This video is super powerful. It is 16 minutes long. You have 16 minutes to listen to an athlete and person who is living to the max.

So what are you going to do now?

For cyclo-cross fans everywhere this was a huge weekend. It was the weekend of the World Cyclo-Cross Championships. It doesn’t get any bigger or better than this for our sport – this is our Olympics. The best from each country line-up and lay it all out there in one race.

For some the goal is to get to the line and have the opportunity to represent their country. For others the goal is have a top-20, top-10 or top-3 result. For others the goal is to win. Regardless of the goal and the actuality of this goal – the process of setting this goal and going for it is huge.

The passion on display out there in the sand dune of Koksijde, Belgium these past two days has been remarkable. At times, I felt myself tearing up when I watched the delighted winners cross the line. The punching of the air, the pointing to the sky, the chest slapping, the face grabbing, the ear-to-ear smiles – beyond words really – just pure emotion. Perhaps even better was seeing the elation of young Wout van Aert when he crossed the line taking second in the junior men’s race. I met Wout last season – a very pleasant young guy – it was awesome to see him having such a fantastic race and seeing his joy with his accomplishment. In the women’s race – well Sanne Cant was as equally ecstatic with her third place podium finish.

The fans were incredible. It must have been amazing to race in front of 61,000 people. Really, I can’t even fathom how large and loud this crowd must have been. Definitely a top life experience to get to race your bike in front of such a crowd.

To my friends who raced today – congratulations. I’m proud of you. Regardless of your result, be proud of yourself. You just raced in the World Cyclo-Cross Championships and no one can ever take that away from you. To be honest, I’m jealous. I’ve had this same chance but once in my racing career and it is still my top racing experience. There is nothing quite like wearing your nation’s colours and racing in the biggest race on the calendar. Savour today and remember these emotions. Don’t shoulda coulda woulda – you did it. One race doesn’t define you but it sure can motivate you and encourage others to set some big goals and get busy achieving them.

Counting the days to the first race of the 2012-2013 season and happily planning a very long stay in Europe for 2012-2013. A big thanks to the fast women who raced today and reminded me that there are no limits – only possibilities.

Sorry for my absence of late from this spot on the WWW. I would like to tell you that I’ve been busy with this and that. But really, life has been pretty quiet and uneventful. Since I’m not racing right now or even in a recovery week getting ready for the big show this weekend, it can be hard to come up with blog posts at times.

Now, not to say that I’ve been sitting on my hands here – just that I guess I’m at a bit of a loss for words. I am back on the trainer and in the full-swing of a training program that will see me ready for racing in April, but these 90 minute rides on the trainer aren’t giving much in the way of creativity. It’s funny really. When I’m out riding my bike on the road I have a hard time quieting my brain and just getting into the groove of riding and focusing on the ride/work-out – sometimes I don’t even “hear” the music or podcast in my headphones. But when I’m on the trainer, my brain is quiet – really quiet. I’m focused on the wattage, cadence, stop watch and whatever is happening on the television screen in front of me.

So what this adds up to right now is a whole lot less thinking… Yep, out on the open road I’m thinking, I’m planning, I’m scheming, I’m writing blog posts in my head. On the trainer, I’m simply training. I’m guessing this is a coping mechanism to get through the trainer rides – if I do start thinking I begin to obsess over the time “how much more time do I have left?” and this is never good when riding the trainer. True fact – time slows down when riding the trainer and watching the seconds tick by.

There you have it. While my legs are busy working getting fit and strong – my brain appears to be a bit dormant. I’d also like to chalk this lack of recent brain action to the reality that I’m working more now. I’m writing a lot of different content on a range of topics that sometimes boggles my mind. When I get on that trainer, it really is to take a break and let myself escape.

Hmm, escape. Funny word really – I’m not trying to escape from my writing work – I really do enjoy it. But sometimes, my brain feels full and my fingers seem to get a bit slow and chunky when trying to write a new article for a client. The trainer is detached from all of this and I can be a bike racer again.

Now when I think about the words I’ve just written, I realize I may have written an ode of sorts to the trainer… Admittedly my time on the trainer actually helps me ignore the reality of the situation – that I’m not in Belgium recovering from a race or getting ready for another one. Instead I watch old ‘cross races and cheer on my racing idols or I watch live broadcasts of World Cups and shout at my friends as they do their darndest out on their ‘cross bikes. (And when I’ve exhausted these viewing options I turn to trusty Netflix for movies that Marc doesn’t want to watch…)

Take what you want from this. But suffice it to say things are quiet around here but at least they’re not boring.

(Super excited to watch the fast women duke it out on Sunday in Koksijde. Koksijde is such an awesome race course – the sand is a beast and while it can be cruel and unforgiving there is an amazing feeling of satisfaction to ride through a section or hop on the bike on a rather steep sandy descent and come out on the other side smiling. Oh and the fans – the fans at Koksijde are like none other – with each lap they seem to get louder and closer. There is nothing quite like racing in Koksijde, Belgium – lucky folks those girls and guys who are lining up on Saturday and Sunday to show off their nation’s colours and race around in the big sandbox.) Definitely a moment and experience to savour.)

Take a break and watch this video:

Okay, back to regular day-time activities but keep on dreaming and pushing.

What a great day it is! Today I start real training again. Until now I was simply “riding” – no plan and no methodology – really just riding to help me mentally and keep me moving. Well, now I get to start training – I’m pretty darn excited.

In fact I’m really feeling excited about the upcoming road season and of course the cycle-cross season. Normally I don’t do much road racing because I’m building fitness/strength in the summer months after a break from training and racing that typically extends into mid-March.

Well, the silver lining to this injury is that I can be ready and fit for the road season. I’m so keen that I even went through some race calendars and I’ve highlighted some races and events I will be doing… Here is a look at what I’m planning on doing:

April 15 Clarence Rockland Classic
April sometime – Almonte-Roubaix
April 22 – Calabogie Road Race
May 19 – UCI Road Race
May sometime – Ride of the Damned
May 26 – Dandelion Grand Prix – criterium
June 9-10 – Rideau Lakes
June 17 – Preston St.criterium
July 21 – GranFondo

If you know me well then you might be surprised to see the Clarence Rockland Classic, Almonte-Roubaix and Ride of the Damned races on my calendar… Well, I’ve decided this is the season of doing “things I never do” – yes so doing these races that I have adamantly said in the past I didn’t want to do. In addition to this race calendar I’m going to do the local training criteriums and you’ll likely see me out at Camp Fortune bouncing over rocks and roots on my mountain bike trying to keep up with the fast kids during the local mountain bike races.

Training-wise, I had a great talk with coach Steve on Friday. Steve has been coaching me for a few years now and we’ve developed a pretty good relationship. He knows that I’ll always want to do “more” – and he is excellent at keeping me controlled. What really impresses me about Steve is his openness to new ideas – I bounced some ideas off of him yesterday and he was eager to hear all about them – very refreshing and encouraging. (So basically, if you’re looking for a coach – visit Steve’s website!)

Yep, so pretty darn good day here today. I’ll be thinking of my friends traveling to France today to race the World Cup tomorrow and I really hope I can catch the highlights from the women’s race somewhere on the Internet. This is an exciting time to be a cyclocross racer and frankly an exciting time in general. Lots of good stuff happening and it is nice to be back in a very “happy” place.