Women’s WorldTour Stories: Omloop Het Nieuwsblad by Alice Towers

It was slightly personal between SD Worx and FDJ: CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto racer Alice Towers recounts an extraordinary Omloop Het Nieuwsblad cycle race

The traditional professional cycle racing season opener began under sunny skies, with the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. This 138km long race from Gent to Ninove in Flanders, Belgium is a good test for professional cycle racers to test themselves out after their winter training and warm-weather training camps. It’s also a good chance to test out the bike handling skills on the numerous sections of cobbles, including the famous Kappelmuur at Geraadsbergen. This steep cobbled hill is generally a pivotal point in the race where a few people from the 143 starters will make their winning move – usually.

Alice Towers at the training camp (photo: Tino Pohlmann) 

This year’s race was a little different and played out in an unprecedented way, with a very unlikely but well-deserved winner.

Result:

1. Lotte Claes (Arkea B&B Hotels Women)

2. Aurela Nerlo (Windspace Orange Seal)

3. Demi Vollering (FDJ-SUEZ)

4. Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) 

5. Lorena Wiebes (Team SD Worx-Protime)

33. Alice Towers (CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto)

Alice Towers, of Team Canyon// SRAM zondacrypto competed in the Omloop and was doing it for the fourth time. The 22-year old former British National Champion from Staffordshire recounts her experience: 

Restarting my season in Europe

I started my season in Australia in January with the Tour Down Under, which feels like a long time ago now. It was a solid start because you spend all winter working on your shape and so I was quite keen to make sure my fitness was confirmed in the race - and it was. So I was happy with how the race went. [Alice finished in 10th place] 

Then I had about four weeks in between my last race and Omloop. So during that time I went back to my home in Andorra where I had a couple of days off and did some easy rides. Then I went back to the UK and caught up with family and friends. After that I started building back up again and I had some quite hard training weeks in the couple of weeks prior to Omloop. 

So coming into Omloop I felt fresh, which was good. Last year in the lead in to Omloop I went into the race feeling a bit like fatigued, so it was nicer this year to feel a bit more fresh.

However, this year it felt like I was starting my season again, so I had those pre-season nerves again even though I’d already six of seven race days in my legs. Still, it was good to have started in Australia as it’s less hectic compared to the Classics, and it’s a nice way to start the season. 

Omloop starts at Barcelona airport

I flew from Barcelona to Brussels, from where it's quite easy to get to Gent. Because Barcelona airport is a local airport for cyclists in Andorra and Girona, where there are a lot of cyclists based in both places when you fly to a race from Barcelona there’s always a lot of either team-mates or competitors on your flight. So you already feel like you’re at the race when you get to the airport, and you see everyone there in their team clothes and eating pasta out of a tupperware box. 

On the flight there's kind of a chatty atmosphere. You chat to friends you know on other teams, but sometimes some people like to keep themselves to themselves and they just put their earphones in and watch Netflix - I guess they just want to be left alone. But you always have to make a bit of smalltalk with other riders or else it’s a bit awkward!

Pre-race build-up in Gent

We arrived in Gent on the Thursday evening and stayed in a hotel there where there were a few other teams staying. We were quite close to the course, so could easily go and do the course recon on Friday where we rode on some of the more important cobbled sectors of the race. It’s good to see those sections and how the cobbles feel and how the bike is in case you need to adjust anything like your tyre pressures and things like that – just to make sure you’re like fully tuned in.

Team CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto (photo:Thomas Maheux)

I rode for an hour and a half. Some of the girls rode for longer because they wanted to see the Muur. I didn’t ride up the Muur as I've done ridden up it enough times to know what it feels like, but I did go to some of the other climbs and I thought that was enough for that day. I wanted to save a bit of energy for the next day.

Race Day

There was a nice atmosphere before the race. Omloop always starts in this warehouse car park thing and they drive all the team buses in and then they have a full team presentation on a stage with lights and stuff. 

With my team mates we were all talking before the race and and Tiff [Cromwell] and Kasia [Nieuwiadoma] were trying to count how many times they’ve done Omloop. Tiff’s done it 13 times, and she won it in 2013. Kasia has done it 10 or something. So I was feeling a little I had weak numbers with my four starts! 

