Lance

Wow. I didn't think I actually really cared how Lance did in the Tour this year until I got to work this morning and found everyone watching the last twenty minutes of the team time trial - as Astana flew towards the finish line, we were all cheering and screaming Go Go Go Go! I can't believe he missed the yellow jersey by a few hundredths of a second. That is just vaguely ridiculous. I feel like Cancellera should just let him wear it for like the first half of the day tomorrow, or maybe they could both wear yellow? I suppose that Astana is happy not to have to defend the jersey so early in the race, but on the other hand, I was surprised by how much I wanted to see Lance in yellow again just for old times sake. Obviously, it could still happen. We will see how things go tomorrow and in the first mountain stages. The race has already been so exciting, and I bet there's plenty of drama still to come! Allez, allez, allez!

Tour de France 2009: one week and one day away!

Let me just say that, although I will not be lucky enough to go and watch the Tour in France this year (unless something really amazing and unexpected happens), I am so excited to follow the race from my home in Boulder, CO! There are so many different types of coverage available that really, it's actually easier to follow what's going on from way over here than from the side of a windy mountain road in the Pyrenees. Still, I am jealous of those who will have the honor of straining to identify who's in the lead as the peloton comes pounding up the slopes of Tourmalet! Hopefully they'll post some sweet footage on YouTube and Facebook, and I'm sure we'll be getting some interesting race analysis from the power gurus here at TrainingPeaks, which I will be posting at blog.trainingpeaks.com. Looking forward to what should be a great race!

Home Sweet Home

Being back in Boulder is so wonderful, it almost makes me feel like traveling is just another way to make me truly appreciate the beauty of my home. All of the crazy adventures are already starting to fade away into a hazy memory of a wild dream - did I REALLY ride up the Alpe d'Huez and meet Cadel Evans? My father's eating habits are also starting to return to normal, although he can still consume more calories with less apparent physical impact than anyone I have ever met. He officially turned 50 last night, but no sign of slowing down yet - if anything he appears to be speeding up somehow. Practically the first thing he did, after we got back, was go for a bike ride. I, on the other hand, spent my first day back in town having a four-hour-long brunch, swimming in the creek, going to happy hour, and finally falling asleep during the last ten minutes of a movie. It is indeed good to be home.

Seven Sandwiches

My father is turning into a kind of over-sized bike-riding hobbit creature. He eats first breakfast around 6am, and then second breakfast sometime in the mid-morning, followed by first and second lunch, snack, and a couple of dinners. When he was ordering second lunch the other day, his friend Dan began to wonder if perhaps he was ordering for both of them when he asked the waitress for four bottles of water, a slice of pizza, a piece of quiche, a sandwich, and some ice cream to finish it all off. Dan ate seven sandwiches one day. And still, they think they are burning more calories than they can possibly manage to consume. I was wondering, the other day as I was shivering in the freezing rain near the top of the Col d'Agnel, if I burn more calories by riding up big hills or by trying to keep warm. Yesterday the weather was better and so I think most of my energy went towards riding up the highest mountain pass in Europe, which the pro riders are going to summit today. Tomorrow they ride up the Alpe d'Huez, after which the overall ranking of the riders will become very clear. You simply can't fake being a good rider in the Alps - either you have the strength to get up the hill faster than everyone else, or you fall off the back. It will be very interesting to see who can hang on today, and whether they can keep it up tomorrow or not. It will also be interesting to see what my father orders for first dinner when he arrives in the small town at the base of the mountain later this afternoon.

Interviews and Rides

To check out some interviews I did with riders from Team Columbia, and also to view a couple of workout files from me climbing up the Col d'Aspin and Tourmalet, please go to the TrainingPeaks blog at: http://blog.trainingpeaks.com/

Finish in Foix!

Yesterday I narrowly evaded the French policemen posted at the stage finish in Foix, thus managing to cross the finish line that is normally reserved for pro riders only. My father and his friend Dan did not get past, and were consequently forced to get off the course only about 100 meters from the finish line. Tough luck. Hopefully they don't have any "wanted dead or alive" photos of me racing down the home stretch, to the wild cheers of the spectators gathered to witness the real riders arrive an hour or two later. I felt like Lance Armstrong. Or, well, not quite, but I think I got a taste of the rush that he or Mark Cavendish must feel when they sprint to the finish. I am trying to upload some of my GPS files from the rides we have done, as well as some of the interviews that I have with the pro riders, so as soon as I figure it all out I will provide links.

Tourmalet and rest day!

Wow! Magnifique. Riding up the Tourmalet yesterday was spectacular - beautiful weather and a great view of the riders snaking their way up the mountain. Today is a rest day in Pau, a charming old town on the river near the Pyrenees. Last night the fireworks for Bastille Day were amazing, although the French spectators were a very tough crowd - there was almost no cheering or applause, just a careful consideration of the merits of each explosion, accompanied by much head nodding and pursed lips. At the team Columbia press conference today I got to speak to several riders, including Hincapie and Cavendish, which was pretty exciting. I will try and upload the videos to YouTube later today. I will also try to find Cadel Evans, since I am sure he isn't busy at all, and ask him how it feels to be wearing the yellow jersey after a brutal climb to the finish at Hautacam yesterday.