Today was probably my favorite course of the three days. I generally felt good but had some major shoulder spasm and on top of that my knee would let me put any down force on it. So pretty much an old lady now, and maybe if I took better care I could enjoy a beautiful stage such as this even more. Riding a 29er is for sure a different style than I'm used to, its not a spinning machine on the climbs and on top of the big wheels I'm missing my easy gear, so I've been riding with a lot more leg work than normal. Today was no different, we start out with a long steep climb and then two more huge climbs! Which both were rewarded with a equally long and fun decent. The good thing with my gearing is that with nicks and pains ill still climb at an ok pace unless I wanna walk, which is really not an option since I'm here to ride my bike. So with tears and inside smiles I pushed hard with the left leg and managed to get to see all of this awesome leg of the race! This part of Portugal I'd come back and explore again :)
Craig had a great race today, he passed me early on the last big climb like a flying goat on a mission. Only two had passed me so he was in third which he held to the end. Unfortunately race rules says we are responsible for our gps, charging, picking maps, settings etc. And today Craig got his back in a little different format than he was used to, so rather than turning on his tracker it was turned off, meaning there is nothing saying he did the race today. Very unfortunate, be we all know he had an awesome day and he will have more!
John had a fun day, haven't caught up on stories, but knowing him, he probably has a few.
Erik I haven't seen yet, bit rumors has it he had a good fun day!
The hotel today is something else, for a bike race this is the best I've seen. To bad we couldn't change the race plan and have a rest day here tomorrow.
Tomorrow we leave the mountains to flatter lands.
Happy racing!
Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.
Hoi Kate,
ReplyDeleteI follow the Trans for a couple of years on the net, now. a knee problem, prevent me from riding the 2010 version. My knee is fixxed now, and I hope to ride the 2012 edition. I love to read your blog, I hope your knee will hold for the rest of the race.
Rob
3 days in and great so far, recomended for sure, good luck wit prep for 2012!
ReplyDeleteenjoy the race and this beutifull country :)
ReplyDeletebe carefull whith the portuguese flatter lands :)