Waiting to come home......

Well, last night we had a big drive to Paris after watching the Tour - what a great stage. The real beauty of it is that there are still 4 riders, perhaps more who could still win. Certainly there are some who could ride their way on to the podium. I'm sitting right now watching the coverage on Eurosport, which means it's being commentated in english - the first english commentating I've heard since leaving the states. We've managed pretty well to pick up each day's L'Equipe - the newspaper which started the Tour way back in 1903 - and work our way through the headlines and some of the major points. Given Andrew's infinite knowledge and cycling wisdom, we were also able to have complete conversations and debates about the tactics and speculate on the upcoming stages.

After a slight delay in their flight, Andrew and Patrick took off this morning after breakfast - hopefully they got away alright and are presently crossing the pond. Your birthday ski day was a big draw Nick - make sure you thank your Dad, because w

e all definitely thought about the possibility of extending our stay through the finish on the Champs-Elysees. However, the unanimous conclusion was that the consequences would be "profound". 

The point is that following the Tour really gets under your skin. I, for one, fell as if I was just starting to figure it out. Not the race per se, but how to follow the race and maximize the experience. It is a fine juggling act to balance, on one hand - actually seeing the riders for more than 30 seconds and on the other hand - not getting stuck in painful traffic.

2 nights ago, when leaving Jausiers, we got stuck in a long traffic jam - a complete stop. We figured an accident had happened. While I blogged, (earning the 

moniker "Blog Boy") Andrew and Patrick pulled out the cowbell and cheered cyclists as they rode home - not racers, as they got escorted by the gendarmes (the national police), but people from the surrounding area. I would love to know how big a radius the Tour draws people in from. I'm guessing it could be as many as 30-50 kilometers. Finally we got to a spot and stopped for dinner. 

Following dinner we caught up to the "technical caravan". Essentially it was about 7 huge 18-wheeler style trucks, with trailers. Talk about holding on for dear life! Andrew did his best Formula 1 impression - with a Mercedes mini-van - as the drivers of the big rigs were unbelievably aggressive drivers. Obviously they know the roads and their vehicles. I could not believe how fast and furious we were going on what amounte

d to country lanes! It was quite a roller-coaster ride. Those guys do that every night - tear down the finish, drive to the next finish, sleep, and then wake up early and set it all up again. Imagine the logistics involved to do this for 21 stages over 25 days! I think there is a documentary in this somewhere.....hmmm, next year?

Speaking of logistics, here are some numbers I came up with while pondering the experience:

Starting the evening of Saturday, July 12 and concluding Wednesday, July 23rd I...

• Watched sections of 7 stages: 3 finishes, 1 feedzone, 1 roundabout turn, 1 mountain, and 1 start.
• rode my bike on 8 days (@180 miles) (Andrew - maillot jeaune - rode 9)
• rode 2 classic Tour mountain climbs: Hautacam and L'Alpe d'Huez (Andrew did all 4 by doing Col du Tourmalet, and Col du Bonnet, Patrick 3 and Scott 1)
  
• rode the telepherique to the top of the ski area and hiked back to the town for @ 3 hours (about 1600 meters of elevation loss and @ 8-9 miles)
• camped out 6 nights, stayed with friends of friends 2 nights, and only 5 hotel nights (counting extra at the airport)
• Rode in a car ?miles, but it was a ton. I will fill in this after I connect with Andrew in Corvallis. We made a pretty big circle around France.
• Collected lots of Tour trinkets
• Only had 2 food errors, well maybe 3 - the fried minnows, a sausage that tasted pretty much the way a barnyard smells. I'm guessing there were digestive organs involved, and last night a salad with a salty mystery meat that Patrick thought might have been heart. Not too bad for a trip to France!
• Got a picture of the King of the Mountain podium girls - they are tall Jeff!

Today's stage just ended with an interesting little game of cat and mo

use for the stage win. Otherwise nothing of real note happened. I was a typical survival day following the output that the riders spent yesterday climbing 3 monsters.

Make sure to stay tuned for the time trial Saturday. Cadel Evans, agreed upon to be a better time trial rider than those ahead of him, will be trying to "lay one down" as they say in order to claim the Maillot Jeaune. I could be quite a day. Now that my bike is packed, I can't wait to ride it again soon!

 

Yummy!

The finish in Jausiers - pics.

Commando camping above Barcelonnette.

No need to buy bottled water!

Bob Roll is up there, look really close!

The closest I'll get to the podium!

Chocolate milk in a backpack pump! A dream come true for a 6 year old!

Finish line entertainment.

A happy cow makes good cheese!

Looking down towards the finish.

Painting the finish line.

The caravan....

Charging to the finish on the big screen

This is how fast they go. You can't even see them!

Andy Schleck gets the White Jersey as Best Young Rider

The finish in Jausiers and watching the Climb of L'Alpe d'Huez!

Right now we're sitting in Villefranche in an Irish Pub watching the L'Alpe d'Huez stage.
Free WiFi in France is hard to find. Even when I get a password in a bar I can't get it to work - where is Keith when I need him!
The lead riders are approaching the Col de la Croix de Fer. But I need to fill in a bit about our great Tour day yesterday (is there a bad Tour day? - I don't think so).
We drove into the night so we could get to Jausiers for the finish. We ended up in Barcolonnette, about 10k from the finish and looked for a campground - they were all full. So we drove up a mountain road and found a flat pull-off and just set up our tents. It worked out great as the road was closed just beyond us so there was no traffic. That is until the work trucks came down at 11:30, while we were enjoying a cup of wine along the roadside. We kept waiting to be kicked off the road, but I honestly think the French just aren't that concerned by commando camping.

