Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Overheard...

"Do you think anyone will notice if a couple of those PRO-issue-only 46 tooth DA rings go missing?"

Which way?

The bikes of Sven. Remarkably boring in the best way possible. Perfect, reliable race machines. Nothing at all odd. Except maybe one thing. Yes, one thing in particular caught my eye. Can you pick it out? Here's a hint. The second photo.






Worlds Mascot

Ummm.....sure.....


It's a rock. Lake Bandie is full of stones and no sand. The rock guy is the mascot. Come on, get it?

At the expense of my good friend who will remain nameless...

Saturday night. Dinner in Venice.

My good pal orders a beer. A Hoogarden. Good stuff, right?

Beer comes in a MONSTER glass. Doublegood stuff, right?

Sunday. Spectating during the men's race.

My good pal, with his chest puffed out, recounts his AWESOME HUGE beer to our new Belgian buddies.

Belgian guy says "Hoogarden? That's girl's beer."

Ouch.

Anyone care for a Lightweight?

Santa? Santa, are you out there?

The view

Way harder than Gloucester...


Those hills were pretty nasty.

Pearls of wisdom...

During the men's race, we were sandwiched in with some very cool Belgian folks. The Erwin Fans Club surrounded us, which was awesome. They asked us all about veldrijden in the US, told us about how Erwin loves to travel and race in the states and told us how they want to come visit. Ironic, isn't it?

One of our cheering-mates was Tom De Kort. He races for the AVB-USSPA Cycling Team, which is the feeder team for Fidea. Super nice guy. He was happy to offer some advice, and I think taking it from him was a no-brainer.

"I focus 110% on my handling techniques. That is my strong point. If I can make 1 second up in 5 corners per lap of a 10 lap race, that's 50 seconds."

Talking with him further brought out that if you are faster in the corners, you must lead through them. It will either a) force your opponent to burn energy to close the gap or b) force your opponent to make a mistake. The feeling I got from him was not to rest by following into the corners because your opponent can then dictate a comfortable pace for himself. Your advantage has effectively been neutralized.

Oh, and he loved the New Belgium flag. So much so that I gave him my sweatshirt.

It runs deep...

Met a nice couple at dinner one night...

Italian Lady: Are you here in Bologna for vacation?
Me: Si, we viewed Campionati del Mondo di Ciclocross en Treviso. Then we came here.
Italian Man: Ahhh, ciclismo.
M: Si. Are you a fan?
IM: Some....ahhhh...how you say....I loved Pantani.
M: Me too. He was one of my favorites.
IL: It was a very sad day.
IM: Very hard, I cried.
M: Me too.

Overheard...

"Vai, Vai, Vai!"
"Hop, Hop, Hop!"
"Venga, Venga, Venga!"
"Allez, Allez, Allez!"
"Hup, Hup, Hup!"
"GO JONATHAN!!!"

The misses has some lungs I tell ya. Do you hear that ringing?