Can a Belgian Classic exist without mud or cobbles?

Maybe it can. A nice clean race in the warmth. The answer would be the Gent Six Days 69th edition.

Favourite of the home crowd was the combination of Iljo Keisse with Kluge. (Shown during the single lap competition) In 2007 and 2008 he had won together with Robert Bartko. (Shown during the break in the forground, maybe on Twitter?).

This edition was a tight fight between Risi/Marvulli , Morkov/Rasmussen and Keisse/Kluge, like in the first picture during the derny.

Bartko was still affected by his Munich Crash and had to retire later at the event, he was riding the Red Bull track bike with almost 10 cm spacer (Picture 1).

You could see in some events the top pairs stayed at the back, so that the other teams could select some points. But the derny of Keisse was first class coming from behind to win. The madison was really one attack after another. The house was rocking!

BTW, the house was fully booked even on the second evening! All I was able to get was infield.

If You saw an empty seat by 10 pm, that person was out for a beer or a smoke....

Was a good fun, warm and dry inside - but outside was rather wet, so I had some classical weather and even some cobbles as I went lost in Gent on my bike. So, I guess the answer must be "No, of course it can not." (Next evening got even worse with a blown tubular)

Oh, I almost forgot: Rasmussen/Morkov did win the race, Keisse/Kluge only got second.

Wheelbase Cross photo set

Jo (Hanglebads) has been practising her craft to good effect again....... many thanks.

Lone Belgian in Bolton report

Great race today another very muddy circuit all ride able but sluggish,rain did not stay away which was a shame,quite a long course with only a couple of places where you had to get off, a very steep hill climb and some steps,which suits me as I have not perfected the dismount yet,first time on the Planetx and everything ran smooth,I think this may be my future ride of choice and when I get a bit more confidence and balance I think I will change to drops.

Lone Belgian in Bolton

Rode the Leverhulme park cyclocross today, was unable to ride Haslingden due to work but today was good, very muddy again which slowed down what would have been a very fast circuit good turnout but the rain did not stay away for long.

A snapshot of Haslingden

Jo has been out with her camera again. Great shots as ever.........

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hanglebads/sets/72157622768718765/



"That's not the way you do it, you want to do it like this....."


"Rich can't get enough of that superman thing........and he appears to be riding in a random direction too"


"The tarmac finish straight and none of the 3 riders in shot are riding...."

"Tire pressure blah blah, bike change blah blah, did you see blah blah"

trench life

Sunday saw me riding my first cross race in Wiggle colours - although the belgian t shirt was being sported as apres wear!

( if you are not aware, i am now riding for Team Wiggle tandem.....)

Dundee, famous for it's cake, cold weather and outside velodrome hosted the event. Over 100 people took place and battle was fierce. The velodrome, being tarmac, took centre stage with both start and finishing straights leading to some epic battles every lap.

It has, you may have noticed, been raining biblically over the past week and the ground was not going to let us forget it - despite a sun kissed departure of the gladiatorial throng. The mud was harrowingly sticky and deep - more suited to marine commando adverts than silth like honed athletes. By lap two all were well spread.

Having got caught out in the 'Tunnel of Mud' at the top end - bitten by a submerged root that had me doing the first bog snorkelling of the day - I then spent quite a time chasing the lead group and getting back on. In fact, by the time I had made contact the field was so spread out that lapping was taking place. Pushing on, pushing- sometimes literally, was the only solution and at times it was a lonely slurp of brown sticky goo that was my only companion sitting between me and the bid for victory.

It was never going to happen.

The boys at the front were storming and chasing was the order of the day. i placed 15th. It was about training - we have bigger fish to fry - but it was good and it was testing and most of all it was great fun!

Greetings from the US!

After finally having found the team and jersey that compliments my cross/classics/steel bike + wool jersey fascination, I feel I owe more to the "team" than just wearing the colors at the local cross events, so here goes with my first race report from Northern California!

This being my first season attempting cross, all races are new to me, but this past weekend a race appeared for the first time on our Northern California (NorCal) schedule that looked intriguing enough for me to lay down $35 for the pre-registration fee ($10 over what normally goes for registration around here). The race was held at the Cow Palace, an indoor arena on the outskirts of San Francisco, and happened to coincide with the annual San Francisco Bike Expo. The course was short (just over four minutes per lap for yours truly, about 3;30-3:45 for the winners) but offered an extremely daunting obstacle for riders in NorCal...MUD!



