My name is Elin - A pro cycling lover's reflections

Tom Boonen (Quick Step) outsprinted six other riders to win the second stage of the Tour of Qatar today and he now leads the race. He is almost always strong and a great rider so nobody is really shocked. Somebody who doesn't seem to be in the same form as Boonen is the French rider Sébastien Minard, Cofidis Credit Par Telephone, who has already lost 14.56 to the leader of the race. It is not easy being pro cyclist, especially not during the first race of the year. Tom Boonen use to do good in the beginning of the season so I wasn't very surprised about the Belgian's good result. He has done results in the competition every year since 2006 and actually he won the general classification in 2006 at Tour of Qatar. So clearly he is in good form in January / February or really, I think he is good - always. Surely sprinter wins more races than mountain specialists but this guy is clearly good almost all over the season - just like Laurent Jalabert was. Why couldn't I be as good as he is?