Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Sven Nys on TV last night

Last night, as i was zapping I came across the local news. They were interviewing Sven Nys. Even with his logo'd digs traded in for a blue cardigan with white T poking out, he's very easy to recognize.

They talked about his recent win at Gavere, asking him if it was a fluke where he replied that winning it five times in a row disqualifies it as an accident.

Of all the topics discussed, there was one that shouldn't have surprised me, but did. The interviewer asked Sven if he was nervous about not winning since November 1st.

This question proves just how quickly the Belgian fans are to judge. Before Sven got his answer out, I said to Jonas - "But he just won a race last weekend at Vlaamse Houtlandcross in Eernegem." I expected Sven to respond with that but instead he told the interviewer that there is only one weekend between Novermber 1st and now. That is hardly enough time to cause concern.

In hindsight, i now realize that Sven would have looked silly to have mentioned that win last week since it was not one of the blockbuster events like a Superprestige, GVA or World Cup. And i suspect they would have called him on this.

It was only a couple of weeks ago that the press, media and fans were writing Bart Wellens off only for him to come back with a heroic Pijnacker World Cup followed by a strong 2nd place in Gavere Superprestige. Maybe next time they will all listen to him when he says not to count him out yet.

Another pleasant surprise of last weekend was Erwin Vervecken - another cyclist who has not been treated kindly by onlookers. Watching him cross the line for 4th at Gavere was wonderful.

I wrote a personal update on my race that is now posted on CXmagazine.com . It will give you a better picture of how I scored my top 10 finish at Gavere Superprestige. Yippee!

(Photo taken by Krist Vanmelle)

Thanks!

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nys won on the 1st, and he won on the 16th, and they moan that he hasn't didn't have a win on the weekend between, when in fact he did but at a lesser race, and finished third at Pijnacker???

With the competition as hot as it is Albert, Boom, Wellens do they really expect him to pull one out of the hat every weekend??? The Belgians are a hard crowd to please, eh?

Good work on 10th. It looked like a WW1 battle field with all that thick mud!

CT

PEANUT said...

hey ct
Yes,the belgians are tough. Most of them are expert bike racers (and soccer players) from the comfort of their own couches. It is really amusing to watch some of them while they watch a game or race. Love it!
The big deal with Nys is that for years he has been winning almost everything. But now with boom and albert - the kids - he can no longer dominate like in the past. He has been very clear on this but i think a lot of us still want to see nys win everything even so. It is also hard for him to keep a high level from august through february whereas the others only have to keep it from october to feb.

Amy said...

Hey, congratulations on your 10th place at Gavere!

I know what you mean about the Belgian (Flemish?) press and fans' attitudes towards athletes - it sometimes baffles me how they tend to be so hard on them from the moment they perform a little bit less...they never seem to rally around their athletes (like Americans?). They can be so incredibly critical!

place_holder said...

Yay for top 10!!! Congrats!

Rickie Rainwater said...

Stunning Photo Peanut! I really enjoyed your latest cx mag journal. I hope I get the magazine soon as I would like to check out your article. I am going mountain biking tomorrow at Devil's Den state park. I have a particular route that includes some wonderful single track and is full of different challenges. I haven't gone in a long time and I will have to get into the zone. It use to be my form of meditation and required real focus and good technical skills. I miss it. Yipeee, mountain biking tomorrow!
rickie

Anonymous said...

Having looked at your article, I'd like to chime in that one hears this constantly, that so-and-so, but for having fudged a rule that later resulted in a relegation, would have finished higher. The thing is, good cyclo-cross racing is, in part, not fudging rules, however bureaucratic and arbitrary they might seem. That particular rule — to the effect that one must not enter the pit lane without taking a bike — is a good rule. Despite what you imply in your article, I have seen it enforced in men's races on several occasions; personally I can't imagine Nys violating that one, no matter how pressured or flustered. I do agree that the "five steps" limit seems to have become fairly vitiated in recent years, not least because it's incredibly hard to keep track of in the moment, by riders and judges alike. The bike exchange is a little different. It can be observed easily, and it does have important tactical consequences. You were tenth. Tenth is tenth, not eleventh.
:Elmo

PEANUT said...

While i do agree the rule should be enforced, I find it a pity that a fellow competitor's family had to be the one to do it. It was clearly not on purpose. Engels was not looking for a shortcut.
I did learn from this situation, however, that if this happens to me that i simply have to get off my bike and run a few steps before remounting.
I was indeed 10th at the race - two spots higher even than last year's result. Yippee.

PEANUT said...

hey rickie
And the trails yesterday? I will check out your blog to see if you wrote about it.

bikesgonewild said...

...hey kiddo...it's been a while...
...i lost everything (hundreds of pages of bookmarked stuff) on my 'puter a while ago & i've just not gotten back to all of my old haunts (sites)...

...so, good ride @ gavere...seemed like a slog in a bog...sorry to see you lost yer ride but yer hangin' in like a trooper...fork 'em...keep pedalin'...

...so i'll be back, weighing in w/ my usual b.s., bad humor & nasty attitudes...you know...just bikesgonewild over here in "the county"...

...monday, up bolinas from fairfax, over the dam, along ridgecrest, down into tam junction & home in warm sunshine...
...wednesday, thought it was belgium on a paradise loop...low '60's, overcast, wind off the water...
...but hey, it's marin, so what can ya do but enjoy it, right ???...

...see ya...

Rickie Rainwater said...

Christine, I leave in about 2 hours for the Den which is about 45 minutes away. Today is thursday, 7:31am in Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA and just for fun, I keep your time on my watch sort of, actually Paris France,but close. I will post my adventure on my blog and will let you know. I'm so lucky to live here.
rickie

Rickie Rainwater said...

I'm back from my ride. Pretty hairy ride. It was like riding on a volcanic strewn jungle of jagged rocks and huge down trees. A beautiful day in the Ozarks.
I updated my blog, but I was too busy trying to stay alive to take pictures.
rickie

PEANUT said...

hey rickie
what an adventure you had! love those days - especially the ones you survive.
BGW - I miss those loops. Waaaaaa...