Keep calm, and wait for the raging storm. (Transcontinental Race 2015 part1)

Get ready for Istanbul !

Friday July 25, we are about 170 riders, here, on the top of the Mur of Grammont in the little city of Geraardsbergen not far from Brussels (Belgium).

The atmosphere is changing as fast as the sun fall behind the horizon. Even if some guys chill with some beer at the bar, the other walk through the alley and check the bike of the others, and a lot of them stop at my bike, weight it, check the luggage, speak, laugh, I don't like it. But I must admit, I don't have the classical bike fitted for this race. Around me, a lot of bike made of carbon or titanium, equipped with latest group, I think a lot of money have been spent in these bike, and I'm here with my daily fixed gear bike that do not even worth a wheel on others bike. I'm pretending to finish this race where half of these guy will not finish. Finally I'm just a fucking arrogant guy. "Look this race is so easy I will do it on a shitty bike". Well maybe I'm this guy... but I always have done long ride with my fixed gear bike, ok it's getting old, but why I couldn't do this one ? Look my bike is still rolling nice !

 Since I signed for this race, people tell me "you will not do it to Istanbul", the more they say me that, the more I'm determinate to go to The Cafe Hisar with my fixed gear bike. When I see guys laughing at my bike on the Mur, I imagine I speak to my teammate bike "we will show them all what we can do". 

I chill with the French guys, I never saw some of these before the race or maybe on Facebook. I know Sam since few years thanks to the fixed gear community, he is a veteran of TCR (looks awesome said like that). I know Clement too, a well know but discreet rider of SSCX and good friend of Sam, Gregory from French FG community, I met the others guy here, Alexandre, the mega prepared guy, Patrick "old" but still strong and Phillipe the guy who waited 6 months for not getting his frame on time (fuck Sky.. !), we discuss and laugh, the ambiance between French is as good as it was on Facebook discussion. I'm happy to be there with theses guys. It's awesome. We try to rest before the French briefing from race director Mike Hall, but it's pointless, we are too excited. Mike did the French brief... in English, well no problems we are prepared. We decide to enjoy one last good meal at the bar, feel like the last meal of a death sentence prisoner. We ate it without knowing when we will get our next real meal, Delicious. Suddenly, some wild friends appears, they came from Brussels or Lille (France) to cheer us on the start, the French community is small, but awesome ! We don't realize it's our last discussion all together until the finish.

Great adventurer Mike Hall, also the race director of the TCR

The clock approach 00.00, and people start to gather on the starting line. It's like in an alleycat (race between bike messenger, an article coming soon), but this time I really don't give a fuck for starting in front, there is a neutral lap in the city of Gerrardbergen, and the race will be very long, the position doesn't matter. The atmosphere changed, people realize they are going to try something huge. I cheer the guy on my right "let's go to Istanbul" with my French accent, then left, at that moment, I didn't realized that one of two will scratch before Istanbul, I yelled one last time through the crowd to check where are the French guy, Sam and Clem are in front of me, I already lost Alex, Greg and the others.

Tracker ? Check !

Fire is set to the torches. 

The Mayor speak, a funny guy entertain us. And then a moment of silence, midnight approach, and the raging storm is coming.

The public start the count down

5 !!
                  *Silence in my brain*
........4 !!
...............3 !!
                                 *Heavy breath*
......................2 !!
.............................1 !!


                                            *My head, the scene of an upcoming storm*


....................................GOOO !!