Canada
GPCQM Montreal
Arriving early to the start/finish line ensured us the best possible spot to go for rider autographs. Unfortunately for Hermano, Cameron, and I, the street was a wide boulevard with a median running down the center that promised to make it difficult to entice the peloton the sign autographs. In fact the median was … Continue reading
GPCQM transfer day…and a few riders
Hermano and I traveled by train to Montreal today for tomorrow's GP race. Walking the short few blocks to the hotel, we saw several riders from Lotto and a couple of other teams returning to the hotel from their training rides and as we approached the check in desk, there was Jesus Hernandez, complete with … Continue reading
GPCQM Quebec
The clouds this morning looked like they were going to cooperate for the 201 kilometer race which would take the peloton on a 16 lap circuit through Quebec City. My brother, who I call Hermano, and I scouted out the team presentation area and parked ourselves in what we hoped would be a good … Continue reading
GPCQM Sprint Challenge
I spent yesterday catching 3 flights to leave Europe and arrive in Quebec City. Why? Well, for cycling, of course! This weekend is the 4th annual Grand Prix Cyclistes Quebec & Montreal. I used my layover in Toronto constructively and had a good arts and crafts session which earned me a couple of looks from … Continue reading
La Vuelta a España stage 14
When I originally sat down to decide which Vuelta stages I'd see, I was really torn between going to today's sign on in Bagá or finding a way up the Collada de la Gallina, a first category climb and summit finish. Bagá was an easy place to get to and I absolutely love getting to … Continue reading
La Vuelta a España stage 13
Part of the reason I get to a stage sign on so early is that I'm usually too excited to sleep in and today was no exception. I woke up half an hour before my alarm and forced myself to stay in bed. Torture! And I was still early enough that the sign on podium … Continue reading
Eneco Tour stage 7
It felt strange to be absent from the sign on this morning but that was the plan all along. We were headed to the Muur, a famous cobblestone hill with an average gradient of 9.3% and a maximum gradient of 19.8%. In other words, it’s steep! The Muur is a fabled climb in the world … Continue reading
Eneco Tour stage 6 La Redoute
After that first lap in Riemst, we jumped in the car and drove to Aywaille so we could see the riders climb La Redoute 3 times. To put it mildly, this is Philippe Gilbert territory. He’s originally from here, his fan club is based here and the climb itself which was recently repaved, thereby covering … Continue reading
Eneco Tour stage 6 sign on & departure
What a tremendous day of cycling! Stage 6 began back in Belgium which meant Fien and I got up early to leave the Netherlands via train and bus before we walked down a residential street that was the official border of Belgium and the Netherlands. All the cars parked in driveways on the right had … Continue reading
Eneco Tour stage 5
I love watching a time trial because it’s several hours of exciting racing on top of watching the riders warm up. Philippe Gilbert rode the course twice in the morning, each time smiling and waving to Fien and I who were of course the only ones there and cheering for him. We yelled … Continue reading