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| Steve 'Scuba' Pilson - Belgian Diary | ||
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Crash!
9th
June 2006
by Steve Pilson
I have experienced
my first bit of Belgium bitumen. Yes i had a very nice fall
Big Ring Boys
the other day, but luckily I only landed on my head. It was the last km of a crit and everyone was going mad to get that perfect position for the bunch kick and I had my front wheel taken down launching me over the bars. I'm sureit would have looked great on a instant replay. The sun has finally arrived and for the first time in a while I can ride wearing only summer jerseys. It comes just in time for a big interclub race which is on Sunday. The race includes some cobbled climbs from Tour of Flanders and several loops of a cobbled circuit. Sounds like real fun:) The farm has become quite full and the tension between riders is high. It doesn't take much to set any one off and may reach boiling point soon! Apart from that every is going great and I hope I can improve on the racing side of things. Regards Scuba Steve
19th May 2006
by Steve Pilson
Hi there,
The feud between Brunswick and Coburg riders continue, even here in sunny Belgium you cannot escape them. I am referring to Dylan Newell whom I saw at my second race. He was soon out of contention when he punctured early into the race. I have raced a few more times since the last email, finishing just outside the money mostly. I did happen to pick up some cash yesterday when I finished 18th. A group of 17 riders managed to escape after a fall split the peleton with 66km to go. I attacked with about 30km to go and rode across to the lead group with 5 other riders. We caught them with 10km to go but unfortunately I didn't have anything left in the tank for the final sprint. The team has some racing in France coming up which will be a good opportunity for all of us to be seen. I have had my photo taken quite a few times now by local supporters which is nice. It is great for the ego that someone thinks you can go well even if they are only a local spastic! I am starting to like this big gear style of racing, so much so I just ordered a 55 chain ring for my bike. Back home I would have thought this was massive but here it doesn't seem so big. Just the other day I meet a 63 year old man who rides up and down the canals on a fixed gear bike with a 68 / 11. HE just does time trials and rides a 56 / 11 fixed gear for them. I think that's where Spuddy might be in 15 years. Anyway must be going P.S Well done to Adrian Hanson for being selected for the Victorian track team. Steve
SUNNY BELGIUM
5th May 2006
by Steve Pilson
Hi there, Its been one week now and I am slowly trying to adjust to life in Belgium, in particular life on the farm. For the past 3 days, we have had no hot water or heater as this also runs off the hot water. The gas for cooking ran out the other night so we had to have cold dinner and it has been quite an experience. On the up side, we have fresh eggs every day and I get to clock up the miles by riding the town bike to go shopping etc... I had my first race on Sunday and it went ok considering I only had 4 days to adjust. I got 17th, picking up 10 Euros along the way. I cannot race until the 9th as there are some regional champs on at the moment. This gives me a great chance to train and I went out to the Koppenberg today to see what it is really like. (This is a hill from the tour of Flanders). It is very similar to the gorge in South Morang but cobbles the whole way up which makes it about 10 times harder I reckon. I'm looking to go to the start of the Giro D'Italia as it starts in Belgium and is the first time in tour history that it has been here. Anyway must get going and I will try to keep you up to date with race reports and life in Belgium. Cheers Steve Pilson
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Copyright 2005 Coburg Cycling Club. All Rights Reserved |
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