Cold and Rainy in Belgium...

but having a lot of fun nonetheless!! Today Jonas and I went for a training ride through the Tervuren forest to test out the noggin. Five minutes after we rolled out the door it started to rain. Perfect timing. If it's going to rain, it's always best for it to start after I'm already on the bike. It makes is much easier to step outside.

Just as the rain was seeping through my heavy duty waterproof neoprene booties and turning my quads to ice, I started my tempo efforts to see how the head would respond. If, after a few efforts, my head felt like it was about to explode like a rotten apple and my ears felt like they were spewing blood, then absolutely NO Hoogerheide Cyclo-Cross World Cup (Holland) this weekend. But if it went well, then race ON! (The doc gave me permission to ride as long as it doesn't increase the head pain. )

Shortly after the first effort, Jonas slowed down, making his way to the side of the rode. As he was pulling over, he was looking towards the rear of his bike. When i asked him what's wrong, he said "When i hit the bump in the road, my ass fell off the bike." When i heard that, my whole entire body almost fell off the bike! In that one moment, I forgot about the rain, my cold quads and thankfully my possible exploding head. And just when i thought i couldn't laugh any harder, Jonas gives me his explanation as to why he couldn't possibly have said what i heard. "Baby, I'm smarter than that. If my ass fell off, it would have been caught by my tights." Thankfully, I peed just before the ride. But then again, on a rainy day, it doesn't really matter.

Long story short, my head didn't explode and my ears remained blood-free. Tomorrow I plan to check out the course. Again, i'll see how my head feels. If i do decide to start the race on Sunday, I will go into it with very modest - or rather realistic - expectations. Safety before all else since I won't be bike racing forever.

Have a great weekend.