But there was a bit of a mix as a couple of the other girls had only done it a couple of times. 

The course is always the same, so it’s almost like you don’t even need to do the recon as you already know where the important points are and what to expect. But because it's always the first WorldTour race of the season everyone has got that extra bit of anticipation and they're not sure about how things are going to go.

Team tactics

In the race the selection is often made on the Muur, so Kasia is definitely our card to play for then, and she was kind of protected and saving herself for then. But we had a couple of faster girls as well like Chiara [Consonni] and Maike [Van der Duin] who we were gonna save and let them follow in case it came down to some sort of a sprint because there was quite a strong headwind on the run in, and it’s almost like one straight road which favours chasers so. You always like to have a couple of different options for how the race is going to go.

My role was to cover attacks or create moves coming into the final part of the race and keep the pressure on before going into the Muur, and looking for opportunities. 

How the race played out

During the race there wasn’t a lot of information that got given to the peloton in terms of how big the gap was to the breakaway. And then there was one point when one rider from UAE came to me and asked us if we were going to chase - at a point where no one was chasing. And I didn’t even know at that time how big the time gap was, so when I asked her and she said 12 minutes or something, I was like what?? 

So I didn’t even hear that from our team radio or from the commissaires. I heard that from another rider, so the information being given to the peloton was a bit vague. We didn’t have any sprinter that was the favourite; Kasia wasn’t the favourite on the climb either. So we weren’t going to be the first ones to chase. We definitely would have contributed if other teams had got something going, but it was a bit awkward, and then everyone was just waiting for each other.

It wasn’t a great situation for the peloton. I did try and attack a couple of times when the gap was 8 minutes, but it was kind of futile because of the gap to the break. I felt a bit silly when I was doing it. Sometimes you’ve got to do it, you never know. 

It did end up coming back to a bit of a bunch kick aside from the couple of girls that were ahead. Maike finished in 11th place but it wasn’t really the plan. We were supposed to sprint with Chiara and then Maike found herself in the front group and we didn’t have anything left to go for. So I think Maike did a good job of getting what she could from that group. But the team weren’t buzzing from the result. We did what we could with what was left.

It was a great day for the breakaway, and I was quite happy for the girl that won [Lotte Claes] because she’s Belgian and I think she’s been around for quite a while. So it was an amazing day for her. 

Alice's verdict

Everyone was playing the card of not chasing the break, and our team was also guilty of doing that. We were saying it’s not on us, and everyone was saying that. And really, it’s on someone. It’s on all of us. It’s just politics. And I think the tactics extended beyond the book - it didn't make sense. I think it was slightly personal between SD Worx and FDJ and there was an element of someone having something to prove to someone else, and I think that’s what happened.

I think that the racing is more wide open because the really fast riders are spread across more teams than before. So it’s going to be a lot more interesting for us and also for people watching as well. Though I think that Saturday [the day of the Omloop race] is not going to be the last time something like that is going to happen. I think that there are going to be some stand-offs in the Classics department!

Maybe there'll be other surprise winners, but it’s a shame because when we [our team] have a favourite, we’ll take the honest option and take to the front and ride for that rider who we want to do the result for, and I think it’s a shame that people try and bluff it and I know it’s part of the game, but it makes it quite a frustrating race for people who just want to keep the racing honest. You just want to do your job and then there’s all sorts of people trying to bluff and stuff.

An honest race at Hageland

The next day I raced at the Omloop Van Het Hageland, which was different from Omloop. That was super-hectic on all these small roads through towns and they were twisty and turny with some cobbled sectors. It was more to script, though there were a lot more smaller teams and it was a lot less predictable. It was quite a difficult race to be honest, and quite dangerous as well, because the level was a bit lower than at Omloop which had all the WorldTour teams. We had three girls in the front, then two, then there was just Maika left. And she also did a good job of representing us at the front and came 6th.

(Photo: Tino Pohlmann)

What’s next for Alice

I was happy with my shape, and I was really happy with the sensations. I think it’s about getting used to the dynamics of the Classics again because positioning is the most important thing. To ride in the front of the peloton is the most important thing, so I’ve definitely got some stuff to work on there. But I’ve got some nice hard racing coming up which will a bit more selective, so I’m looking forward to that. My brother races as well. He is based in Denia and races for Caja Rural development team. So we definitely talk about what we're up to and share our wisdoms. Though I think I give him more advice though!  