--5k to the summit of the Col de la Croix de Fer and CSC is riding perfectly - the Schleck brothers are riding strong, Cadel is on the Maillot Jaune's wheel. Everything is setting up for a battle royale on L'Alpe d'Huez.--

We awoke early and headed through Barcolonette, got our daily grande café and pain au chocolat and headed towards the finish.
As is typical, even at 8:30am on the morning of the finish, we were stopped a few kilometers from town. We didn't have the proper credentials….Andrew and Pat geared up for a ride up the classic: the Col de la Bonnette and I prepared for a day soaking in Tour-mania. They left for the ride and I wandered around. Early in the day there are fewer people so one can wander about more. I got to see them painting the finish and I saw the podium for the first time. As I settled in along the barrier I met a very nice American couple - Cindy and Paul, from Alabama, who completely took me under their wing. They were on a vacation and are big Tour fans. Like many, they got hooked during the "Lance Years" (as it is commonly referred to here). They were staying in a timeshare right along the finish and were very accommodating. I charged my computer in their room and Cindy even tried to help me find WiFi by taking me to the Versus truck and asking. Earlier in the morning, while wandering around, she met She met Phil, Bob, and Craig. She even had a conversation with Johann Bruyneel. I now know the whole access thing is about being at the finish early in the morning and just wandering about. Well, my trip to the Versus truck resulted in a pic of Bob Roll - my closest brush with celebrity.

--The Col de la Croix de Fer was just crested - the race is truly on!--

FYI - I just found out the free WiFi is at, of all places….McDonald's. I just can't do it, I'm in France for gosh sake! You'll have to be satisfied reading about this after the fact.

In the mean time, I was able to secure a good spot along the barrier about 50 meters from the finish. The tough thing is that then you need to aggressively protect your space. Which, thanks to Cindy and Paul's chairs, were able to do. I was also fortunate to be next to a nice family from Italy. It was fun speaking with them, as the daughter, roughly middle-school aged, was studying english in school. It gave her a chance to practice her skills and at the same time made her parents proud. The father, Emilio, emphasized to me how important it was to Italy that the race was in their country. Every so often, the Tour has a few stages into another country and this year was Italy. When we were watching in Villanova Mondovi, it was obvious how proud the town and region was.

We also had a great view of the big screen tv that is at every finish. It was a scorcher so we took turns wandering about. I went to the PMU truck and jumped into the fray in search of Tour schwag. By being willing to raise my hand and lean - hard - I procured a foam hand and a green hat. PMU sponsors the Green points jersey (for sprinting). I also picked up a fun comic book about the Tour in French. I then went back to "the spot" and endured the next 5 hours watching the race on the big screen tv - how about that over-the-edge crash of the Barloworld rider! His bike went so far down the mountain it was out of the camera shot. Believe it or not, he continued and is racing today. While waiting at the line, there was all day entertainment by advertisers. People on stilts for cheese, girls on in line skates giving out pom poms for the French tv station 234. A guy doing tricks with a trials bike (over a person), guys wearing backpack pumps containing chocolate milk, and of course, the yellow jersey sponsor, Le Credit Lyonaise, giving out perhaps hundreds of yellow hats. These guys are relentless. I think if I had wanted to I could have gotten one for everyone in Corvallis! It was a festival scene that lasted all day, until the Tour caravan arrived. Then it got even wilder as cars, motorcycles, and high-speed parade floats are now added to the mix. Again, remember, the French love chaos!

With regard to the riders: Stage 16, Cuneo to Jausiers was 157 kilometers and had 2 "hor categorie" climbs - which means insanely hard - not just steep, but long as well. The climb over the Col de la Lombarde was 21.2 kilometers, averages 7%, and tops out at 2351 meters. Similarly, but higher, the Col de la Bonette-Restefond is 26.7 kilometers, averages 6.2%, and tops out at 2802 meters.
Do the math kids:
1 meter is about 39 inches
1 kilometer is .6 of a mile
The gradient remains the same.
Go out for a ride and find a steep hill, then put it on Mt. Batchelor, or maybe higher! Now ride it for hours. Sound fun?

--25 k to the top of L'Alpe d'Huez - the bar is getting crowded and we're in the middle of France - about 4 hours drive from the location. This is The Tour Baby!--

The finish in Jausiers was as expected, without any big changes. The riders came by so fast that I missed the picture because I was watching the big screen and the delay to the satellite was enough so that, while I was watching them (on screen) come to the turn before us, when I turned to shoot the pic, they were flying by - oh well, it's etched in my mind. They were going about 45 miles per hour. Another remarkable day for the Schleck brothers - and the Luxembourg fans are beside themselves. There are flags everywhere and people are breaking out in songs and anthems at the podium. They love their bike racers and they are not afraid to show it!

--The peleton is approaching the start of the climb. My feet are sweating and twitching as they show the overhead helicopter shot of the climb. I need to sit back, watch, and cheer. CSC has positioned themselves well. The question remains: who will have "the ride of their life?"--

Well, I'm now in Paris at the airport Hilton, waiting for my flight back to the states. Andrew and Patrick leave Thursday and I leave early Friday. We now know that Carlos Sastre truly had "the ride of his life!"

It's late and I've hopefully done some good updating - I've been surprised how dificult it has been to get WiFi the last few days. Time to retire. Look for pics tomorrow.

Posting pre-written entries due to no WiFi!

