Diary – The Travel Challenge by Yannick Eckmann

It is never easy traveling, especially when you are loaded down with a couple of bikes and gear.  Yannick Eckmann was in this very spot as he prepared to head out from Izegem, Belgium and go to Germany to meet up with family.  “I loved how people laughed at me…how I was carrying my 2 bikes and suit case.”  Yannick opted for the train option to get him where he needed to go, but it wasn’t his “A” plan.  “My first thought was finding somebody from Germany who is coming to the race to take me back to where I will be staying. I asked around 14 or 15 people that I thought would be coming to the race. With all the people I have asked, all of them told me that they won’t be coming to the race.”

This is all part of the character building aspect of EuroCrossCamp – over coming challenges, setting goals and experiencing life in a new place.  Yannick didn’t have the best racing this winter while at Camp, but in terms of training, he was able to hit his goals.  All of this is in the latest installment of the EuroCrossCamp Diary Entries on Cyclingnews.com.  All the riders make entries into the diary giving readers a really great perspective on what it means to live, breathe and race the hardest ‘cross racing in the world.

Yannick lives in Boulder, Colorado, but is originally from Germany.  While he resides in the States, he still races the World Cup races in a German Team Kit since he hasn’t yet been able to shift over to USA Cycling.  He comes from a cycling family where both his father and mother were pro athletes on the bike back in the day. His brother also races, but you’ll find him more on the road than a ‘cross bike.  Yannick rides for the Pearl Izumi Shimano team.

Check out his entry and other at Cyclingnews.com