doing a similar ride again this week – I hope I can link things together so well again. Really it isn’t a problem living here since there are forests and trail networks all around us. Guess the bonus is that each ride is probably going to be a bit different. Fun stuff.

I took a couple pictures after the ride. One of my muddy Stevens Super-Prestige and the other is a muddy photo of myself (I’m not so good at the self-portrait and yes, I do need a haircut – but what do you think of that jacket???).

As for the rest of the day. Well, I’m going to see if the Super-Prestige race in Gieten, Netherlands is on television. I’ll chill out and watch it and then I’ll head to my favorite watering hole (cafe) in Westerlo for some decaf cappuccino and a bit of writing. Pretty quiet night tonight – everyone I know is away right now… But that’s okay because the most important person is arriving tomorrow! Yay!

(Congrats to Fearless Leader for his solid 6th place ride in Sterling, Mass. Also massive shout out to Josee for her most impressive 19th place finish in Sterling.)

Nothing like race day to get the blood flowing. Throw in a World Cup. Add in some Belgium fans. And you have a pretty heavy day. There is something about the World Cup atmosphere in Belgium that is like nothing else I’ve ever experienced. The fans are out in the thousands. The riders are all a bit on edge. The spectacle is that much bigger. It is actually pretty cool.

For some reason, I let this all get to me. I got caught up in the excitement of the World Cup and of racing at Koksijde. I let myself wrap myself in a tight ball of expectation and pressure. Not the smartest thing to do. But it happened. I was pretty good all week – just reminding myself of the big goal and not putting any extra pressure on myself for an outcome today. And then it happened. I started wanting more. (Marc could sense this was happening last night, but I steadfastly denied it….)

I was pretty calm all morning. Went through my regular race preparation. Got there nice and early and snagged a spot in the same parking lot as the BKCP team and Erwin Vervecken. Hooked up with Pete Harris (Nikki’s dad) for a chat and met the rest of his family. They were super helpful today – from the warm mug of tea to taking my warm-up clothes at the start. Hung out with Kate and Ian of Australia for a bit. Got some last tips from Rudy. All in all a pretty good morning. I connected with my mechanic – Serge (from the BKCP team). Many thanks to Serge and Christophe who made the trip today just for me as their rider Philipp Walsleben wasn’t racing today. Serge and Christophe took care of the pits for me, checking my tire pressure, cleaning my bikes, cheering me on and just being there for anything that I needed. This helped so much.

Funny, so many people said to me today – “you’re from Canada? You’re here alone?”. I would just smile and say “yes”.

Also big thanks to the Mongolian team (Johan Museeuw’s team) manager – he got their mechanic to fix my shifter for me and offered to take my warm-up clothing and help out any way he could. This is the amazing thing about cyclo-cross – everyone is super supportive and willing to help out.

I’ve written a race report where you can read about the race. In short, it wasn’t one of my best performances. I fought the bike. I fought my head. Plain and simple – I struggled. Guess it had to happen sooner or later. I’m glad I’ve gotten it out of my system.

I had planned on driving to Gieten, Netherlands for tomorrow’s race. But I decided not to. Talked to a wise man after the race who suggested I just go home. So here I am. Not sure what I’ll do tomorrow. Just go out and have some fun on my bike. Ride the forest maybe and link this up with some road riding. Tomorrow is another day and it will be a good one.

I guess I should tell you that today wasn’t all bad. I did collect some very valuable UCI points…. I now have 91 points. I needed 75 to make the qualification standard for the World Championships. Cool. Very cool. This has been a big goal of mine for a while now. I still need to get selected (find out on Dec. 11) but I can proudly say that I got the job done. It might not have been the prettiest – but it is done. The other silver lining from today are the lessons. Can’t ever forget the lessons. And I think the biggest lesson for me today is that: things don’t come over night. It takes time and practice. And then more time and practice. It is coming together for me. I just need to keep plugging away. I have a super big engine – now I just need to get my technical skills to match the engine. I’m better technically today than I was when I got here. But I need to remember that this stuff takes time. The 2010 World Championships are in Koksijde – I intend on being there…

(Guess first I should get to Tabor, Czech Republic. But hey – I’m a forward thinker!)

I have to finish this post with saying thanks to my super number one fan – Marc. He really saved me today after the race. It was an expensive phone call but it saved my day. I’ll be so happy to see him on Monday. Monday really can’t come soon enough for me. Without Marc’s support I wouldn’t have been able to even race this race today. Thanks Marc – you are my rock.

Well, finally all settled into a hotel here in Koksijde… Bit of an adventure. I had booked a hotel. But it turned out to be like a haunted house… So I had to scramble to find a new hotel – not easy in a city overrun with cyclo-cross racers and fans. But I found one. Phew. Then I had to race back to the registration and give the UCI officials my new hotel information – in the event of a doping control. Only last snag is my phone has run out of credit – so I need to get this sorted – in the event of a doping control.

The pre-ride went really well. The course has changed a lot since Wednesday. The sand is a lot firmer now. There are a lot of ruts and tracks that make the sections more rideable. But sand is sand – one lap you can get through and the next lap you get stuck. Took it pretty easy and did only three laps. The weather is a bit rotten cold and wet so I didn’t want to be outside too much.

Got all my clothes hanging up and drying. Bikes are clean and good to go. Now I’m just trying to sort out my supper plans. I could eat here or go into town. I’m thinking of going into town. See how I feel.

The race is at 1:30 tomorrow. Feeling pretty good about it. The course is challenging but interesting. There are some sections which I think I ride really well and then there are sections that I struggle with. This is the same for everyone.

Pretty impressive to see some of the elite men ride today. At one point I was walking up a big sand climb and everyone watching (yes there are people out watching the warm-up) started cheering and gesturing. I smiled because I thought they were cheering me. Nope. Zdnek Stybar of Fidea was coming up from behind me – only difference was he was riding the sand hill and I was not!

Okay, I’m out. Sorry for the short post but I’ve only got two hours of WWW access here at the hotel. I’ll do a race report tomorrow night from my next hotel.