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There were moments when, lying in a hospital bed in Valencia, 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Chad Haga contemplated the prospect of never racing his bike ag💯ain.

It is no exaggeration to say that the American is lucky to be alive after taking the brunt of the impact 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:when a car crashed into 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Giant-Alpecin riders on a training ride in late January. Now, though, having committed wholeheartedly to the recovꦅery process – from injuries that included an orbital fracture, damaged veins and arteries, and wounds to the chest, neck, and chin – he finds himself pinning dossards onto his team jersey once more.

After making his first outing of the season at the Critérium International over a week ago, Haga also raced 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Scheldeprijs on Wednesday, where he told Cyclingnews that he couldn’t have hoped for the comeback to ▨be going much better.

“It [Critérium International] went really well. I think it went all right on its own, much more so considering it was ൩my first race in six months, after the cra🐻sh, so I’m happy. I have to keep reminding myself I have January legs right now and everyone else is in Classics season, and I’m just getting started,” he said.

“Especially on Sunday’s course, I got dropped in the first two hours, but it seemed that once everyone burned their extra energy I s⛄tayed stable through the whole day and fi𒅌nished strong, so I think that was a good start.”

Serious crashes can affect riders in different ways, and for many they can have a lasting psychological impact. It is common, particularly in the first races back, for nerves to set in when riding in the bunch, especially when races re🦩ach their flashpoints and frantic riders take risks and fight for position.

“I’m still working through that,” Haga adm✱itted. “I’m excited to b💟e racing and really motivated but when you’re going 50, 60 kilometres per hour, fighting for space, there’s a mental switch you have to have control of and I’m building that right now.

“I stiffen up sometimes, sometimes it’ll be really in the racing and other times someone will just bump and I’ll think ‘Ahh we’re all going down!’ And sudden🅺ly I’ve lost 20 spots.”

The 27-year-old smiled apprehensively when Cyclingnews remin🅠ded him, ahead of the race, that Scheldeprijs, with its history of crashes over the years, had acquired a reputation as one of the most dangerous races out there, and that rain was forecast to fall over Antwerp that afternoon.

The dangers, though, usually present themselves in the finale and, as planned, the American was well out of the pi🀅cture by then – almost eight minutes out of the picture. Despi꧃te finishing third to last, he took encouragement from gaining more ground in that psychological battle.

“Scheldeprijs was successfu🅰l, even despite finishing 7' down, because I needed the racing and to continue fighting the mental demons,” he wrote on 🦩Twitter. “Onward!”

Onto the next one, then, and th💖ough it might have seemed unlikely in late January, Haga has big plans for the next few months.

“I’ve got some big racing on the calendar, it’s going to be a heavy schedule, so I need some fitness – quick,” he told Cyclingnews.

“Basically we’re jumping right back in to what I had planned beಌfore the crash, just not in the shape I’d hoped I’d be.”