You might have read that title: Reality Check, and thought “uh oh – something not good is up..”. Well, dear reader, this couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact this reality check is all about the good stuff. Really good stuff. The last two days have been break-through days. Mentally.

I’ve just started working with a mental training coach and I wasn’t expecting much this early in the process. But was I wrong. This guy is super good. He really gets to the core of what is going on in my head, asks the right questions, waits for me to answer and then prods and digs some more. Before I know I’m letting it all out and telling him about some of the crazy thoughts that rattle around in my thick skull. Then he sets me straight and we work on ways to help keep me in a positive frame of mind.

My most recent call with him was pretty World Championships focused. It was an awesome call. We laid down my goals for the race. Created a coping strategy/mechanism for when things leading up to the race or during the race “don’t go according to plan”. He gave me some homework focused on building my self-confidence. All super good stuff. When the call ended I was on such a high. I just wanted to jump on my bike and go race.

I’m not sure how he does it, but this guy just knows the right questions to ask and how to get me pumped up about myself. My only regret is that I didn’t start working with him sooner. But I’m doing it now, so this is much better than nothing.

Suffice it to say, I’m stoked to be racing this weekend and next weekend. I’ve got some awesome goals to focus on. I’ve got some practical and purposeful coping strategies in place.

I’m feeling good. I’m finally feeling confident in myself. I’ve finally clued in that I deserve this. That I worked hard to earn my spot on the World Championships team. This is something that no one can take away from me.

Nothing like the Monday ride. For me, Monday typically is all about recovery. 90 minutes of relaxed sightseeing riding. I had a fantastic ride. Got out on my favorite Belgian roads and simply took in the scenery. (I’ve posted a bunch of photos over on Victoria’s Island).

So good smooth ride. Not only recovery for the legs but for the brain and soul as well. I really wanted to go out and hit up the trails. I even verbalized this. Mistake! Two people sitting at the table responded instantly: “what about your thumb?”. So that was that. I stuck to the road. No trails for me. I stared at the trails as I pedaled by.

After riding, I have to admit, my thumb is still sore. The bumping and jostling is not friendly to my sprained thumb. And now I’ve developed a rash to the tape… So I’m no longer taping my thumb. Ah yes, woe is me :). Really it is not that bad. It could always be worse (as I always say!).

Looking forward to some racing this weekend and of course next weekend!

Marc and I had a great night last night. We hooked up with our pals Renee and Anne for a great night. We saw their house and the amazing work they’re doing and then went out for a fine meal. I had the best salad I’ve ever had. Yes – salad can be that good! We had a great night talking, telling stories, chatting, etc. A great night. We could have talked all night. Thanks Renee and Anne for the fabulous hospitality and for dinner! We plan to do the same for you when you come to Canada!

Alright, time to sign off now. I’ve got a call in a little bit to work on some mental training. I’m in the early stages of this process but I can say that already I’m seeing some small steps forward. Like anything, small steps and it will take time to see the real benefits.

2 left. That is it. During a cyclo-cross race, see the 2 brings some definite relief to this racer. (Not as much as seeing the 1 and hearing the bell though…) When I see the 2, I tell myself, “okay you can do it. keep digging. it is only 2 more laps.” Funny what seeing a number on a stick can do to a ‘cross racer’s brain. I can’t imagine racing for an hour and seeing 8 on the stick. Heck, for me seeing 5 sends a bit of panic through my body. 5? Uh oh – find another gear, this is a fast one, head down and pedal.

As it applies today, 2 to go means only one thing: 2 more races and my 2009 – 2010 cyclo-cross season is over. Kind of sad to see the season ending but on the other hand, it has been a long one. One thing is definite, this has been my most successful ‘cross season ever. I’m riding and racing better than I ever have. My confidence is on the rise. I’ve made some good strides with my technical skills. I’ve started to honestly assess and appreciate where I am as a racer and what I need to do to move forward. I had some really great rides in North America and some amazing rides here in Europe.

Yes, there have been some tough races. But there have been many more highs than lows. And it only make sense that I’ll have had some rough experiences, the majority of my season has been spent in Europe racing World Cup races and with the top women cyclo-cross racers. But this has also made this the best season ever – each and every race I know that I’m up against the best. It is not often that an athlete can measure herself against the best in the sport each time she lines up. For this I am very fortunate.

I sit here today in Belgium. I’d much rather be in Roubaix, France. This is the one disappointment that I had to miss the Roubaix World Cup. Well, it will be there next year. Good news is that my thumb seems to be healing quite well. The range of motion is coming back so this is encouraging. Still a bit swollen and the thumb joint is looking a bit ugly but this will come with time.

Had a fantastic ride today. Okay, not sure if you count an hour of tempo intervals as fantastic but… What made it so great was that I rode outside. I wore shorts and leg warmers! Yep shorts and leg warmers on Jan. 17! Pretty smooth. So great to be outside. The paths were a bit gritty due to the heavy rains but I didn’t get rained on. Pretty much all of the snow is gone now. Extra bonus is that the awesome little country roads are clear of snow and ice. So my favorite riding routes are back. To add some extra spice and kick to my work-out, I wore my new racing kit. My Team Canada kit. I couldn’t not do it. It felt so cool to be out riding with the words Team Canada on my back. The sharp kit turned a few heads as well. Can’t wait to put on that skinsuit on Jan. 31. What a feeling.

