Monthly Archive for April, 2005

Well as I type this, I have been to the start of yesterday’s stage, and then I got to the stage today a tad early to procure a good spot. Well maybe I was there a little more than a tad early, I got there at 9 and the riders weren’t due to come past until after 3 in the afternoon. I ended up making a couple of new friends as we were all sitting there the entire day. We had a great make-shift camp setup in case there was rain.

The start yesterday was pretty cool, but it cannot compare to wathing a stage in progress. There is a long line of cars that have to come through before you see any kind of cyclist. They have some cars that even come around and give out freebies.

Once the riders are actually there, that is when it is really cool, especially when Lance is in the lead and flying up the hill with Levi Leipheimer and Tom Danielson on his wheel. I did get one real neat picture of Lance.

I did get up close and personal with one rider.

I am glad that I was prepared in terms of the weather. It was supposed to be in the upper 50’s, but instead it was more like 45 degrees the whole time up in the mountains. I was very grateful to have had my cycling tights in my jeep, or I think that I would have frozen while waiting there today.

I will get up early tomorrow to head to Alpharetta for the last stage. I will be there most of the day to make sure that I get a good place to watch the finish and to participate in the festivities. I think that I will take my laptop with me and make some updates throughout the day, either by free wifi or via cell phone modem. Check back for more details and pictures.

Plurk This Post Digg This Post Ping This Post

So today I kind of went crazy. I bought a stunt kite, joined the YMCA and bought a Yoga mat, because I am going to a yoga class in the morning. I don’t really know what is wrong with me. It is like I am trying to be healthy or something. Maybe I need to go to a mind doctor. I am a little hesitant about this whole yoga class thing. I did buy a mat, but I am not sure what the deal with this thing will be. I am excited about the chance to do some spinning classes. They are supposedly really great for building up your endurance for regular cycling. I am curious to see how it compares to real cycling. I know that when I try to ride on the trainer, I can’t stand it for more than 10 minutes. Who knows what it will be like being part of this cult known as the YMCA. Work will pay up to 200 dollars a year for educational stuff that includes gym memberships. I need to figure out how this exactly works but it is a pretty cool perk. Kim joined also, so at least I will have someone to go to stuff there with, or better yet, make me go to stuff there. They Y has a program that gives a graduated rate depending on how much money that you make for the year. This allows people who don’t make mega bucks to join, which is indeed a pretty cool deal. They have bike racks at the Y so that I could technically ride to the Y, do a spinning class or yoga class, and then ride back home. I don’t know how often that will happen, but it is kind of nice knowing that it COULD happen. I guess that I will have to see what the outcome of this whole endeavor will be. At least I am not locked into a contract, so if it turns out that I don’t really use it, then I can just tell them that it isn’t for me and not go anymore. The one other thing that they Y has is sports massage services which could be nice after some of the longer cycling rides that I would like to be able to do. It will cost additional money, but it would probably be worth it.

Plurk This Post Digg This Post Ping This Post