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As the final week of the Giro d'Italia ticked by, I tried to make a note of things I could write about in my final blog about the race. Aside from the bone-chilling descent off the Mortirolo and an exciting ‘will they/won’t they’ breakaway finale, I wasn’t left with much. But then, as I’m sure you’ve seen by now, I had a pretty special day in Verona.

For two weeks – ever since the time trial on stage 9 went so well for me – I had been counting down the days until Verona.

I helped my teammates where I could as they continued to fight for breakaway success, but every time the race started to explode, I jumped on the gruppetto train rather than go into the red. It’s not exciting, and it’s definitely a gamble to pass up opportunities, but I was committed to my choice.

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That’s not to say that I had an easy ride… The Giro d’Italia is anything but easy, and I actually suffered quite a lot; with the mindset of saving my legs, every effort hurt doubly because I didn’t want to hurt. I had my doubts at times. I wondered how much I was really saving, and whether guys like Roglic would be as tired as I needed them to be by the time they rolled down the start ramp.

With just five climbs between me and the time trial, I started stage 20 prepared to suffer. We hit the first climb and the race immediately exploded, but I found myself cruising past dropped riders, not even feeling the effort. “Whoa,” I thought, as I realized that my plan had worked and I floated up the first climb. I told my director, “These legs can win tomorrow, I just need to get them to the finish today,” and settled in for a long day.

The exasperated cries of “piano!” and “gruppetto!” every time guys felt like the pace was too high became music to my ears, as it was a reminder that most of the peloton was struggling. 6000kJ later, I hopped off my bike and bounded up the steps to the bus. I was tired, but in a great mood after laying the groundwork for a great time trial, and set to work getting everything in order for the next day.

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Week two of the Giro d'Italia started off better than we could have hoped for. After enjoying our rest day, we enjoyed two more. Many followers of the race complained about the boring, pancake-flat sprint stages, but we in the peloton savoured every minute of boredom, knowing what awaited us for the remainder of the Giro.

Our only objectives were to get through the sprint days safely and spend as little energy as possible. To that end, we had a competition within the team to see who could have the easiest day. I posted a photo of my average power and heart-rate for stage 10, and Twitter blew up, as expected.

Yes, it was a very easy day, but those numbers are misleading because of the effort and skill required to make it so easy – sagging every small rise and every acceleration out of corners, as well as taking "hiding in the bunch" to extremes. Some of my lighter teammates averaged 40 watts more than me, so even among professionals with the same goal, the effort varied greatly. And for those wondering: I came in a very close second in our competition behind Jan Bakelants, but I did win our heart-rate mini-challenge.

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Having navigated the sprint stages well, we set our sights on breakaway success as the race entered the mountains. Already eyeing the final time trial in Verona, I focused more on helping my teammates get into the breakaway, before taking it as easy as possible until the finish.

I prefer the second-to-last gruppetto, as this is the group that prefers to climb marginally faster and descend with a bit less risk, whereas the sprinters' gruppetto aims to take back time on the descents.

An added challenge for the gruppetto is that, by the time we get there, many spectators have already begun riding home on the course and don't always do a good job of getting out of our way, which is kind of like a Formula 1 race being held while a vintage car club takes leisure laps.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

Week two of the Giro d'Italia started off better than we could have hoped for. After enjoying our rest day, we enjoyed two more. Many followers of the race complained about the boring, pancake-flat sprint stages, but we in the peloton savoured every minute of boredom, knowing what awaited us for the remainder of the Giro.

Our only objectives were to get through the sprint days safely and spend as little energy as possible. To that end, we had a competition within the team to see who could have the easiest day. I posted a photo of my average power and heart-rate for stage 10, and Twitter blew up, as expected.

Yes, it was a very easy day, but those numbers are misleading because of the effort and skill required to make it so easy – sagging every small rise and every acceleration out of corners, as well as taking "hiding in the bunch" to extremes. Some of my lighter teammates averaged 40 watts more than me, so even among professionals with the same goal, the effort varied greatly. And for those wondering: I came in a very close second in our competition behind Jan Bakelants, but I did win our heart-rate mini-challenge.

