Report: Boonen back on his bike

Tom Boonen (Etixx-QuickStep) is back on the bicycle as he recovers from a temporal bone fracture he suffered in a crash at the Abu Dahbi Tour, according to a report Sunday on Het Nieuwsblad.

The news that Boonen is back on the bike already puts his recovery ahead of schedule and raises the possibility that he could participate in the Tom Boonen & Friends charity cyclo-cross race on November 28.

Boonen & Friends organiser Wilifried Peeters said it is still too early to know whether the event’s namesake rider will be able to ride, however, adding that the event will announce that decision later this month.

"We are still 20 days away from the event,” Peeters told Het Nieuwsblad. “In that time a lot can happen – in a positive and negative sense.”

Boonen crashed hard in stage 2 of the Abu Dhabi Tour, hitting his head and suffering a temporal bone fracture. Some reports said Boonen's recovery would take six months, but Etixx doctors said his recovery would likely go much faster.