The Racers Rest Day, July 21: L'Alpe d'Huez: Blood, Sweat and Gears

As we approached the start of the climb, my stomach started churning and my toes started flinching - like before doing a hard rock climb and your hands start sweating. We found a good parking spot at the base of the climb and geared up. The weather was slightly overcast and cool. I figured the top could be freezing, so I took lots of clothes to glide down in. Now, I'm sure many of you, like me, have seen this stage on tv many times and are amazed at the craziness. It's even crazier than you think. Here we were 2 days before the stage and there were thousands of people already camped out and thousands of people riding up - again, all ages and genders. It's great to see a 12-14 year old kids totally fly up the mountain. Conversely, it's humbling to get dusted by a 60+ year old guy. But in the end it was great being part of such an amazing tradition.
There are 21 switchbacks with a sign at each one. Each provides information that can be uplifting or defeating, it just depends on your state of mind. I think I experienced them all - from feeling like I'm dying, mashing a big gear like Jan Uhlrich, to trying to "dance" like Lance and exploding. Either way, I wasn't going to cruise this one. I set a few goals - like not stopping for 2 switchbacks - which I did accomplish! Actually, it was fun to look up and ride not focusing on my front wheel, cadence, breaths, or heart rate - which I'm sure was well over my max of 174 (220-46) and was probably approaching190! In fact when I looked around there was a lot going on. The Dutch were there in full force, with a generator and a complete club sound system cranking Euro club music. A bunch of Aussies tried to spurn me on showing pictures of a beautiful, scantily clad woman and gesturing that she was up ahead. Another guy was camped out at turn 10, dressed as a clown, playing an accordion.
It was a constant stream of people camped out, already partying and cheering on the riders. I can only imagine what it will be like race-day as the beer continues to flow. Anyway, it was hard and fun at the same time. I can't wait to watch the racers go up. As most of our conversation is speculating about tactics and who will do what, we are sure it will be the battle of the Tour.
Approaching the midway point you can see the campers in a big line - waaay up there. Finally I got to switchback #1 - home free I figure - not! 50 meters later I see a sign that says 4k to the finish! I dig in, the slope lessens - I'm thinking of Lance, I get up out of the saddle and - hit the middle of a ski village filled with shoppers. At this point I wasn't even sure where the top was so I tried to follow the stacks of barriers. I see a guy I was playing tortoise and hare with go by. I figure I can take him (yes, say it - "Get a life"). Anyway I pick up the tempo and go through an underpass - some flat - and…..AN UPHILL FINSH!! My heart was in my throat and I tried to finish strong and I hear yelling, cheering…it was Andrew and Patrick and I completely rode past the line without a clue. They don't actually paint the finish line until the morning of the stage. It was somewhat anti-climactic as there was no real marker or anything. Where is the huge monument! Where are the tourists oogling and aahhing. Well, they were shopping. All the hundreds of riders?... quickly putting on clothing and heading down, as it was windy and cold. After congratulations all around and sharing stories of what we saw and how hard it was - except for our team leader Andrew - I dressed up and we began to head down. But not before splurging on a L'Alpe d'Huez bike jersey. Look for me "climbing" the flats of the Williamette Valley. Better yet, go climb the North face of Crest Drive - about 100 times. I'll wave to you as you go by. I wonder if the neighbors will care if I paint the road when I get home!
Coming down was an adventure in itself as the chaos reigned - bikes passing cars, cars braking quickly, fans waving flags, singing songs, and of course, the Dutch Disco Dance Party switchback. We all had, as Phil Ligget would say: "the ride of their lives!"
My riding time going up (not counting mandatory breaks to take pictures): 1hour 34 minutes. Average speed: 5.8 mph. Avg. Fun Factor: Off the scale (this measurement was taken at the car at the bottom). I highly recommend this climb, as it is such a classic. I also highly recommend a different gearing than my bike has, as it was brutal to try and "spin" with a 36/23 ratio, at least it is for me.
Well now it's time to load up and blast for the finish in Jausiers - in what will be a big mountain day following the rest day. There could be fireworks…..

Written and saved, waiting for WiFi

Morning of July 21st: 

