I managed to organise a lift to Sinaai today, where there would be a 110km Kermesse. Being on a Monday, we were not expecting a good turnout, but 140 riders later and we knew it would be a hard day. The course consisted of about 15 corners, and also 400m of cobbles - so it was on!

I started midfield to get some shelter from the wind, but a few close calls later and I decided to move to the front where it was safe. On lap 3 I got into a small break that I knew would not work, but if another break were to chase us, I could then slingshot into that group, so I felt I had it covered for a nice result. The bunch caught us and a few solo attempts went up the road, but nothing worth chasing...Until one group did get free, consisting of 13 riders! Whoops....

Coming into the 5th last lap, the peleton hit the cobble section again, and I rolled through to the front to do my turn... about a minute later I looked behind to see who would be rolling through nect and well... there was nobody! I just got left to ride up the road by myself. I rounded the cobble corner, onto the tar and saw the lead break about 50m away, so I carried on trying to bridge the gap. I was literally 20m behind the group when they hit the gas again! I just could not get across, so I slipped back to the bunch and tried to catch my breath!

As soon as we reached the 2nd last lap, about 10 guys attacked. I chased them down, and 1km later I was in with the break! We worked together like clockwork, mixed with a bit of old fashioned aggression and bumping and Flemish swearing, but that all stopped when we hit the last lap. We averaged 49km/h on that lap, and had the peleton chasing us down like a pack of wolves - and I didn't want to get eaten! Hitting the cobbles for the final time, and with 1km to go, we all started attacking each other. But I was so spent that I could only just follow the moves... I finished 22nd overall - there was still a breakway of 13 ahead of us, only 15 seconds up the road.

A super day of racing, and finally I've achieved my first goal - a top 30. In fact, almost a top 20! Hopefully the curve keeps going up...