In the build up to the current season, and amid the fu-ore surrounding Team Sky's debut there were two things which stuck in the mind. The first was the luxurious team Sky coach, all leather seats and massage areas. It epitomised the Sky approach. All new, shiny and presentation, presentation. The second was Stein Devolder eschewing sunny training camps to stay at home and toughen up in one of the coldest European winters for years. It's a great contrast, traditional Belgium grit against shiny new cycling presentation.

It did get us here at Corza wondering, in the heat of the battle on a cold Belgium spring Sunday who's mindset is going to be the winning one? The guy who is thinking of the luxury of the leather seats in the warm team coach or the local hard man enjoying the 1°C temperature because he can take his gloves off?

Well hats off to Team Sky's Ian Stannard and his third place in Sunday's Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne. A race taking place in the tail of a hurricane is never going to blessed with excellent weather and when the race is also a Belgium semi-classic that uses some of Flanders' toughest Bergs the ingredients are there to create a hard man's classic. Stannard's gutsy ride in the winning break didn't have even a flicker of thinking of the team bus about it.

Combined with Juan Antonio Flecha's ride in Het Nieuwsblad it was a great opening to the Classics season for Team Sky. Bring on March and April...