The race started on the finishing straight, which was about 150 meters of a paved climb at about 12% gradient. Then it looped into the indoor arena for a short loop (100 meters) of the Cow Palace proper that included three little BMX style bumps that encouraced the cyclocrossers to "catch some air." Then it was out of the Cow Palace for a 200 meter paved single-track descent into the mud. After about 300 meters of mud, the only obstacle of the day appeared, yet that was about a 40-meter run-up that the promoters had convienently built up as a stair-step climb.



At the top of the climb was about 25 meters of mud, which served as a transition to the death-defying (in my humble opinion) descent right back down the same hill that was just climbed as the run-up. The descent ended into more mud, as well as a quick 90 degree right-hander, followed 15 meters later by a 90 degree left-hander. Then, it was roughly another 100 meters in mud, after which one was greeted by another BMX style obstacle, and then a transition into the typical dry hardpack of NorCal. The rest of the distance on the loop was made by endless corkscrewing in a cattle paddock (with a few unplanned puddles from a rainstorm on the previous day) until the course returned to the start/finish straight.



My race was typical of my entire season; I started slowly to learn the course (despite having already ridden five warm-up circuits!), then my natural strength takes over as in the last 15 minutes (a 45-minute race) as I pass slowing riders to finish in the middle of the pack. This race was punctuated by my fear of the descent, especially since the quick right- then left-hander caused a few broken arms, shoulders, and collarbones throughout the day. I did find that my lap time improved by about ten seconds over the last three laps as I ran through the transition between the run-up and descent, instead of remounting and riding the mud all the way to the descent. In the end, it was a fun day, especially since it came on the day my parents flew in to visit my wife and me for the next week. I also ended up finishing 19th of 41 finishers!



Hope you enjoyed the report! All pictures are courtesy of my wife, Melanie!

Caption Competition!

This was too good to let it get away........

Rich has been racing in Myrtle Park, Bingley and was captured by his devoted wife Jo.

Use the comments section below to leave your witty, abusive or plain off the wall caption.



"Rich's childhood obsession with Superman took on a new and unexpected twist"......

The return of Eddy Merckx to the cobbles

Well, maybe not the man himself but at least his name will be featured in the 2010 classics:

Quick Step switched from what ever to Eddy Merckx bikes.

So much for an update You may now return to the mud of Cyclo Cross.....

Interview with crossjunkie - Sporza TV Far-Out Show

Ok, I promise this is the last one. Unlike Big Brother, I will retire at the top of my game, the genre intact......

Crossjunkie talks tubs, tread patterns and about his passion for the tubular:

http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/5694019

New Team infomercial........... from crossjunkie

If you go down to the woods today........

Rich leading Alan through the woods

No racing scheduled for the weekend so an opportunity to brush up on and add new skills to our metaphorical tool box. Rich, Alan and myself met up on Sunday morning to throw in some off road training and scout a potential venue for staging a race.
In three's they come (building lego Starwars ships has lasting effects!!). Friday night and I was fitting new brake blocks in my froglegs, when the bolt on the block holder just sheared off, no spares were to be found, lucky Alan has loaned me a set of the latest canti's on the market - well that's what he told me. He also gave me a contact for spares who has been able to supply a new one.
A meal out on Saturday night had dire effects on my digestive system in the early hours of Sunday, coupled with an early morning (5am) run to Manchester Airport a training session, with two faster riders, was seeming not the best idea.
The 3rd came in the form of a broken link on my chain ten minutes into the ride. Alan stoically rode home for a chain splitter and Rich and I coasted to the cafe to wait. Neither of us had any cash so no frothy coffee for Alan's efforts. You can see we were a well prepared trio, no chain splitter is forgivable, but no cash for coffee is a school boy error.
Hurdles, dismounts, remounts were practised with gusto - you don't feel as daft when there are three of you running and jumping onto your bikes!
A final couple of fast laps to finish - my legs died on the first lap so I pottered round as Rich and Alan blasted off in the distance and that was the session completed.
Wash and lube and then feet up.........................................

long time

it has been a long time since i blogged anything.

cycling has been getting in the way except when the ferry disnae run due to calmac's incompetence or bad weather or both. i have not raced either for a month. glum.

i have been training and now have a coach as part of my effort on behalf of the wiggle brothers

http://www.thewashingmachinepost.net/team_wiggle/

i have also been doing alot of coaching our local kids club - port mor wheelers.

the weekend after next i am back racing...in dundee! yipee ...more later. th equestion is will i be on th efancied single speed or a sponsored geared rig? who knows ......