I’m off again to Strade Bianche next. I'm looking forward to it. It's always a good race to watch, and it's always a hard race. So it should be good.

South London spin: Flèche-Chislehurst - My alternative Flèche-Wallonne

As it's the day of the Flèche Wallonne cycle race in Belgium, I thought I would do my own version of the race, which is 194km (127km for the women). It runs from Herve to the famous Mur de Huy, a climb of 1.3km with an average gradient of 9.6%.

As I haven't been able to do loads of cycling due to a few injury issues I can't ride what the pros are riding, and I certainly wouldn't want to waste time and effort going over to Belgium and doing the cyclosportive version of the event created for amateur riders. So I thought I would ride my own version. 

Old Hill, Chislehurst

It is considerably shorter - just 34 km, was in a less iconic - though still enjoyable for me - Bromley, Chislehurst, West Wickham. I didn't have fans cheering me on when going over the climbs. As it was around 9am I had lots of parents and kids on the school run watching me. Instead of vehicles from the race organisers, teams, and media, my roads were cluttered with school run vehicles. Still, I had an audience.

This is a short ride that I like to do early in the morning during the week before starting work. I get out to Bromley via Beckenham and Hayes and straight into Chislehurst. Overall, the ride is not so hilly compared with some of the other routes in the Kent area, and I don't tend to want something too lumpy first thing in the morning when I am still trying to get my body into gear.

I always enjoy the part where the road plunges down suddenly just before Chislehurst train station and you get nice views over the Kent suburban countryside. Then right after the sharp left-hand turn after the railway bridge the road immediately begins to climb gradually and then becomes steep and narrow. 

If I'm not feeling fit, I'm not ashamed to say that occasionally I've ended up walking up the hill! It has to be said that the narrowness of the road and parking means that this road is best approached early in the morning, or in the evening when traffic is light.

Vehicles coming down the hill tend to give way to you as you're going up, but in a way it also assumes that you're going at a minimum acceptable speed. 

The problem comes when two vehicles need to get past one another and the vehicle going uphill decides to stop. Then you have to do a track stand and then restart pedalling when the road is clear; or the more normal folks among us just put our foot to the ground, mean you end up walking as the gradient makes it a bit tricky to get going again.

The good thing about this climb when pacing is that there are two pubs to look out for: The Bickley Arms, just as the road steepens, and then The Imperial Arms just as the gradient levels off. Note that if you go down the side of the Imperial Arms there's also The Rambler's Rest which is also a decent watering hole.

On this particular day, and because I was honoring the big event over in the Ardennes, I also went up another hill nearby, though more clement Camden Park Road, which takes me to the same summit as old hill. 

Actually, I also went up this second hill because Old Hill was a little too rammed with school run cars for me to go all the way to the Imperial Arms. Now if only I had had a motorbike escort ahead of me to clear everyone out of the way!

Going down Old Hill

Once at the summit, at Chislehurst Cross my route then goes through the quintessential Kentish village-like London suburb, and then on to Petts Wood, Crofton and Locksbottom. While the route from here is largely flat, it's good to save a bit of energy for another steep climb later on at West Wickham, Hawes Lane. 

Most local riders turn right at the Coney Hall roundabout and take the shallow hill to West Wickham High Street. But this alternative of the road before the roundabout, Hawes Lane provides a nice little home-run tester - not quite as steep as Old Hill, but the 10% gradient is still a sting in the tail when you think it's time to relax.

Finally, the route reaches the back of West Wickham and the road back to Elmers End and Crystal Palace. This is the stretch where I ride at a moderately quick pace, ready to jump on the back of one of the many trains on the home run back into London. 

Most groups of riders are too quick for me given my current lack of fitness. But it was still possible to join a couple of guys who were going at a more relaxing pace (which was by my standards, still quite fast). At that point I could imagine myself in a train containing the likes of Marlene Reusser, Lotte Kopecky or Elisa Longo Borghini! Okay, I was probably only doing about 15mph, but why not dream!

