Half a Tour

As I write this, the Amgen Tour of California is raging up the slopes of Mount Baldy. However, as most of you know, my Amgen Tour of California is over. I was time-cut on Wednesday's stage 4, I drove to Ventura the day after that, and flew home to Boise mid-day yesterday.

It's a tough thing, getting cut from a big race. Any time I'm watching a race on TV, I wish I were participating instead, but it's especially difficult to watch an event that I was competing in only days ago. It was awful, realizing I was dropped beyond all hope. I'm glad there weren't any cameras around to capture the moment when I finally gave up, because I was one upset bike racer -- all that preparation, anticipation, and perspiration, all for naught. I do owe a thank you to Dave and Mike, who hung around the feed zone long enough to collect me, and haul me back to the finish. When I finally got off my bike, I needed a hug, and Dave provided one.

I'm badly disappointed I didn't finish, but I do have some really satisfying memories from the stages I was able to complete. I'll share those at a later date. For now, I want to focus on  supporting Team Exergy through the final stages of the race. I'm so proud of my team: the staff, the sponsors, and of course, my teammates. They're all rising to this challenge, and rising admirably. Personally, my next few days are all about resting properly, and doing everything I can to translate the total ass-kicking I just received into better fitness for the upcoming US Pro National Championships on Memorial day.

Stay tuned.