Hi all, Greetings from the TdF
So TdF Stage 19 is already in the books, but I wanted to selfishly tell you about my time on Stage 18 "The Double".
It rained like crazy on the night before and again the day after (today - Friday), but the rain held off for the Stage 18. We were worried as the organizers had suggested that the Double would be cancelled if there was rain due to the treacherous backside descent. Luckily the weather held and we even had a spell of sun in later afternoon.
Pernille and I rode up in the early morning ... no big deal (for an ol' Sardine) ... just a bunch (18) of lazy, easy-going 8% switchbacks ... you know ... 12.8 km of KGT. We blistered up at about 8 - 12 km/hour, I am sure.
Well we were joined by, who knows, but let's say 5,000 like-minded bikers and 10,000 foot solders.
And what a circus.... the caravan, the costumes, the bikes, the....
The race was super too. Pity that TJ lost at the end, just ran out of gas... but nice to see the French finally pull off a victoria --- and on such an epic day.
I cheered for Ryder, but he looked tired and was struggling on his own ... so was Andy.
Anyway, the TdF GC is all but in bag except for the champagne on the Champs...
Some select pics at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/99129998@N03/
I hope that you are all enjoying a good Victoria summer.
Cheers
Michael
ps. Barton ... no deer here, just wicked Italian drivers...!
TdF 2103 l'Alpe d'Huez
Moderator: mfarnham