Velo Interruptus

While fellow Belgians were ripping up their local cross leagues, this intrepid (some may say lightweight) Belgian continued the long and winding road towards the Classics season with a sojourn around what might optimistically be referred to as the Flandrian back roads of Suffolk.

These rides take place on quiet back roads and farm tracks, fresh with the detritus of autumnal North Sea gales and field wash. What I did not expect was to be stopped in my tracks by what appeared to be the harvesting of Kassein. Babies heads. It couldn't be.

Thinking that maybe lack of fluids had brought on temporary psychosis, I took advantage of my enforced rest to rehydrate and take stock. After a couple of minutes, and after pictured vehicle had chugged it's way off along Waldringfield Road, a ruddy faced farmer cheerfully explained that Suffolk was not, in fact, supplying Les Amis de Paris-Roubaix but a British Sugar factory up the road in Bury St Edmunds. Which was nice.

3 is a magic number...

Onward and Upward, Team Here Come the Belgians continues to expand at a rate of knots, a pure tidal wave of black & white, crushing all before it after the whistle goes.

First of all introducing Andy Parker. Cross and Kassein connoisseur from the East UK Region. Keep an eye out for forays into France and Belgium to rid the bumpy stuff, drink and eat Frites. Oh, how we expect words and pictures!

Our next two team members consolidate our truly international appeal. Here Come the Belgians welcome Maury Long, Californian native to the fold. We can only display our envy of your weather and scenery, but rain can't kill you* and it will only make us stronger.

Wolfram Kollig becomes our first representative in Germany. A first hand knowledge of Gent and it's delights mean he's well at home in the black & white.

Here's hoping we see some international photo journalism.

Let's go riding!

*ok,ok, riding naked in rain with subzero temperatures may result in hypothermia which may result in an early demise.

Brockholes pictures

Courtesy once again of Jo (Hanglebads). Cheers!

Lakes Cross

This weekend had me in a state of anticipation for the Lakes cross race at Brockhole visitor centre.
A dull and wet start from home did nothing to dampen my enthusiasm for the day - what better way to spend a day than in the Lakes riding your bike??
On reaching Lancaster on the M6 the sun made it's break through and some pumping tunes in the car lifted everyone.
First impressions on pulling up were good, a marshel on the carpark directing you and handing out your carpark pass, loads of carparking space and toilets (essential after over an hour in the car and pre race hydration).
A stroll to sign on, following clear signs, reinforced my first impressions of a well organised event, more signs directing you to the changing rooms and we were set.
Ella, Jack and Matt were first off in the under 12's race on a very muddy course that was challenging for these young riders. Matt at one point lost both shoes in the mud and had to be helped by a marshel and myself to pull them out!! Jack on his 9th birthday had a fantastic ride and came home first in the under 10's - great ride. Matt finished as useual with a huge smile on his face, the course certainly didn't suit a small wheeled heavy mountain bike.
Then is was out on the course to dial it in prior to the off. My aim on the first lap is just to ride slow and take in the course, looking at the lines and hasards that might jump out and grab you when you race.
One lap was enough to cover my bike in thick sticky mud, leaves, grass and twigs so it was off the course to clean it and warm up on the carpark and paths. Great that there was also a hose pipe to aid the de-mudding.
A slight delay, as the volume of riders had caused a slight hold up with signing on and then we were off. 1 hour of slogging round a great course with unscheduled stops to clear mud etc from the frame and wheels. Oh how I envied the riders with second bikes and gallent pit crews cleaning and scraping them for the next lap.
Great support from family and friends kept me going, when many were stopping and calling it a day and they were enjoying the coffee, bacon butties and cake as they cheered and shouted encouragement.
A little disappointing to hear people complaining that the course was too muddy and that they had to run too many sections. I am new to cross but my understanding was that this is what it entails and the organisers cannot help the amount of water put down the week before an event.
Having watched some races where they have run almost the entire course I thought the criticism was a little unfair.
Overall I had a blast, I loved the layout of the course - yes it was muddy and it clogged the bikes up but it was the same for everybody. The organisation was excellent as was the music, food (great bacon butty well deserved) and the compare did a great job so hats off to them for a great event.
What it did show was for me I have a lack of running fitness, I struggled on the section near to the finish line which was a long run, (expect for Dave Haygarth who I watched ride most of it - top marks) losing places here only to get them back once back on the bike. So in order to progress we must address our weakness and that means I will now be scheduling some running into my training program!!!!

