The entire country has transformed into a true winter wonderland. Many places are ankle-deep in snow, and when you hop on your bike, you feel like you're in a different world. With a bit of bad luck—or luck, depending on your perspective—you might end up in a full-blown snowstorm. That's exactly what happened to Danny van Lierop during the Exact Cross in Mol on January 2nd, where he rode to a strong sixth place. "The conditions were truly tough, but sixth place makes it all worthwhile."
Suffering in the snow
Danny gets straight to the point: "Winter conditions are fun, but they're not as cold as they used to be." He describes how shifting and steering suddenly became a skill in itself due to his cold hands, and how afterward, in the campervan, he had to endure the pain in his slowly warming hands. "During a race like that, with the snow and cold, you just suffer a lot more than usual."
Still, he did very well, achieving his best finish of the season, a strong sixth place. This despite not being fully prepared for the snow: "I expected it to start snowing an hour later, so I had to adapt quickly. Luckily, I quickly received a new pair of thick gloves from the GOAT line by Hidde (Merton, ed., CEO of Airom) before the start, and I was able to quickly put on a set of leg warmers." After a somewhat poor start, Danny was able to quickly move up the rest of the first lap, ending up around fifteenth place. "Then I had a bit more space, and I could better manage my own race and lines." According to him, the lap in Mol was also very tough, because the many sandy sections made it impossible to rest on someone else's wheel. Nevertheless, Danny—unlike many other riders, who gradually dropped back or even dropped out due to the cold conditions—was able to maintain a steady pace throughout the race. "My last lap was still very strong, the fastest of the race, even faster than Mathieu (van der Poel, ed.). I started the last lap in tenth place and crossed the finish line in sixth place." He agrees that, in retrospect, the weather actually worked in his favor: "I think so, yes. Especially when you see that I didn't really slow down at the end. That shows that I still had energy left and was focused." What was the reason? Danny can't say for sure. "I also think it depends on the person, because the person who finished fourth, for example, rode the entire race without gloves and didn't have cold hands. I was wearing a lot of clothes myself, so in that sense, I didn't get cold."
With a sixth-place finish and his best finish of the season, Danny is more than satisfied. "I knew I was in good shape for this race and that sand usually suits me well. Besides, the starting field was a bit smaller, so I expected to be a bit further up the field." Realistically, he was thinking of a top 10 finish. "But competing for a top 6 or even close to a top 5 finish, that hadn't even crossed my mind."
With confidence towards the National Championship
Knowing he has good legs and good spirits thanks to the strong result in Mol, Danny is looking ahead to the National Cyclocross Championships on January 11th. "I'm in good shape, I'm comfortable and I don't have any aches and pains. But it's always a matter of waiting to see what the conditions are like, because every cyclocross race is different." He continues: "But I do hope I can put in a good performance." Besides performing well at the National Championships, he has another goal: finishing in the top 20 at the World Cup. "I started from the back quite often this season, which meant I had to move up quite a bit and ended up just outside the top 20. I think I can definitely handle it at the level I'm at, so we'll see."
Trust in the right gloves
To achieve these goals, Danny relies on Airom gloves. For warm races, he uses the aero gloves with long fingers , but for races like Mol, he uses the GOAT gloves . "Often, with those thick gloves, you have less feeling on the handlebars, but that's not the case with these gloves."
Want to keep up with Danny (and other Airom.cc riders)? Follow us on Instagram. @airomaniacyclingclub or read more soon on Airoman.cc !