Wind and Water

It was a windy day today, perhaps offering a little hint of Fall. I was up rather early and took so instead of the usual mad dash to the lakefront to meet the Giro ride, I was indulged in an easy relaxing seven mile commute out the Lakeshore Drive. As I passed Elysian Fields, I noticed a rider in an unfamiliar team kit sitting on the side of the road. I asked if he was OK as I went by, and when he said he was I continued on my way, thinking he must have been waiting to meet someone. As it turned out, he was a new rider from Colombia, Jose, here for a month or so taking classes at Tulane's Business School. Somehow he had gotten confused about the start location for the Giro, but luckily the next rider who came along set him straight.

So the Giro ride was a little more tame than usual today. Mike W. was again out on a fixed gear TT bike, despite the serious wind. Also on hand today was Dan Bennett and Chris Harvey, both blasts from the past. I didn't get a chance to talk to Chris before the pace sped up, but spent a fair amount of time riding with Dan who was in town from NM for a friend's wedding. Because of the wind, riders were reluctant to stick their noses out in the wind on the way out today, and so the group stayed together with only a handful taking pulls at the front. Of course, on the way back there was a big tailwind and so eventually the speeds ramped up pretty dramatically. At one point a gap opened up and I took off to make the bridge before it got too big. When I glance down at the computer, it read 36 mph. After the Goodyear sprint Dan and I rode together off the front for a few miles until the pack finally chased us down. It was actually a pretty good ride today, and I was a bit surprised that my legs weren't feeling much of an effect from yesterday's team time trial. I rode back uptown with Jose, who seems to be a pretty good rider. Halfway home, we rode right into a big rainstorm, so I arrived back at home soaking wet. I hope my shoes dry out before tomorrow morning!

Later in the afternoon I checked my email and found a typically short note from NOBC alumna Dr. Gina Voci, casually mentioning that she'd just gotten back from Las Vegas where she placed 14th out of the 54 women who finished the "USA Cirts" final. Shontelle Gauthier, a Cajun Cyclists alumna, placed 3rd. Not too shabby, I'd say. You can read about it on Cyclingnews or Velonews. A 1 km parking lot criterium course with 6 turns --- at night! It's always neat when you know some of the riders in those high-profile races.