Mountain Passes...

How could a mountain stage of the Tour de France---over on the other side of the pond and nowhere close to the San Francisco Bay area make me so homesick? It makes no sense. I'm closer to France now than I was when I was in San Francisco. But I am not homesick for France---The mountain stages of the Tour, which have been televised in great splendor, make me think of my own little category climbs in the Santa Cruz mountain ranges along the coast. Sigh.

I'm more a creature of habit than I thought I was. I have celebrated every day of the tour with my own "version" of a stage for the last 5 or 6 years when broadcasts were made available in the USA (first on ESPN---now on OLN). And this year has been no different. Except this year there are no mountains in my personal version of the tour. I'm not feeling too sorry for myself. I mean I get out on the bike for 2-4 hours everyday, to Mike's chagrin. I have nothing to complain about really.

But I miss the enthusiasm and camaraderie and community of the Bay Area cyclists' at all levels of the sport---and the ability to blend into a crowd of other cycling fanatics, as opposed to standing out like a sore thumb --- that "crazy redheaded gal on a bike from California". If I wasn't married to a respectable "Taylor" in the community, I'd be quite the misfit! So I guess I'm lucky on that note.

Today's stage includes some climbs I've done (Col du Madeline and Col du Galibier)---Of course I didn't do them both on the same day---but I did them.

Today is actually quite lovely on the Prairie---with winds at or below 15mph (which here is not blowing at all!). I probably need a day off the bike...but who can take one with such a nice day? And who can complain with such a nice day? Not me...

Last night we had a little Tour de France party with Rick & Kim Olson and Pete Johnson---Pete's gonna take me flying (Pete and Rick are both pilots and both friends of Mike's since grade school). Mike told me that when he was in grade school, he went to a birthday party at Pete's and Pete's Dad took him flying---maybe for the first time. Cool, huh?

"Dreaming of a long mountain pass, and wondering if I could even get up it anymore", Joni