So in this ride honoured the Flèche-Wallonne by climbing my version of the Cote d'Ereffe, Cote de Cherave and the Mur de Huy by doing Camden Park Road, Hawes Lane, and the Mur de Old Hill! No World Tour points or prize money for me, but I think I earned my breakfast! 

My mini local Flèche-Chislehurst route

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My cycle Tour of Flanders

My Cycling Year So Far - Tour of Flanders

Belgium Bound

Cyclist central at Oudenaarde

Another high point of my year so far has been my trip to ride the cobbles of the Tour of Flanders. It had been a few years since I last cycled this event. The last time I rode this Spring Classic was in 2007, and had a great time there. I hadn't intended to to leave it this long before going back again.

Since the time when I last rode it, they had moved the start and finish from Ninove to Oudenaarde, and they had reintegrated Koppenberg, which had been removed from the course for refurbishments.

Apart from that, the atmosphere, fanfare and zeal of all the racers was just as present as ever.

Away from industrial Asse and now in Denderleeuw

I travelled to Flanders by Eurostar to Brussels and then cycled from there to Oudenaarde. The route I took was nothing to write home about, as it passed through some industrial areas around Anderlecht and Asse.

It was only after Denderleeuw that the landscape began to look like the pretty Flandrian scenes that we see on television. I guess when you do these types of rides you get to see places as they are - warts and all.


Word on the street - cycling on Belgian roads

The road conditions were okay. Getting out of Brussels was easy enough. Even though there were bike lanes I still needed to be careful as vehicles would still park in the bike lanes. Some of the bike lanes were so narrow that on occasions you were riding in the gutter, so it was better to ride further out from the kerb, in the flow of the traffic and on a decent road surface. You also need to be careful of crossing side roads, and make sure that cars aren't turning across your path.

In short, riding through Brussels was not bad, but it was not this cycling paradise that people claim is so much nicer than riding along streets the UK. People can be too quick to say that cycling in Europe is better than cycling in the UK. My experience is that in all countries you get good bits and not so good bits. You get good drivers and careless drivers everywhere.

Once into the Flandrian countryside I was on trunk roads that had cycle lanes which was great, though bear in mind that on many side roads that were not trunk roads there are no cycle lanes, the roads are not especially wide, so the conditions are no different from riding on a minor road in the UK.


Riding up Koppenberg

Some local riders at Koppenberg

After a pleasant 40 miles I arrived at my lodgings which were just outside Oudenaarde, and around the corner, literally from Koppenberg. That area was quite busy as lots of folks were practicing it ahead of the cyclosportive and before the crowds arrive. It was a good opportunity to chat to various folks - who seemed to have come from everywhere. Of course there were people from the local area, but there were folks from the UK, France, Germany, Italy, even a group from South Africa.

Saturday was the big day, at least for we amateurs, so I rode the three miles from my bed & breakfast to reach central Oudenaarde, from where I began my ride.

As I was a little late getting up, and I knew I would  need to be back in time to see the professional women's team presentations, I decided to do the 74km option. That wasn't an easy ride though, because it still included around 14 bergs. The tough challenges of Paterberg, Oude Kwaremont, and Koppenberg were included, with the latter being tackled barely 10km into the ride.

Koppenberg didn't fail to disappoint, It was a 15-20% gradient, with cobbles everywhere, and crowds of other riders. Being on my cross bike meant that I felt more comfortable in my riding position, and the tyres offered that bit more cushioning - quite important for my 50-year old bones!

For me, it was just important to keep a good core stability, stay relaxed, hold my line, and be ready to shout "on your left/on your right" very assertively.

The tactic almost worked, but then a woman in front of me, who seemed to be riding well, fell over. She was Italian and her cycling buddy had been shouting words of encouragement to her [Dai, dai] and she seemed to be feeding off that, but then suddenly, bang! She hit the deck, and I had no where to go, so had to dismount quickly.



That was a bit annoying as I was near the top, and thought I had conquered the beast. In my bloody mindedness I walked back to almost the bottom of the climb and decided to attempt it again. The area was quite thick with riders and spectators, and a few people offered to give me a push as I remounted my bike. Then they all shouted Allez, Allez as I strained to get up the climb for a second time, through gritted teeth. This time I did it, and felt like I had won the Tour of Flanders!


