Van Aert struggles to get going after vacation: Cyclo-cross prep starts off sluggish

After the SUPER 8 Classic—the season finale for Van Aert—the Belgian took a well-deserved vacation. First, the whole family had a wonderful time at Disneyland Paris, after which Van Aert and his wife traveled to Italy. The children were left in Belgium so that the couple could enjoy the beautiful historical sites in Rome.

But van Aert cannot sit still in winter, of course. Unlike other road cyclists, he will not continue racing on asphalt; instead, he will return to his old love: cyclo-cross has his heart. It is not yet clear when the Belgian will return to racing: last year, he did not ride his first cyclo-cross race until December 27, at Loenhout.

At that time, he had just returned from a nasty injury he sustained in the Vuelta a España. This time, he has come through the fall season unscathed. Will we see van Aert back on his cyclo-cross bike sooner? It's not unthinkable, but for now, he is keeping quiet. What is clear, however, is that preparations for the winter are in full swing, as he is now back home after his vacation.

And that means he can get back to work. On Tuesday, Van Aert rode his first lap on a road bike in a long time. Logically, that means you're going to encounter some initial challenges. The 31-year-old Belgian described his 107-kilometer ride on Strava as "sluggish". He didn’t go fast: he averaged 32.5 kilometers per hour, which took him 3 hours and 17 minutes on the bike.