It’s the day after and I’m so tired.  And so happy.  I went to the most famous bicycle race in Belgium.  I found a spot right against the barrier on the Oude Kwaremont, one of the cobbled climbs.  The men came by twice, and the women once.  Each time I got to see riders for maybe five minutes … and then they were gone up the road.  But it was so worth it.

I loved the faces flashing by.  They were splattered with mud, mouths open sucking in oxygen, legs churning on the pedals.  I was in awe.  These women rode for 163 kilometres, the men 270 – often in the rain.

On the train to the start in Oudenaarde, where the race started, I sat with a young couple from the U.K.  He had ridden the entire race route yesterday.  So that’s all the climbs, with the gradient occasionally reaching 20%.  “I’m so jealous of you.  You’re young and incredibly fit.  I’m old and far less fit.”  He smiled … and actually so did I.

Before the race, I watched each team being presented on the stage.  The hosts interviewed one or two riders.  They asked cool questions, sometimes funny ones, and got engaged answers – in Dutch, French or English.

There were hundreds of us watching, including a line of VIPs on the balcony of Oudenaarde’s ancient city hall.

I love the colours of bike races – the jerseys of the teams and the brilliance of their bikes.

The big problem I had all day was standing for long times – at the presentation, on the bus to the Oude Kwaremont, the hours of waiting there for the cyclists, the long lineup to catch the shuttle bus back to Oudenaarde.  The legs got tighter and tighter.  But so what?  I was there.

I snuck a picture of the guys on the far side of the cobbled route.  They were having well lubricated fun.

Here’s a shot of the Kwaremont to my right, where I’d see riders’ backsides before they disappeared around the bend.  There’d be a rolling roar of yelling and clapping as each athlete rode by.

And just for you, a close-up of the cobbles.  They were so slippery that on the steep climb called the Koppenberg, some cyclists had to dismount and run up the hill.

The final stretch of the race featured a trio of racers fighting for the top step of the podium: Shirin van Anrooij from the Netherlands, Kasia Niewiadoma from Poland and Elisa Longo Borghini from Italy.  I was glued to my phone from the Oude Kwaremont.  A sprint …

Elisa !

***

I’m not the athlete that Elisa is

But her outstretched arms paint the picture

Of my yesterday