Feeling old after Oude Kwaremont and Paterberg

This gave me the confidence to cope with the other bergs to come. Our route didn't include Geraadsbergen or Kapelmuur/Mur de Gramont, but we had enough to be getting on with. Oude Kwaremont was not so steep, but it went on for a long time, and the cobbles seemed sharper and disordered compared with other bergs, so it was a bumpier ride. It was definitely the area to be though, as a spectator as there was loads of pumping music, and a massive beer tent of the same name, and loads of people who seemed to already be on the way to getting drunk.

A word of warning - the descent from Kwaremont is lovely and fast, but then you round the right-hand corner and you are met with this steep cobbled uphill. That was Paterberg. I could have stayed on the bike, and quickly tried to find my low gear, on the hill, but I didn't have the legs to cope with the change of gear. So I just dismounted and manually changed gear in order to comfortably tackle the ascent. Once again, it was a case of being mindful of the folks who were dismounting on the hill once they ran out of gears, as well as those who chose to walk in the middle of the road. This climb felt as steep as Koppenberg, but was not long. However, I still felt quite tired after the previous exertions, so it was harder work for me.

Feeling happy after riding Paterberg (and Oude Kwarement too)

It was a relief to have been able to do those tough three bergs, as well as the other ones. I just had to put my head down and hurry back over the remaining 15 or so miles to get to the finish line. My lack of fitness began to show, and I felt quite tired. A few people past me, and I wanted to jump on their wheels, but I didn't have the strength to hold their wheels. So I just rode back at my own pace.

It was just great to see the finish line, knowing that I still had the ability to ride even the tough bergs.

A good day out in Flanders

Flanders is a great place to be when the bike races are on. At the lovely place where I stayed, Enjoy B&B Today, there was a group of Irish guys, and some Italians from Turin as well. Around Oudenaarde and the surrounding area there were also lots of people from the UK, and I recognised jerseys from local clubs like Kingston Wheelers and Dulwich Paragon. There was a large contingent from my club, Penge CC, though I travelled separately from them. It was good to bump into Dougie Fox and other riders from Crawley Wheelers. I don't get to talk to them much when I'm in London - so it was just ironic that it took a cycling event abroad to get us to sit down and have a chat with them over a beer! But that's what the Tour of Flanders does.

Feed station at Ronse, where you bump into people you know

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Countdown to Flanders

In just over 3 days I'll be tackling the first of the major European cyclosportives - the Tour of Flanders. It's not talked about quite as much as L'Etape du Tour, or La Marmotte, but it's definitely up there as far as amateur cycling events go. And with over 15,000 competitors it promises to be a real cycling jamboree ! Or at least that's what I imagine.

It'll be my first visit to this "classic" event, so don't know exactly what to expect. Previous cycling events of this type I've done took place during the height of summer in some really scenic alpine area - in France or Italy. The drab exposed plains of Northern Belgium in April doesn't quite have the same ring ! Also the use of the word "classic" in this sense means riding against a strong, cold, head-wind through driving rain, over steep cobbled roads (bergs) all day long, or until you reach a point of despair !

I may only be doing 140km, but I will still be covering the famous "bergs" - all 18 of them !

Anyway, my biggest task at the moment is getting to my hotel in Aalst. We are not going with any fancy tour companies or taking the car. It'll just be the Eurostar to Brussels, followed by another local train.

I've got my bike bag and panniers - hopefully everything will be compact enough to fit onto the luggage racks of the train, and officials won't be telling me to send the bike as a registered package. I will just need to get to Waterloo early to bag the best luggage spot ahead of the rest of the other Easter weekenders.

So why do this when I could be relaxing in London, or planning a getaway to much sunnier climes ? Well, it's the challenge I suppose. The chance to ride in a famous cycling event, while testing out my fitness. The ambiance is good, with riders from all over Europe (and beyond) taking part. The day after the cyclosportive, on the Sunday you get the chance to watch the pros show us how it's done (or not - as the case may be). And of course the excuse to sample good quality mussels and chips with one of their 57 varieties of quality beers !

On with packing ......