Today is the rest day for the riders - but not for us. We have been sufficiently warned that if we were to be on the L'Alpe d'Huez the day of the stage, we would be stuck there well into the night. As many as 500,000 bike fanatics will ascend the climb by foot, bike, motorbike, and camper in order to get a glimpse of the riders. It is perhaps the most well known climb on this year's mountain finishes. Unfortunately, given our travel plans and our proximity to Paris, we won't be watching on the final climb. But…..today is our day to go do the climb! All 21 switchbacks and all the suffering! Of course, in support of the Blog, I will stop every now and then and take pictures. I will forego breaking Marco Pantani's record for the cause…someone's got to do it.
Yesterday was an excellent Tour day on many levels. We dropped Scott on Antibes and drove along the coast - past Monaco and Monte Carlo (Andrew wouldn't let me go to a casino, don a white jacket tux, and go to the baccarat table and say "banco!" - a la James Bond). I'm confident I could have paid for the trip….rats! Anyway, what a beautiful coastline. Rugged, villages carved into hillsides, deep river canyons, and tons of greenhouses - not sure what they were growing. In addition there were some pretty amazing yachts moored in the marinas and cruising around - must be nice. We entered Italy and turned north to drive through the mountains to go to Villanova Mondovi to see the peleton take a big turn through town and begin the final climb to Prato Nevoso. The town was hopping and we got a great spot right on a traffic circle. There was a breakaway with non-contenders that got away - more on that - but apparently there was bad weather coming over the Col de Agnel which is second highest col of the Tour at 2744 meters. After reaping the rewards of a good spot with copious amounts of advertising trinkets - get psyched Emma & Phoebe! - we watched the peleton whip by and then we ran into a local bar and watched the end. Local bars are a great place to be to watch the race unfold. People are cheering, cringing, laughing, and "holding court". It really gives some perspective on how important the Tour is to the people - of all nationalities. We were in Italy, but we spoke with an Austrian, and sat next to a Dutch family. It is a great honor to have the race come through your town and everyone gives a little to make it look nice and festive. We were standing within 50 meters of a big hot air balloon hovering about 50 feet off the ground, and a lift holding an enormous yellow silk banner with the town's name on it.
The final climb of the race was classic. In the break group, after working together for 100+ kilometers, pulled off the gloves and went after each other. I was cheering for Danny Pate (the American), but the Credit Agricole rider was playing possum and had more in the tank in the final couple hundred meters. Down below, in the yellow jersey group was the real battle. Quick accelerations, looks, jockeying for position, hanging on, and clawing back were all part of the production. It made for great drama in the bar as each move drew sighs and cheers. It was quite fun.
After the race, we headed backwards along the course. After a few kilometers evidence of the day's activity became less obvious except for the unique decorations that each town is dressed up with. All the trash was gone - completely. What remained were an assortment of flags, banners, ribbons, balloons, decorated bicycles, flower arrangements, and even a field with the straw raked in piles spelling Vive Le Tour. We stopped for dinner in Italy so we could have some pasta. We were not disappointed as we stumbled upon a café where the chef treated us to pasta tasting, followed by venison and a three item desert. It was a good thing, because Tour riders need 6-8000 calories per day, so we had an idea of what that might be like….
Following dinner we drove over Col Agnel from the Italian side. It was amazing (I know, I'm running out of superlatives). All I can say is I could never imagine riding up the col - steep, narrow, lots of switchbacks and beautiful, albeit white knuckle driving, especially when coming headlight to headlight with a camper. We topped out, jumped out and it was whipping wind and freezing cold. We opted to drop down the French side to camp.
Now as we head to our own stage climb, we are descending the race route and have seen literally hundreds of bikers coming up. It is very popular to ride a stage the day after and today is no exception. What is striking is the many types of riders we see - mountain bikes, young, old, men and women, lots of various bike clubs and tour groups, and certainly racers from other levels of racing testing themselves, or perhaps on a training ride. The route is filled with bikers and there is no stereotype as it is an overwhelming part of the culture. Have I mentioned all the beautiful bicycles? Many brands I have never ever heard of before.
As we head along our way, we are now following a stretch of Wednesday's stage. Barricades are being dropped off, a big machine is brushing sections of the shoulder, and even field mowers are preparing parking and camping spots along the road. Again, the logistics of this event are astounding.
We just passed through Briancon and are driving towards the Col du Galibier, another classic, and agin we are seeing dozens of bikers heading up, up, up! There is also lots of activity in these mountain towns, especially whitewater action - both rafting and kayaking - and of course Cub Med!
One random observation of note is the abundance of tennis courts - in cities, rural areas, and mountain communities, along with the fact that they are all full. As America is slowly dropping off the world tennis radar, except for Venus and Serena, this could offer some insight.
We are debating watching our last stage along the Galibier in order to facilitate a quick and convenient departure towards Paris.
Well, we have arrived at St. Bourg de Etienes, my stomach is queasy, L'Alpe d'Huez!

Start.....Feedzone Pics

Bikes lined up...waiting to fly

The ceremonial "roll-out" of town

Handing off at the "feed zone"

Could this be the pizza delivery car of the future?

It takes some getting used to this.......

     

The yellow Jersey Sponsor - Le Credite Lyonnais (a bank)

A Refuge above Cauterets in the Pyrenees

Beautiful biking through ancient towns...

Feedzone....

Today we found our way to the feed zone along Stage 14 from Nimes to Digne-les-Bains. It was a wild scene in the middle of seemingly nowhere and people were flocking to it hours in advance. I positioned myself next to the Columbia guy and think I got a pic of Cavendish grabbing his mussette bag. Then I missed a pic of George Hincapie. Yesterday we watched the finish in an old Roman town and saw Cavendish get #4. Today, the guy from Columbia said he was day to day as while he wanted to win in Paris, he really wants a gold medal. If you saw the ending, y0ou know he died on the final climb and wasn't even in the sprint. I think he droped about 4 minutes. We were in a village in a bar watching the end and were cheering for Erik Zabel who almost pulled it off. Not bad for a 38 YEAR OLD! We went for a big ride around the countryside and returned to the feedzone to watch and during the ride people were descending to the course from all directions. It was a roasting hot day!  Patrick got a bag and a water bottle as schwag hunting is a big activity and we got along the course post-caravan. What was interesting is apparently how angry the guy was that he dropped a water bottle. On such a hot day, I'm sure they are consuming 2-3 bottles per hour, which also means lots of work for domestiques.

Following this we drove to Nice and we are along the Cote-du-Zur as we need to drop off Scott tomorrow as he is heading up to Norway.

The racing is heating up and we are going to rejoin it in the Alpes. The plan is to ride....Alpe du Huez during the rest day...Yikes!

More later with pics.

Saunier-Duval - before being shamed and leaving the Tour. Within an hour of the roll out of town, the street was clear of all signs of the race thanks to these guys! Nice brooms!

Watching in Arles...

Well, we found some gas and are leaving Narbonne. Of course prior to our "departe" we picked up a 5 liter box of local Armissan wine. Our conversation is centered on yesterday's departure of Saunier-Duval for a positive doping test of Ricardo Ricco. At the time of his doping he was wearing the King of the Mountain polka dot jersey. In fact, at the start in Lannemezan, the whole team was on the stage and being celebrated for winning the Team Classification. What a huge fall from grace for Ricco - who won 2 stages - and the team. We figured that for publicity reasons, the sponsor probably yanked them immediately. One point of note - in Le Equipe, the sporting newspaper who owns the Tour, all the names of the racers are there. When a rider abandons, their name is just marked through with a straight line - not removed. Therefore, once you're gone, your name is still there to remind people you left the race - perhaps piling on more humility or shame!

