Here´s to America

Stage 1 is in the books.

I need a drink and a toast to America (los Estados Unidos). The end of the story first - 1.5 mile circuit and if you get lapped in first half of the stage, you are cut from the race. I flatted, had to pedal for a km and got a Cadel Evans wheel change. Stuck in no man´s land I got sucked up three laps later on lap 11 (required to complete 12 laps on same lap). The commissioners told me to pack my bags after completing the race 1.5 half laps down (another flat with 4 laps to go).

But here´s to America. The commissioners reconsidered because 6 people were cut from the race for similar problems (or maybe bad legs). All 6 were from different countries, and in the end the commissioners did not want to create an international hubaloo. They told my director, we don´t want to cut our only North American rider.

I would like to give a special shout out to Barack Obama. Agree or not with him, he´s popular down here in the land of former Spanish colonies and has everyone being nicer to Americans than in years past. Thank you sir.

As for the racing. The circuit was smooth. The riders, well they liked to brake into turns and sprint out of them. I chose the opposite, fast into turns and roll out of them. Each lap I could gain 20 positions, wait for the inevitable sprint up the hill and fall back 20 to 40 places. When I saw that nobody was left behind me, then it was time to go back to the front and do it all over again.

Stage 2 starts tomorrow with a climb out of town from 10,000 to 12,000 feet. The goal is to hang on for dear life (to the grupetto) and roll back up to the front group on the 7,000 foot descent. I will be on bottle duty which serves me well. Take care of our GC guy, take care of a possible stage winner in the mountains and when we get to the finishing climb, wish them luck. Tempo to the top.

Stage 3 is similar with a 4,000 foot finishing climb. Stage 4 should be tranquilo. And stage 5 has the only road in Ecuador I really didn´t want to see. The stage goes from Ambato to Riobamba and that means only one thing-the dreaded Chimbarazo pass. While the mountain is 21,000 feet, the pass is only 14,200 feet. http://www.concierge.com/cntraveler/contests/?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=607012&g2_serialNumber=2.

The fun factoid is that Chimbarazo, being on the equatorial bulge is the spot furthest away from the center of the earth. Here´s to riding tempo in the grupetto.