Ouch...

The race in Waver yesterday was going well for the first 60k and then ended very quickly as I slammed into some prime Belgian dirt.

We started in Waver, a town near brussels. The race was 180ks and a UCI 1.2 which is the highest classification the National Team can do. It's also a part of the Belgian Top Competition series, so the field was stacked with Belgian Continental pro teams and the very best amateur teams as well. Chocolade Jacques, Beveren-Quickstep, Predictor Lotto-VC Ardennes, Bodysol, and Cyclingnews-Jako were the most recognizable teams. Thirty six registered teams meant there were over 200 starters. The first 50k had some short, tough climbs and the rest of the race was flat. The last 75k would be 5 laps of a 15k finish circuit. The race started fast, as is typical here, but settled in pretty well, at least on the flats. We went somewhat hard over the climbs but I was really comfortable and never in difficulty. Two of the tougher climbs we did twice and were lined with hundreds of spectators which was pretty cool. At this point small moves were going off the front but I was just trying to sit top 40 wheels. I had some trouble with that coming into towns and such but was always able to ride back to the front. I was feeling very comfortable, eating and drinking, and already at least 50 or 60 guys had been shelled so I felt the race was going well.

Then we came around a downhill bend and I heard the sounds of a crash: yelling, metal scraping, and the thud of bodies. A few guys were lying in the middle of the road. In a split second I grabbed the breaks and aimed for the curb, hoping to escape into the dirt and at least land softly. Then I felt someone hit me from behind. They must have never hit the breaks, it felt like they were still going 55k an hour and they absolutely slammed me, knee first, into the dirt. I lay there as 20 or so more guys piled into the crash. I couldn't move my right leg at all and the breath was knocked out of me, so I road with some paramedics. Luckily I convinced them I was ok and they dropped me off with the soigneur in the feed zone. I couldn't walk for a while yesterday but some heat and ice did the trick and I feel ok right now, I can walk and I'm going to ride later, hopefully I can race tommorow.