Movin across France

So from one great race(trophee d'or) to another(Plouay WC).  Trophee D'Or was a pretty good race for myself and the team.  I made a couple of breaks(on diff days), put the hurt on some girls and managed a top 10 result.  As for the day to day racing - I'm not great at writing about - check out my teammate, Meredith Miller's blog, she has great race write-ups.

So from Saint Amand Montrond, we headed southwest to Plouay, well actually, Hennebont.  We will be here for only a couple of days, just the world cup on Saturday, then it's back in the car to spend the night in Paris before flying to Italy.  When we packed up in the car and the van, we were sweating, wishing for cooler weather and we got it here in Hennebont, plus rain....but hey, it FEELS GOOD.

The drive here was about 6hrs and we made a lunch stop at a grocery store(they call em Inter Marche) and had a French picnic in the car parking lot.  Back in the car/van for another 1 1/2hr and here we are, our Etape(think Super 8) for 3 days.  After getting to our rooms, unpacking, it was time for a quick bike ride - I was thinking - Bay of Biscay!!!!! Why not.... never been there, gotta be pretty, right? Well, not so much(see pictures below) but it was nice to spin the legs out.

Today we rode the course and I wish I could've taken pictures of all of the RV's there - I was thinking Talledega at one point, it was so cool!!! They are all there to see us right?! Well, there is a men's race as well.....yeah, they are all there for us;) Who wants my autograph???  Alright time for a massage, then we are headed to dinner.

The team: Vero, Meredith, Sam, Megan, Amanda and myself
Staff: Angela - DS, Chris - mechanic, John - swanny
Race info: http://www.podiumcafe.com/2012/8/23/3263964/gp-de-plouay-bretagne-2012-cdm

 We had to tape our numbers because they were tearing to bits.... and the write up underneath the numbers is saying something about myself making the break....keepsake....

 Chris's arm with tire burns from leaning out the window and over Megan's bike, to adjust something after a crash.  I'm sure you've seen it on TV.....

 Kicking the legs up...

 Homework....

 Post race presentation event....

 Slideshow from the race...

 The town square at night...

 Packing the cars....

 Sitting and waiting, cause we don't stand...

 There is a good back story to the push pop...

 Etape....

 Port Lewis! Not so glamorous after all....

 Sam say's what's up...

 Cause one picture of the port isn't enough...

 Vero, ninja style...

 BIG JOHN!!!! This is one funny guy...

Random picture of the back of the bus...

Listening: Radioactive by Imagine Dragons
Reading: all the comments regarding Lance Armstrong
Eating: chocolate cereal - only in France...
Watching: the US Pro Challenge when we have fast enough internet but mostly nothing.

Europe - trip #3

It was a close one but we all arrived in Paris with all of our bikes and bags and people.  Poor Sam had to make a run for it in Newark, NJ to make the connection, then the question was her bags gonna make it and like I said, they did and we started off on the right foot.

Then it was time for a 3 1/2 hr drive south of Paris to Saint Amand Montrond to our hotel for the next 6 or 7 days.  Once we got in the car, I passed out till we stopped to pee;) woke up, went to the bathroom, got  back in the car and took another cat nap - dang travel is hard.  Upon arriving at the hotel, we got our rooms(Meredith and I are sharing), got our bags to our rooms and unpacked bikes for Chris, then a quick grocery run and out for a ride before dinner.  You have to get yourself on local time as fast as possible and what better way than to go for a bike ride.

Even though Meredith and I only rode for 30-40min, I was loving the roads and the scenery immediately! It's beautiful! And Amanda said, wait till you get to Italy if you think this is beautiful.

Day 2 - Good hotel breakfast, buying a fan for the room(no A.C.), more grocery shopping, long bike ride and getting fully settled in.

Day 3- Breakfast, recon the TTT course(kick ASS), more riding, relaxing, meeting our new swanny - John and finding a good place for dinner.

Day 4 - I might have missed a day in there somewhere but anyway, you get the point of what we are doing:)

Today - racing starts this afternoon at 4:20pm.

I'm really excited to be back in Europe and to be doing these races is such an experience...

 Amanda!

 Chris loves having his picture taken....

 These look extremely uncomfortable but it's all about how it looks here right?

 She is in the hallway....kind of scares me...

 Cruisin the countryside....

 Maybe we are lost...?

 One of those signs in the distance, says Cereals... hehehe

 Countryside...

 Some pictures of the homes...

 It's a cemetery on the other side....

 A beautiful overlook...

 I give it a thumbs up...

 Town square.

 We ate at the Irish Pub...

 Chris's burger, it didn't last 2 minutes!

 Sam's dinner.... 'slate' = steak

 Megan and I...

 Beautiful flowers...

 Our team shoes(LUV) in action!

 The roads are beautiful!

 Suckas...

 A view from where my hands sit...

My awesome and fun teammates...HEEEEYYYY

Listening: My Body by Young the Giant
Reading: The New Yorker magazine
Eating: French cookin
Watching: the fan blow back and forth
Feeling: nervous, excited and adventurous being here....

Euro prep

It's time to build back up for Europe! The 3 races I'm doing are linked  below:

Trophee D'Or - http://www.cycling2012.net/detail/trophee-dor-feminin.html

Plouay - http://www.grandprix-plouay.com/

Toscana - I couldn't find a link....

So in preparation, I'll be riding longer rides in the mountains as well as doing some 3 1/2 hr rides with hard 1 1/2 finishes - wanna ride??? :)

Yesterday we did a group ride in Durango and were worried about the rain and sure enough, we got caught in a downpour!!! But I told myself that it is good training and it ended up being fun anyway and I got to see some friends I haven't seen in a while.

Other than training I've just been enjoying the Olympics:)! Exciting life, I know.....

 GOOD MORNING:)

 Bath time....

Chillin in the sun...

Reading: NYT's
Watching: Olympics
Eating: Pineapple....yum!
Feeling: relaxed and glad to be at home