How to solve the doping problem is a complex one and it certainly has created suspicion in the mind of many fans. Yesterday as soon as Cavendish crossed the finish line, Scott and I were cheering and 3 older French men next to us immediately gestured injecting into one's bicep and said: "Doper!" It was an interesting indictment of the whole race.

Some random thought about traveling in France:
• cars actually pass on the left and immediately pull over into the right lane
• lots of windmills all over central France
• a wonderful mix of old and new - centuries old chateaus and castles interfacing with newer development
• almost all the farms we see are really nicely kept - no junk laying around - often a crumbling old (as in centuries old) farmhouse
• it's fun driving with the speedometer going well over the 100 number!
• there are billboards that rotate around so the add changes every few minutes - interesting way to maximize exposure
• vegetables are not a high priority at meals, salads are few and far between - a far cry from Corvallis
• in one town, at the Wednesday Farmer's market, there were tons of meats, cheeses, fruit, jams, and honey - but no vegetables.

After the race yesterday, Scott and I met a very friendly South African couple - Liam and Andrea - traveling with their 7 year-old son Connor and 14 month old daughter with wild Irish name which I unfortunately can't remember. After closing down the portable refreshment stand by the finish line, we walked through town with them and had great discussions about Europe in general - they live in Barcelona. We've found that in general, the Euros we have met are very well versed in American politics. Liam mentioned to me that he believed most Europeans were satisfied by the decision and act of removing a despot from power, but were very dissatisfied with the aftermath. He was feeling that many were really hoping the dollar would rebound as there has been a big drop in American tourism, which does have a financial effect. At least we're doing our job by filling up our car - a diesel Mercedes mini-van - for about $160! Thankfully we're getting great mileage.
For a perspective on age - we had drinks in a café along a canal, 50 meters from remnants of a Roman road. Narbonne was the Roman capital of the region - talk about antiquity!
The canal scene is an interesting one. People have houseboats and travel along the canals from city to city. It seems like a nice casual way to travel, maybe bring bikes and do rides - could be kid friendly as well.
So far we have seen 3 finishes and one start, ridden over 100 miles, climbed what feels like a million meters, gotten a picture with the King of the Mountain podium girls, and really soaked in the countryside - and people. A reality is that seeing the Tour in person is super exciting and gives one a real feel for the reverence the populous has for cycling, however, it is a zoo. Like the guy said - "the French like chaos".
Presently we are heading to Arles for lunch while the riders head towards Nimes. We're aiming to have lunch in a bar and watch the stage on tv - and find WiFi. The plan is to blast through some of the flat area to position ourselves for the Alpes stages. We also need to jettison Scott in Nice so he can join his family in Oslo.

Beginning to work backwards....Doping takes a toll

Right now I'm sitting in a beautiful old country home at a marble slab dining table about 8 feet long by 3 feet wide in Armisson - about 6K from Narbonne. We have been guests of Midge and John Jacque - thanks to Andrew's connection with a ski buddy - and it has been amazing. Dinner last night involved about 15 people around a huge dining table outside, very late, with some incredible cold soup, beef stew on pasta, assorted breads, fruit salad for desert, all followed by some of the most amazing cheeses I have EVER had. Oh, did I mention the wine - enough said.

Yesterday we did a ride to the coast, stopped for lunch in the seaside village of and then rode in to Narbonne (in all about 30K) to watch the finish. It was a long, relatively flat stage, which set up for a big sprint finish. We were not disappointed. Mark Cavendish from Team Columbia blew away the field in the last 200 meters fro his 3rd stage win - a record for a Brit. We were positioned right at the 125 meter mark, Andrew and Patrick along the barrier and Scott and I about 5 yards away watching both the street and the big screen TV that they put at every finish. Fortunately we had the shade of a temporary beer stand to aid us....The sprint was executed to perfection by the team. It is so clear that cycling is a team sport and I'm really starting to grasp some tactics.

Well it's time to head out to watch the start in Narbonne and then we're heading towards a Feed Zone for a change of pace....literally.

Au revoir!

Some pics:

Here are some pics:

The finish in Bagneres de Bigorre

Dinner with our French Mountain Man Lu Lu
The first riders coming up Hautacam
Cadel Evans goes through the final kilometer on his way to the Yellow jersey

Looking up towards the finish at about 50 meters

Posting pics takes a long time. I'm not sure if it's the connection or what. More to come later...