ADVERTISEMENT

Having navigated the sprint stages well, we set our sights on breakaway success as the race entered the mountains. Already eyeing the final time trial in Verona, I focused more on helping my teammates get into the breakaway, before taking it as easy as possible until the finish.

I prefer the second-to-last gruppetto, as this is the group that prefers to climb marginally faster and descend with a bit less risk, whereas the sprinters' gruppetto aims to take back time on the descents.

An added challenge for the gruppetto is that, by the time we get there, many spectators have already begun riding home on the course and don't always do a good job of getting out of our way, which is kind of like a Formula 1 race being held while a vintage car club takes leisure laps.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com

It was a dream Spring Classics season with two victories at Strade Bianche and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. I was also consistent with three second places at Tour of Flanders, Amstel Gold Race and Flèche Wallonne, where I was fighting for the win. Even though it was a success, there were some things I learned along the way.

The lessons I took away from those second-place performances was to be a little bit more confident and believe in my capabilities. And so when I arrived at the start line of Liège-Bastogne-Liège, I felt that I had to take the initiative instead of waiting for an opportunity as I had done in the previous events.

It was such a big mental battle for me that day because I knew that it was my day to shine, that I was in good shape, and that I had worked so hard. Liège was also my last race during the Spring Classics.

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I knew that I needed to put the hammer down right at the bottom of the Côte de la Redoute, but up until that point, I struggled because it was so, so, so cold. I can't even explain how it felt to race in such conditions. Usually, I'm pretty good with cold, and I'm pretty good with rain, but the combination of the two of them was challenging.

During the race, however, I remembered what I learned as a younger athlete from our national team coach Johan Lammerts. He would say that we had to open the curtains on the race day and look out the window, and if it was raining, we should be happy because half of the peloton would already be unmotivated.

It took us an hour to discuss and decide what to wear before the race. It's hard to figure out what the best clothing is for a race in such conditions, but I think my decision was spot on. I wore a rain jacket for the whole race until the point where I knew I wanted to attack on the La Redoute, and then I took it off just before the climb.

The importance of live TV

Building up to the Giro Rosa

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It felt here nor there to me, I thought, deciding whether or not to go the USA. I wasn't sure whether I would race the Tour of California but, if I did, I would spend a week in Boulder first for some altitude and solid training. I was still recovering from my crash at Amstel Gold Race. What seemed like an insignificant pavement slam had done some damage in my lower back and things were not quite perfect yet. I was ready to train but was I ready to race? Was all the travel worth it? What was the big deal about Boulder anyway?

Even though the weather forecast looked awful, some coaxing from a locally placed friend was enough to sway the vote and I was off to Colorado. Arriving in Denver, I was less than impressed with the flat terrain. Where were the mountains?

With jet lag brain, I stared out the window but then it started. The horizon grew into a jagged silhouette and with it my excitement. I saw the Flatirons, massive rocks in the shape of clothing irons, and the landscape grew evermore impressive the closer we came to Boulder. By the time we got to our accommodation, jet lag had been overruled by excitement.

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The next morning felt like Christmas. With so many new roads high up, places to see, and bad weather coming later in the week, the blue-sky day was the perfect opportunity to get in a massive ride. The route was called Peak-to-Peak, a famous local loop of 120km with 3,000m of climbing.

The Rocky Mountain terrain was different from the European mountains I knew. The roads were straighter and, without the signal of a switchback, deceptively steep. Instead of going up and down mountains, it was more riding up canyons and staying along the top. Riding up at 2500-3000m for so long was a new experience. The entire day was spent in the saddle and it was one of those fulfilling memorable rides that left me tired, excited, and motivated. I’ve never fallen out of love with cycling but this felt like it was happening all over again.

The predicted bad weather arrived and sat over Boulder for the next few days. I wasn’t bothered by a snow day after such a big first day and it was good to have some easier inside rides to adjust to the altitude. By the time the clouds and snow cleared, I was ready to enjoy the sun and mountains again. I was also ready for the Tour of California. I felt so energized, motivated, and simply happy after only a few days of riding.

You can read more at Cyclingnews.com