Directionally challenged

So far in life it seems that I have been dealt a pretty decent hand when it comes to my genetics (thanks Lizzie & Geo!). Sure, I am so blind I have had to wear coke bottle glasses since I was 4 and my ankles are so wimpy I am a pathetic skater (a big deal growing up in Ottawa with  “the longest skating rink in the world”) but overall I think I have done pretty well (knock on wood I don’t get poked by the fickle finger of fate with some nasty disease). But one thing I never got was that “internal compass” that can be helpful in many situations. I have tried to focus and improve on this but if you know me well you know it’s never going to happen (Norm is the only one in denial). I once did a 3 day adventure race in Panorama and got lost for 3 hours on the first day, 2 hours on the second day and 1 hour on the third day. It was deemed a success in my eyes because I actually got back on track every day. As my nephew Noah would say – yeah me!

So with this acceptance, whenever I am in a new place and trying to get longer rides in it is always a bit stressful. Nobody wants to be lost in a foreign country, where you don’t speak the language, where legend has it Ryan Trebon was arrested and thrown in jail for turning right on a red light on his bike. With most of the crew out with injuries, and now gone, I have been doing a lot of my training rides solo. I started with out and backs to get familiar with what Hertsberge looked like from all angles. Oostkamp and back. Brugge and back. Beernem and back. Then I graduated to small loops, always moving in a grid-like pattern. Next up, figure 8’s,: a loop to a known point then another loop from that non-Hertsberge point. Then bigger loops encompassing a few towns on the perimeter of Hertsberge. I know, it seems pathetic but I am seriously a bit of a directional moron.

I was starting to feel more comfortable so today I thought I would expand on yesterdays Beernem loop. I got to Beernem no problem. Easy peezy lemon squeezy. Left. Big move Wendy. Crazy, I know. I started towards a new town, Assebroek. This was supposed to be a big loop so no turns, I kept straight and then realized I was heading towards Brugge. Hmmm I knew Brugge pretty well by now so no biggie. I also knew that my new favourite chocolate store “Neuhaus” was in Brugge so I kept my course. Lucky for me the euro towns are always centered around a giant church that towers above all else so I made my way to the centrum. I was having a wicked ride! Snaking my way to the centrum on some cobbled alleyways and people watching. Ladies in fur coats and heels riding their bikes with style. Guys riding no-hands so they could smoke. Tourists. Shoppers. The smell of fresh waffles. Horse drawn carriages. Brick bridges. I was pretty obvious in my bright orange Kona-yourkey.com kit so I got as many stares as I gave out.

I found my way to Neuhaus – no problem, its right near the big church. My chocolate assistant recognized me so she directed me towards some new ones to try (this trip was unplanned so I forgot the chocolate guide that Barb and I had poured over, circling the ones we wanted to try). When I left, it started to snow.

I headed back towards Hertsberge and then got cocky 1-2kms from the Cycling Center. I still had to find a good spot for my workout. There were lots of woodsy areas near our place that I hadn’t explored yet so I popped onto a diagonal bike path (another crazy move as I usually only deal in straight lines). I saw signs for a castle and took some side trails. This was looking like a great spot to check out further. I found the castle. Did my workout and then realized I had no clue where I was. Uh oh. I was cold and tired and needed food (other than chocolate…). Bad combo. But I got all mantracker and started looking for clues. I finally found my tire tracks in the snow and followed them out of the woods and headed home. What a great ride! The only thing that could have made it better was a buddy to share it with….

 Notes:

-if I hear anymore Phil Collins on the radio I might snap

-no races for awhile now, just training, so if you are bored with my idle chit-chat, tune back in after the Lievin World Cup on the 13^th

-my FSA spoke arrived today – thanks FSA! Now I can get that wheel up and running

-7 days until Norm gets here!