The track at ’t Kuipke in Gent is only 166 metres around. That’s almost a third (84 metres) shorter than a standard Olympic velodrome, which means that over the course of a 100-km night at the six-day in Gent, competitors must ride about 200 laps more than they would in, say, London. The banking at each end of the track is much steeper too. Every time that they hit one of the turns, G-forces drive the riders into the boards. At a 50 km/hr race pace, they have to navigate a corner every six seconds. During a sprint, they’ll go closer to 70 km/hr. Holding their lines takes all of their concentration.

All the while, a huge boozy party goes on in the infield, with Eurotrash tunes, shouting microphones, and thousands and thousands of litres of bad Belgian beer.

It’s no wonder that riders occasionally fly into the grandstands.

That only adds to the appeal.