The Brockholes Breaker

The bike parts industry and local bike shops will have been welcoming yesterdays's NW League race at Brockholes, Windermere - I stopped counting broken rear mechs after about 7........ 1st prize in that particular contest goes to Stuart Reid from Wheelbase who snapped not one but two Dura Ace mechs. Ouch.

Heavy rain in the week followed by a dry day had predictable results on a grassy based course surrounded by trees, much of which left itself on the riders bikes by the time they had finished. It was the worst clean up job I can remember - my 2 bikes were almost totally blocked up, as were the 2 kids bikes. Thanks to Mark's brother-in-law Russell for helping with the kids bikes.


We had Otley Rich, Mark and Crossjunkie Alan racing the Seniors, and the three mini-Belgians Matthew, Jack and Ella in the U12 race. Ella (4) got stuck in the bog and fell over, and disliking the sensation an instant mud pack gave her, decided she had had enough. Matthew lost both shoes at one point but soldiered on, and Birthday boy Jack (here in co-ordinated red, white and black Belgian colours) celebrated with a win in the U10s. Pics above and below: Dave Haygarth.


The bigger boys played hard in the mud, and Uncle John/Oom Johans appeared to be the weapon of choice as other flashier and more exotic cross machines literally ground to a halt and had to be regularly excavated from the coating of mud that had immobilised them.


Jo was on hand to photo the sticky action so look out for photos soon......

Growing...

Here Come the Belgians keeps growing, like a small prawn inadvertently overcome by thermonuclear radiation growing to vast proportions to eventually battle Godzilla for supremacy of the high sea.

Well something like that.

I'd like to welcome Adam Leadbetter to the team of the Running Belgian which is apt as he knows a thing or too about running, which is good for us all as the rain hasn't stopped falling and all future training sessions will unboubtedly be conducted on foot, with a little bicycle riding thrown in.

Welcome aboard cap'n (I also perceive he's a nautical man - which is also handy with all this water about).

Penblwydd hapus i chi*

Another extended welcome to new team member Simon Nurse. Currently tearing up the Cyclocross courses in South Wales whilst also being a dab hand on the race organising front...

Keep an eye out for his forays into Yorkshire around the new year (although I may have my wires crossed).

*Happy Birthday to you - it's the only bit of Welsh I know and it seemed appropriate :)

Even more part of the team

Managed to pick myself up a Planet x Uncle John so hopefully for Victoria park it should be built up I need to find some bargain tub wheels now though.

In the mean time trying to get out to ride in this weather is a joke started out on a run yesterday and only went a mile or two before heading back soaking wet.

Halloween Cross

There was Belgian representation at the Rollapaluza Halloween Night Cross, Herne Hill, London, courtesy of Gary. He has promised a report but until he gets the exact font choice and grammar construction right (Gary is publishing/designer type) these pictures will have to suffice....


Also, Gary will probably be too modest to tell you he was 6th, just behind some pretty talented riders including Stu Bowers, Jamie Newall and Matt Holmes. I would go as far as to suggest that makes him scariest looking and fastest Belgian at present.

Welcome onboard!..

Just a quick note to welcome Steven Cavell, West Yorkshire native, Yorkshire cyclocross league racer and lover of all things cross and cobble to the Here Come the Belgians family.

Ride hard, have fun and write us a story (or post some pics).