Hautacam...Stage 10

We woke at dawn, loaded up and headed for the mountain top finish at Hautacam (1520 meters) - a brutal 14K climb with sections of 10% uphill - that translates to 10 feet up per hundred feet of travel - absolutely brutal and unrelenting. We drove with the intent of getting there early and riding to the summit. Now remember, the riders are doing this AFTER climbing the Col du Tourmalet, which tops out at 2115 meters, is an 18 kilometer climb with most kilometers at 8% grade or above, and the climb is the last 14 K of a 156K day. We found our way into Argeles-Gazost and tried to drive part way up but - slam - the Gendarmes would have nothing of it. We were summarily redirected back towards town. At that point we stopped for our morning cafe and Andrew took his turn to wheel and deal us a parking spot right at the cafe - very close to the base of the climb. We coffee-ed up, got dressed, and began the climb. Andrew immediately attacked as we had decided to meet at the 1K to go mark. Patrick and Scott rode admirably and I, being the press liaison, made sure to stop regularly to document the action. The mountain was buzzing with spectators - bikers, walkers, strollers, parents pulling kids on tag-a-longs - all converging upwards to get a glimpse of real suffering. People were painting the street with the names of their favorite racers and very extensive picnics were being assembled as the riders hadn't even started riding the stage in Pau. What was amazing was how many fit people I saw riding the climb. I kept thinking they were probably just former racers, but I soon found out from a French fan that, while there is a ton of bike racing at all levels in all of Europe, it is more just a part of the culture to ride everywhere. I definitely was passed by 60+ year olds (as I felt obliged to stop for photographic documentation - especially in the last 4K). There were also many young riders - boys and girls - of middle school age, decked in team jerseys going up at quite a clip (again, I just had to stop to take pictures of this). Upon making it to the 1K mark, Andrew suggested I continue to the finish. Mind you It was 11:30 - almost 6 hours before the riders were meant to arrive - and the place was packed. So packed I could only - after being literally stopped by congestion at 500 meters - get to 50 meters from the finish. At that point I snapped a few pics and zipped (hah!) back down to the 1K mark and settled in for a big wait. During this time we saw thousands of people - and hundreds of vehicles go by. A big sponsor of the Tour is SKODA. They are a car manufacturer and are used to transport people everywhere during the Tour. We kept wondering where they all were going - and then our Dutch buds Richard and John, the 1K inflatable marker keepers, explained to me and Patrick all the logistics of the Tour. It's really a well oiled machine. Oh, did I mention that my bike made clicking sounds all the way up?

Now, remember that thousands of people come on to mountains to watch the stages - especially a mountain-top finish. They camp/stand/sit around waiting for hours(days) and it was chilly and windy (thankfully no rain). We got to know Richard - a Dutch Air Force aviation engineer - and John - not sure what he did - quite well over the course of the next hours. They took their job seriously and would on occasion cross the street to refill their generator or check the tie downs. I also got a full explanation of how the logistics of Le tour worked - pretty astounding. 

Anyway, the fans got thicker and thicker and then the foot and bike traffic stopped. Soon after the Caravan arrived. This is a parade of all sponsors of the tour and they drive by throwing out "stuff" for the fans - hats, bags, key chains, candy, even some t-shirts. We pretty much got stiffed by about half of them (subsequently we have fared much better). After this there was a huge flow of cars - the carbon footprint of this race must be astounding. 

Finally, the racers showed up below. We had purposefully positioned ourselves on a high switchback so we could see the riders coming for a long time. It was astounding the speed which they rode - but they did look like they were suffering. Two Saunier-Duval riders came dancing by, followed by a small group including Cadel Evans, who eventually ended up with the yellow jersey - by 1 second! People went nuts - screaming, yelling, waving flags, and pretty much anything they could find - the whole mountain exlpoded as the riders zipped by. I definitely had an "I'm not worthy" moment (a few days later - now - I found out one of them was using drugs, a cheat). I got a great pic of Cadel going by - his last photo moment without the Maillot Jeune. At the end of the stage, he was 1 second ahead of second place. 

[For some reason, I can't get pics to post....argh..]

Finally, the rest of the peloton came by and, while most looked only "ill at ease", there was definitely some suffering. At this point, Scott and Patrick, thinking this was the back of the race, hopped the barrier and started down the mountain. We were trying to beat the crowds.....Well, they were coasting down, thinking they were being cheered by the crowd. What they didn't know is that a pack of @60 riders were coming at up them on a blind curve. Needless to say what ensued will always make for a great story - thankfully better then my wipeout trying to 'hop" the barricade to start my descent. Let's just say they really did "ride" in the Tour de France (in the wrong direction). Soon after we all started down and what a crazy descent it was. 14K of flying down hill among the masses. Someone said that the French love chaos. Well if this is an indicator, they are right. Imagine driving on I-5 - no lane markers, a mix of 18 wheelers, SUVs, Formula One race cars, many Prius (well it is Oregon), with no speed limit AND many sharp turns. Now add to this that no one, not anyone, needs a drivers license. Did a mention that there were no age restrictions for driving?

We finally made it to the bottom and back to the car and only saw one bad crash - which did require an ambulance - ouch!

All in all a great way to get immersed in a mountain stage. Quite tiring, but well worth the effort.

After re-hydrating at the cafe, we planned for the rest day and then headed to the Pyrenees mountain town of Cauterets for some exploring.

LuLu!

We woke up at Salbris, put together bikes and headed to the B du B town( hard to spell) to watch the finish of stage . We got there just in time to see the final group finish and a sense for the craziness surrounding the Tour. After walking around a bit, we chose to go for a ride. Upon leaving town we went straight up hill for what seemed like forever and finally made the Col du Polmiere. We decided to come back and camp after our ride. Needless to say, Scott reconned a great place to eat and had them promise to stay open until our return. After killing ourselves getting back to town, we finally made it back and had a great French-mountain-roadhouse experience having an amazing dinner of soup, bread and fromage. We ingratiated ourselves so much to the proprietor, he insisted we stay in his outside eating area - then he proceeded to stay up all night singing and banging dishes! He is a bear of a man named Lu Lu, and he is our best French mountain cafe owner friend (even though we barely understood anything he said).

A lot has happened between our Lu Lu encounter, but it is still a benchmark experience that we have fallen back on when we get bored driving between stages (however, the French countryside is anything but boring)- Fongu!

 

On line again!

