Belgium, round two

Ahh, Belgium, I didn't realize how much I missed you.

Actually... that isn't completely true, but it was nice to come over move prepared this time. On the other hand, that did not keep me (and everyone else on the team) from getting food poisoning the night before our first race here. I can tell you, it is really difficult to finish a 150 kilometer stage after not being able to keep down your food for the past 24 hours. So, I did not finish the first day of a 5 day stage race, along with 3 of my team mates.

I am disappointed now with how this played out, because I am here for a month, and I was only slated to do two stage races, so after this happened, I only got to do one real race here. This is frustrating, because I feel like I have been here for a month just to do one 5 day race, which just seems silly, but I feel good for the one that is starting tomorrow, called the tour of namur. If you are interested, the webpage is here. 

There are a few upsides to not racing as much. First, I have been able to see Belgium a bit more. We got out and saw both Ghent and Brugge, which were both cool experiences. Also, I have been able to start finding the good rides here. I have been riding a few of the cobbled climbs that they do in the tour of Flanders, which is a huge one day race here, such as the Koppenburg and the Pattenburg, which are all super hard, even though they are so short. And lastly, I have started to get better at kermesses, as they are the only races I have been doing. I got 13th at one and made 15 euro, and made another 10 euro at another, so I am just flying high now!

Anyhow, good times in ye olde Belgium.