Leftovers

While I've nothing to do besides get out for a ride then come back for lunch of leftover turkey and stuffing, I have plenty of time to write up scintillating blog posts.

But I'm using that time to watch rubbish on telly instead, so I'll reproduce for you to a bit I wrote about the Ghent Six-Days for londoncyclesport.com: Big Names at the Ghent Six.


Or to give it it's proper name, de Zesdaagse Vlaanderen Gent.

Since discovering that my birthday will always fall during the Ghent Six-Days week, I'm making it an annual pilgrimage. So last week I hopped on the Eurostar with my friend Peta for my second annual trip to the Ghent Six, to celebrate my second thirty-ninth birthday.

So many Brits (and I guess I even consider myself a Brit now!) travel to Ghent for this event that it's even referred to as the British Six-Days, the reason for which is a mystery to Six-Day connoisseurs. Ghent does not have the most exciting programme of either racing or entertainment, yet it is always a sell-out and on the weekend at least, you can't swing a pintje in the track centre without hitting a Brit.

Last year, Bradley Wiggins and Mark Cavendish paired-up to provide a big-name draw for English-speaking supporters, and GB U23 riders Peter Kennaugh and Adam Blythe took the lead on the first day of the Toekomst Zesdaagse - a programme of daily races for under-25s forming part of the UIV Talents Cup. The second day, they succumbed to pressure from a canny Belgian pair, but rode consistently well and, on the second day, moved back into a lead that they would not surrender.

Bradley Wiggins & Mark Cavendish sign on in 2007

Not having spent much time training together on the track, Wiggins and Cavendish found themselves well off the pace at the start and ended the first night already 10 laps down. Although their form and tactics improved during the week, they finished a disappointing 10th, 46 laps and 230 points behind winners Iljo Keisse and Robert Bartko.

Six-Days God Bruno Risi

This year, Six-Days God Bruno Risi found himself in a similar position, paired with Alexander Aeschbach instead of his usual partner Franco Marvulli who was out of action due to illness. They had some shocking hand-overs and Risi couldn't always hide his frustration. When Aeschbach turned up with mirror-lensed sunglasses on the seond day, I did wonder whether Bruno hadn't had a word with his fist! But by the third day they'd found their rhythm and looked like definite podium contenders. In the end, they had to settle for 4th, behind the ambitious pairing of Kenny de Kettele and Andreas Beikirch.

The Belgian press has often reported on Kenny de Kettele's frustration at the Six-Days organisers' refusals to let him pair-up with his usual Belgian national team mate on the grounds that he's not a good- or strong-enough partner for Iljo Keisse. I like K de K a lot and he and Beikirch rode very well, but still felt sorry that Risi and Aeschbach had to bear the brunt of his vindication.

GB's only representatives in Ghent this year were Olympic Development Programme juniors Luke Rowe and Andy Fenn riding in the Six-Days for Future Stars. Like Wiggins and Cavendish in 2007, Rowe and Fenn had had little chance to train together for the event and finished the first night in 9th place. Luke was originally due to ride with Mark Christian, but during their Madison ride at the World Track Cup round in Manchester at the beginning of the month, Mark came down hard not long into the race and although he soldiered-on to the finish, ended-up with a broken collarbone. Rowe and Fenn steadily improved throughout the week to finish joint-fifth and, most importantly, they managed to stay out of trouble in an event that is frequently marred by crashes.

Luke Rowe & Andy Fenn - Riding the U23 event

At 166m, the Kuipke velodrome in Ghent is one of the shortest on the Six-Days circuit and with up to 24 riders hurtling around its steep, tight banking it is also the most technically-demanding. It seems at least one of the Six-Days Future Stars comes down every night, and neither is the pro race without incident. In 2006, Spanish rider Isaac Galvez tragically died in a crash here. This year, Danish rider Mark Hester was injured in a crash on the Friday, leaving his Aussie partner Luke Roberts to ride alone in the individual events, and occasionally (although I couldn't make out why) with Nicky Cocquyt while Cocquyt's usual partner, Ingemaar De Poortere sat out. The final standings, in fact, list Roberts/Cocquyt finishing in 10th, with De Poortere/Hester DNF. But that's typical for a Six-Day where it seems the objective is to take a simple thing like racing bikes around a track and make the rules as impenetrable as possible.

"Do you want a picture of me?" - Erik Zabel

Although there were no big-name British riders, Erik Zabel was there, making his first appearance at the Ghent Six the last race of his career, drawing many fans. Even a certain Mr. Merckx turned up.

Eddy Merckx taking in the action

While chatting with Zabel's soigneur, waiting for an autograph, we overheard one of the TV crews complain that Erik would only do paid interviews. Locals reckoned Zabel would already have been paid tens of thousands of euros to appear at Ghent. Maybe he had his career's savings in an Icelandic bank and needs a little nest egg for his retirement!

Unlike Erik Zabel, Andy Fenn was willing to chat about his experience at Ghent for nothing, and while still red and sweaty after the night's racing, spoke enthusiastically about what a good experience it was to be there on such a demanding track, with such strong competition. It's completely different from his normal preparation for the road, but a good way to inject some variety (and fun) into the team's training and racing programme.

Having won the 2008 Junior Paris-Roubaix, Andy Fenn already garners respect from the crowd of savvy Belgian cycling fans gathered here. If he realises his ambitions as a professional on the road, maybe one day he'll be back in Ghent as the big-name draw!

Overall, in the main event, Zabel and Lampater finished 2nd while local golden boy Iljo Keisse and his German powerhouse partner Robert Bartko were the overwhelming favourites and massively popular winners for the second year in a row. And when I say Iljo Keisse is local, I mean his father owns a pub within 500m of the velodrome; and when I say golden, I mean blond-haired, blue-eyed, tall, tanned and charming; and when I say boy, I mean he's only 25 years old. And of Bartko, when I say powerhouse I mean, well, just look at those thighs!

Iljo Keisse & Robert Bartko top the podium