Blogs
Mon, 12 Jul 2010
Getting stuck into Belgian Racing
By Annie Simpson - Horizon Fitness Racing Team
Since my last blog I have had quite a busy time in Belgium, and I still haven’t cracked. The weather has been unbelievably hot! Up in the mid 30s most days and even at night, which has made it so hard to sleep. Me and Alex have developed techniques such as sleeping with soaking towels, removing duvets from the sheets, and even standing outside in the crazy Belgian storms, all in an attempt to cool down.
This week I have been training hard and had 2 races. Tuesday was a double day for us, and in the evening we went to Zolder race track for a bit of 'no holes barred' chaingang. It was pretty savage, with hundreds of people there; most with the intention to smash it! I enjoyed it, but had definately had enough after an hour.
Thursday was the first of my 2 races. It started at 6pm which threw me off a lot; that was usually eating time for me, not racing time! As the race got underway, I was up at the front with Helen. We were taking it in turns to chase the Topsport team as they had a lot of riders and we were convinced if a break went, one of them would be in it. The legs felt great and I was enjoying the course, but a case of dehydration hit me hard. So from this I knew my preperarion for Saturday's race would need to be a lot better.
Saturday's race in Kontich was hot and fast! I got stuck in though and tried to keep myself in the top 3rd of the race, as with 120+ riders I knew if I drifted back too far I may miss a vital split. Breaks went and came back. I tried my luck a few times, but nothing was sticking. It came down to a bunch sprint, which is where I definately bottled it. Me and Helen were perfectly placed with 1km to go, then at 500m we were not so perfectly placed. It was definitely a dodgy finish to the race, with everyone tired from the heat and bloody screams coming from everywhere in the bunch. I was happy to finish alive!
Me and Helen then proceeded to ride home, getting in a good 120km. I was again pleased with how I rode; I’m feeling strong and fit, and know areas that I need to work on. I’m now focusing this week on having the best preparation possible for the UCI 1.2 race Dwaars Westhook. I'm really looking forward to it as it will be a whole new experience for me, but I'm definitely going to get stuck in!
Annie
For more information about the Horizon Fitness Racing Team, visit www.onthedrops.com.