This post is a mixed bag really involving many different emotions and covering differing subjects, but as ever I am going to start this chronologically and so it begins with Marie. She and I have both decided to try have a proper sit down discussion each day to improve on each other's respective language skills of the other peron's language. This has been highly enjoyable and is really eye-opening on so many different levels, certainly how the French view us, the English/British and themselves. Firstly the French look at the English and to some degree the rest of the British Isles to be Norse and do actually refer to us as being such, not just that we are closely related or that we have similar cultural and lingistical aspects, this I find absolutely fascinating and goes some way to explaining why the French view us the way they do. They see us as very different to themselves and in view us in the usual British/English stereotypes, proper, slightly cold etc... what's interesting though is how much this is all reflected in the languages and everyday speaking. When a Frenchman asks a question, half the time they will miss out the beginning question word/s and the establishment of context, they presume you should be able to answer and recognise that's it's a question in the first place, just by the slight inflexion at the end of a sentence. It's quite off-hand and has made learning French even more of a struggle. Whilst in Britain, we mostly or always use question words to ask a question because how can you ask a question without them? It's just a statement otherwise surely?
What the French think of themselves is interesting too because they also see themselves as uncommunicative and not just with foreigners, but to each other, having said this nearly everyone I have met as made a real effort to communicate with me. On the otherhand though whilst us English will usually slow down and pronounce words correctly to help foreigners who are struggling with speaking English, the French don't really seem to embrace this attitude, what they will do is try to say what they are saying in as many different ways as possible until we get something. Any of them that do speak English will readily employ as much as they know for us during conversations which is most welcomed, though since I arrived I have been surprised by either the amount of French that do not speak any English or necessarily any other language, this makes me think that Brits are not quite as ignorant of other languages as before, but only slightly.
On to the racing, I picked up my first top 10 on Saturday coming 9th in G.P. Peaule 2/3/Juniors, a very stormy day, the race was held on a square-ish 4.5km circuit around town, with a long draggy hill in it that came in 2 stages. We had to do 22 laps altogether. I was in every move in the race except the one that got away and would contain a good few of the top 10, someone in about 8th wheel for no real reason put the brakes on literally, allowing a group of 7 to go up the road, I was 20th wheel at the time. This was with about 10 laps to go, with lots of the favourites markking each other and racing so hard earlier to try and get away, as well as most of the decent teams represented in the break, there was no real concerted effort to chase. Sam Allen managed to jump across to that group and then take a great win, unfortunately I just didn't have the legs to go with Sam thus costing me a higher position, which on balance I should have got. Anyway I sat in for the sprint and got 9th, not too bad, though I should have gone earlier as many from the break were crawling across the line as I was finishing. Pleased, but also this performance was tempered by disappointment at not getting as high a placing as I should have done.
Nevertheless after yesterday's performance I was feeling confident about the Bignan race also 2/3/Juniors, this race was longer than Saturday's totalling 120km and a lot hillier, including going up Plumelec Hill from two different sides. Anyway today was lovely day with not as strong winds as the day before, therefore I switched to my deeper section wheels. Unfortunately this would prove to be my downfall as the front wheel has some bearing issue, these are getting replaced however the new bearings have not arrived yet, still I thought it would be fine to continue using the deeper front wheel until the new bearings came. This was not that case as at the beginning of the race I felt rubbish and like I was cycling through treacle, no where near as easy as the previous day's performance felt. I believed I was having an off day, however on a big climb about 55mins, this is where the peloton really shattered, I was alright postionallly, but it felt so difficult cycling up the hill and my front wheel was giving me real cause for concern actively resisting me. I changed the wheel at the top of the climb, but I had to wait a good while before the car got to me because of how strung out the peloton was (incidentally Sunday's race had a lot of starters, close to 200). I changed the front wheel and chased back on to the peloton. Sadly, the race had well and truly gone from me at this point, so all I could make sure to do was get in the next move and make it as good a training session as possible, so I drove the break finishin 62nd.
Another thing that made me even angrier than my front wheel bearings completely going was the fact that Sebastien, the team president, discovered that my Pinarello has two cracks either side of the cranks and bottom bracket. Sunday was certainly a black day for me. On top of this I've got some swelling on my right knee, but this has really gone done now with some R.I.C.E.
Nevermind, it is all a learning experience and hopefully no more bad luck occurs, now I've only got one race this week, another 2/3/Juniors where I hope I can really perform.
Hope you are all well and enjoying what little Sun that has managed to shine through.
No comments:
Post a Comment