After days of making our way from Paris to the Tour, watching the Lantern Rouge finish on Sunday in Bagneres-de-Bigorre, and meeting the proprietor of a mountain cafe while riding (and calling his cousin for him in San Anselmo, CA), riding up the Hautacam on Monday (brutal) to watch at 1K, hiking in the Pyrenees for 3 hours on the rest day, watching the start this morning in Lannemezon (and getting a pic with some King of the Mountain podium ladies) and then going for a beautiful 30 mile ride in the French countryside, we have just (1:00am) arrived in Narbonne. Lots of stories to tell, observations to relay, and pictures to share - even video of Andrew topping out on the Col du Tormelet (amazing!). I need to sleep. I assure you, I am in WiFi (or as the French say: weefee) range for a couple days, so the blogging will come fast and furious. However, I will need to dip into the Mediterranean - 6K from here!

However, my head is hitting the pillow!

Check back in about 15 hours...... 

Bonjour from France!

We made it! After enduring a brutal flight, and hopping from Frankfurt to Paris, we all connected at the airport. Scott found me first and we had a celebratory glass of vin blanc. Then we stumbled upon Andrew and Patrick who had picked up our vehicle - a Mercedes mini-van. Only one big problem: 4 adults, 4 bikes, too many rows of seats. Andrew explained that there was no way we could leave it behind and had exhausted all angles. Scott and I took over and finally, after going to a different Eurocar rental desk, convinced our boy Eussi (after reorganizing his closet and swearing to the trustworthiness of Americans) that we would not leave it with him and would return to get it before turning in the car. It basically came down to us refusing to understand the word "impossible"(said with a French accent), and saying we would write a letter to his boss and try to get him a raise! (He refused a bribe).

After loading up we headed across Paris and made a clean get away. We all noted the really cool small cars - something us Americans might want to look into again! In addition lots of windmills generating clean, sustainable electricity.

We headed south on the A10, stopped for dinner and made a plan. Dinner was an adventure that included lots of misunderstanding, body language, and saying words in English, but with an Inspector Clouseau  accent.  Altough, Scott and Andrew hung pretty well.After a little wine it all made sense! I knew there was a reason I loved France. Most language teachers, I'm sure, would agree that just speaking louder and with an accent will aid in comprehension. Right Madame Hamer!

We decided to stay for the night in Salbris - very quaint, cute and cheap - and wake early and make a dash for the stage start in Talousse. 

!

Crossing the Pond....

I'm sitting in the Frankfurt airport waiting to go on to Paris. What a long day it's been.....I had a Seinfeld moment as I was very envious of the people on the other side of the curtain on the plane. Needless to say, economy class is brutal compared to a full reclining "pod" with your own tv - and who knows what kind of service they got - but an attendant did walk by with a bottle of champagne. I can't complain too much, I did get complimentary wine, food, and Bailey's. Definitely a bit different than flying in the USA.

The closer I get to the Tour, the more exciting it becomes for me. On both flights I've had long discussions with other passengers about it - even the barkeep in the Portland airport was a huge fan and was happy to have a customer ask for it to be played on the bar tv.

One point of note - I now know why Europeans are thinner then many Americans - hardly any moving sidewalks in the airport. I think I walked a mile to get to the gate for my next flight! It was actually nice after being cramped on a plane for so long.

Stage 7 was a good one and it appears that Team Columbia is saving some riders to help out Kim Kirchen who has the Yellow Jersey (Maillot Jaune). I noticed George Hincapie finished 10+ minutes behind the stage winner in about the 3rd grouping of riders. 

Well, one more leg to go, but it's a short one...Then on to the Tour!

I know I'm in Europe as all the men wear fancy, stylish shoes - no sneakers here baby!

It all comes down to this.....

In France the peleton (go back a few days and read The Tour 101) is splitting apart as breakaways are the order of the day as riders start to take chances to position themselves for a stage win. At this point the GC (general classification) riders look to watch each other closely and set themselves up for the big mountain stages looming in the Pyrenees beginning this weekend. the two US teams - Team Columbia and Team Garmin are having excellent Tours so far. While not a surprise, it's an awesome turn of events in the wake of the folding of Team Discovery. I still  - ouch, bad collision..right into a tree! - have huge sentiments towards Lance's  former team, so it will be fun to visit and hopefully connect in some way with one of the teams to begin anew. So far, as I mentioned, both teams have provided reason to do so!

Well, today is the day! Here's how one gets to Europe (using United Mileage Plus Miles):

Friday July 11 

• 8:30am - ride Hut shuttle from Corvallis (OR) to Portland airport.
  
• 1:49pm - United to Chicago O'Hare (3 hours 33 minutes)
• 10:00pm - Lufthansa to Frankfurt (8 hours 30 minutes)
• 3:50pm - Lufthansa to Paris (1 hour 10 minutes)
• Airtime: 13 hours 13 minutes
• Travel hours: 23 hours 30 minutes

Cost of round trip ticket to Europe: 50,000 air miles

Cost of new bike: $0

Cost of not having a new bike: angst, but relief (if mine gets stolen, it's not a huge loss)

Cost of driving a van in Europe: unlimited as Bloomberg News just had a reporter in the pits saying a new record was just set for the price of a barrel!

Cost of eating awesome cheese, bread and drinking excellent cheap wine: maybe a few pounds

Cost of immersing yourself into an epic athletic spectacle: Priceless!

It's The Tour Baby! 2008

More to come in France!

Race Heating Up(wards)! Great response!

A going away date with my wife at Aqua - a great Corvallis eatery - meant missing the 5:30 viewing start, oh well..

Anyway, the race is starting to get interesting on the beginning of some somewhat serious climbing. It's stringing out as sprinters ease-up and climbers attack for King of the Mountain points. Sylvain Chavenel is on a mountain points break in search of the polka-dot jersey. The clear skies and beautiful weather are encouraging as the early rains had me laying out all kind of foul weather gear. Note all the RVs on the climb - that will be us!