Looking ahead to another solid week of training. I have the Hoogerheide World Cup on Sunday and then the World Championships the following Sunday. This might sound lame, but just writing about the World Champs brings tears to my eyes. I just find it so overwhelming that I achieved this goal and that I get to race in the top race that our sport has. So amazing. I feel so lucky to be doing this. And you can be sure this won’t be my last World Championships. I’m pretty confident I’ve got a couple more in my legs.

What a season this has been. Many many thanks to my sponsors – without whom this would not have been possible. Deep heartfelt thanks and appreciation to Marc for all the sacrifices he has made so that I can do this. Thanks so much to you for hopping on for this journey – your comments, emails, messages, smiles, and cheers do so much for me. On Jan. 31, we’ll all be toeing the line for one last time this season. I have a feeling it is going to be a good one. See you out there.

So nice to get outside today. It wasn’t the warmest day of the week but it wasn’t the coldest either. So it was all good. On order today was a recovery ride. 90 minutes of nice light pedaling. Perfect for a Friday. Loaded up the iPod with some of my favorite podcasts and hit the open road.

Unfortunately most of the small country roads are still snowy and slick so I had to stick to the busier roads. No problems though – the bicycle paths are all clear of snow. I had a super smooth ride. Did get lost for a bit and ended up in Eindhout (with only 30 minutes of planned riding left)… I made it home almost an hour later. Perfect – I got in two hours of recovery instead!

Felt so nice to be outside breathing the fresh air and checking out the sights. Didn’t see anything too crazy today. The usual mix of classic Belgian brick houses with the odd uber modern house thrown in. Did see a house with siding on it… Forgot how ugly siding really is.

Hit up the bike store in Geel today with Erik (the latest Canadian to arrive on the scene). I picked up and thought about buying a lot of stuff. But I put it all back. Did buy Marc some new cycling socks – two pairs of winter socks for 9 euros (can’t go wrong)!

Been having a pretty chilled out evening. Smooth decaf-cappuccino brewed up in the silver bullet and some milk made bubbly with my handy dandy milk foamer. Now it is time to relax for a bit. Have the latest issue of Rouleur magazine (thanks to Erik) to read and some chai tea to drink. Early trainer ride tomorrow morning and then in the car to go to Marc’s race. I’d rather be going to Roubaix but such is life. Really looking forward to racing next weekend! (My thumb is slowly getting better. The swelling is going down but the flexibility and rang of motion is not improving. It was okay on the bike today – except when I hit the odd bump. But I know it will be fine come Tabor.)

Happy weekend. Make sure you get up and do something fun. Remember your New Year Resolutions? Well, time to tick an item or two off the list this weekend.

Sorry if you missed me yesterday. It was one of those crazy days. Race day. Unfortunately not for me… But it was race day for Marc. So on the road at 6 a.m., many hours of driving later and we arrived at the race site with a mere 40 minutes to spare! Marc had a good race in the very cold conditions (finished 11th). Nice lunch and cappuccino in the cafe and then back in the car for the drive home. Made it – tired and a bit weary.

But not rest for the wicked! Nope – trainer time for me. Sigh. I’m not a “late trainer” – I prefer to ride first thing in the morning. But such is life. Luckily it was a good hard ride, so the time passed relatively quickly. Season 1 of the Wire helps a lot as well. On deck yesterday – micro-burst intervals. Love this work-out. So hard. But it feels so good.

A solid chilled out evening. We’ve got a new house guest here so we took him on a bit of a tour looking for some food. Unfortunately our favorite little cafe was closed. Back to the house to eat leftovers. Then I sacked out. Pretty exciting life…

Today was another couple of hours on the trainer… I really wanted to ride outside but I have to err on the side of caution (so everyone says…). This time it was a long endurance ride with a chunk of tempo at the end. I’ve now watched the entire first season of the Wire. Excellent program. Now I need season two…

What else is up? Well, I talk a lot about my physical training, my attention to nutrition, stretching (yoga), resting, etc. But I never really talk about the mental training. Perfectly good reason for this – until now I really haven’t done any “real” mental training. I’ve dabbled here and there. I’ve tried to do the imagery and positive self-talk, but I really haven’t given it the attention it deserves. Well, I started working with a mental training consultant. I’ve only had one session so far (have another one tonight), but so far so good. It helps to talk with someone who I don’t have a “connection” with – I can be totally honest about what is and isn’t going on in my brain. I feel like I should have been doing this kind of work weeks/months ago. But as the saying goes, “better late than never”. I’m not expecting miracles from this, just like everything else some slow and steady progress.

Looking forward to riding outside tomorrow. Yes, I’ll be careful. Nothing crazy off-road riding. Just need to get out and get some fresh air. Keep pedaling and remember rubber side down.