In cycling, no day is the same. The past few days in the Amgen Tour of California proves that for me. Unfortunately for our team it hasn’t been the best race. In the team time trial we lost too much time and because of that, none of our Wiggle-High5 team has a really good spot in the general classification. Today, the 3rd stage of the race, we knew would be a hard day with first some short climbs and a longer one later on.
Of course we had a plan, as always when you start a race. Our plan? To make a hard race of it, so Mara could do something on the climbs. It was my job to get in an early break, so there would be a chance I was in the front when the longer climb started.
But… there never came an early attack, so that changed the plan. At the start of the climb my work was over and Mara was alone in front, with Emma in a group behind her. It didn’t go exactly how we planned it, but that was how we wanted it and it was a perfect situation for us. Unfortunately the groups came together and the race ended in a sprint.
After three days of racing here in America, I can honestly say it is a special experience to race here. What a great environment! And not forgetting how different the way of racing is here. Because the roads are very wide, instead of the narrow ones we race over in Europe, you get really different races. And with that, it’s also less nerve wracking and it makes a great week! I also have to mention the organization, It’s great to see how hard they try to make a very big event of this and getting huge crowds to the races.
I always look forward to stage races, because I like being on the road with the team. But I especially look forward to this one. Why? Because for me and most riders of Wiggle-High5 it’s the first time we have raced in America for more days in a row. It is great to have these kind of new experiences together. Also its great because we get to race with Mara now!
We already have the end of the race in our sight. Only one day to go and the race is over. Time flies when you are having fun! It’s a strange idea, knowing that tomorrow we have the last day. Then the other circus, the one of traveling, starts again. On Monday we fly home, Thursday morning I will be home and two days later… I leave home again! Then I will race the Hills Classic and Gooik. I wouldn’t have missed this for the world and I am very happy I came to California. Let’s make a great last stage of it!