A big thanks to all of you who sent me a response to my massive email about informing you of the blog. I hope I can keep it interesting for you to follow along. At this point tomorrow I'll be heading for the Hut shuttle...countdown continues! 

If you want great race details and information about cycling, check out all the links on the page. I won't pretend to compete with real professionals - my goal is to share our experience and hopefully gather some juicy, fun tidbits. 

I have a Polar heart rate monitor from the OSU Men's Soccer program (Go Beavs!), which I'm trying to learn how to use. I figure a long flight will give me ample time to do so. I will try to give some info about my heart rate on some of the climbs. At the risk of appearing really lame, you can use this info and compare me to the pro riders on the Polar Live Data link I've provided. I will warn you to be prepared to see some huge numbers for me - at a very slow speed! I figure the high zone alarm will at least alert my riding partners to review the CPR protocols. Those of you who know me realize I won't hear it due to my hearing loss - "Hey John, your alarm is going off!"..."What?"...... 

For those of you watching - How gorgeous is the countryside!

Enjoy the 1K+ climb at the finish, it should be exciting!

  

Great Win for US Team Columbia!

Mark Cavendish (Team Columbia), arguably one of, if not the, fastest sprinter right now, powered through to win the sprint finish and take stage 5. Led out by non-other than Lance's former 1st Lt. George Hincapie. It's great to see the US teams making noise this year. 

Make sure to check out today's stage - if you haven't already.

One other thing: If there's something you want to know about the Tour while we're there, send questions and I'll see if I can get it answered.

In the mean time, check out some of the inspiration behind our trip:

www.TheTourBaby.com

Like some before me, I'm going to try to get pics with celebs holding up a sign.

Stage 5: 5:30 am

Another crack-o-dawn start for Tour viewing. Today should be a "sprinter's" stage - very flat and long - 144 miles. Ride from South Corvallis to Portland, then hang a left and follow the Columbia out towards the sea to Astoria, oh did I mention average 30 m.p.h. and then spin up the turbo to as much as 40 m.p.h. for a sprint frenzy for the last hundreds of yards (or couple miles). However, to guarantee a shot at a stage win, launch a breakaway and go it alone - good luck!

Velo News has a great web page entitled Tour de France 101. Good explanations of the basics of the race:  tour-de-france.velonews.com/article/78643/tour-de-france-101

Check this out to get the basics. Understanding team tactics really brings the race to life.

Another interesting site is the Polar site (listed to on the right hand column) - they have live data for 3 riders each day with regard to heart rate, speed and altitude. More than anything it shows how fit these guys are.

Nothing like waking up to the voices of Phil Ligget and Paul Sherwin. Anyone out there remember a show from the 70's called Soccer Made in Germany? In my day that was the only outlet for soccer on tv. Phil reminds me of Toby Charles - a great Brit commentator. Many goals were scored in my back yard as we mimicked his accent and excitement. I'm sure we'll do the same with Phil and Paul as we try to haul ourselves up some of the classic climbs in the Pyrenees and Alpes. 

Submit some classic Phil(isms) and I'll list them on the site.

Up and Running! er..make that biking...

How does one start a blog for such a monumental adventure. Listed below are some ideas. Feel free to use whichever one amuses you.

• A physical educator, a pizza shop/bar owner, a school principal, and a geology professor all get into a van in France. No one speaks French, but they all have bikes.
• It all began 30+ years ago being dragged to this thing called a velodrome in Trexlertown, PA to watch a funny kind of bike racing. The old man liked the bike, the boy just rode his to get places.
• I always planned to follow the Tour beginning about 15 years ago. Due to my "mancrush", and predisposition towards tearing up during Nike, Trek, and Livestrong commercials, I figured I had missed my chance when Lance retired.
• What pushed me over the edge?.....The Tour Baby! The epic, cult hit about following what is arguably  the greatest spectacle of sport - the Tour de France - and 3 other people just crazy enough to say "let's go".
• As the great ski poet and cinematographer Warren Miller says: If you don't do it this year, you'll just be another year older when you do (paraphrased due to memory loss).

So pick the one you want. Clip in and come along for the ride. I make no claims to be a great writer or chronicler of our adventure, so if you have feedback - be nice... and send it my way.

The background is this:

3 Corvallis, OR residents: Scott McFarland, Andrew Meigs, John Schneider, and a Portlander (Andrew's brother) Patrick Meigs, are all headed over to France to follow the Tour de France for about 2 weeks.

We've opted to bypass the arranged tours and go it alone. We have a van, camping stuff, bikes, one known connection for a place to stay near Narbonne, and lots of optimism and passion to soak in the Le Grand Boucle (why is it called that anyway? - ask google and you shall find out). 

We are focusing on the mountain stages in the Pyrenees and the Alpes and have promised not to get on TV running in a Borat thong, although as members of Beaver Nation, the thought of a well placed logo on a thong would certainly bring local notoriety (Go Beavs!). However, I, Mr. Schneider have a job to keep. One of my main goals is to see how hard these climbs really are. For example: Can I even do 2-3 pedal strokes (uphill)? Can I even walk my bike? How was it possible for Marco Pantani to climb L'Alpe d'Huez in 37 minutes?

Last and certainly not least is to have a great adventure with friends and try to find some interesting tidbits to share along the way.

At this point I bid you adieu. More to come tomorrow as bike packing begins - of course after my 5:30 wake up to watch Stage 5 - and more details are sorted out.

I also solicit any feedback from those who have gone before. Please feel free to share your wisdom and lessons learned spectating The Big Loop (google answer).

Oh, has anybody EVER gotten anything other than "Sorry, try again." on that damn Saab Fly to the Finish Sweepstakes wheel?