My Favorite Month of the Year

Indifferent. I guess that is how I’m feeling today. I do this to myself every July. I get so wrapped up in the tour that it becomes part of me, every day in July, I dream about it nightly and then it's over. Just like that. Leaving me with left over emotions, chronic tiredness and idle hands that are not sure what to do with my time.

Prior to the start on July 5th, I purchased a bottle of Prosecco (I don’t really like champagne so this is my replacement). I had meant to uncork the bottle the Saturday before the tour started as a celebration. Being it was July 4th everyone else was already celebrating (and drinking) and I started my celebration off with Lizzie’s sangria. Yum and ah- umm… won’t do that again, I paid for it for the next couple days with an intense hangover. But I think in retrospect it was a good shock to the system to get me back in the mode. I’m sure this isn’t making much sense if you do not know me intimately… Let me try to give some preface. I have quit drinking alcoholic beverages since the first of the year. Mostly due to over-indulgence, needing to lose weight and wanting to reboot the metabolism and just a new challenge for myself. So far it was going really good. The New Year’s resolution didn’t take into account the tour however. And I had decided I would not be watching the tour without Levi there anyways. And then the mail came...

My July issue of Bicycling came in mid June and reminded me that I am a fan of the race itself, and not necessarily the riders. I got out the calendar and meticulously planned out the month’s stages, rest days and my important deadlines. There is something about the epic journey that transforms me temporarily into a complete cycling junkie. It’s really never been about the finish for me it’s about the entire 21 days (plus the two rest days) of suffering, and intense risk and the awe of human endurance. It is also about tradition, love of the bike, and the bike community on a global scale. On the mountain stages when the crowds line the switchbacks and just go crazy as the riders struggle and attack up the epic mountains, it gives me goose bumps and I can feel the rush from the fans and can only imagine what it feels like to the riders to have that much support while having to focus and concentrate on biking. The stage wins are filled with emotion after 100+ miles of gut wrenching riding, and the sprints to the finish cause me to cheer and jump from my seat with uncontrollable excitement for the riders.

I’ve started my own tradition of following along here in America where ever I find myself each year. Each day I watch the live feeds on the internet in the morning at 8:30 am, which turns out is in German, so I mute it. I listen (in stereo) live on the British Eurosport radio and watch the live ticker and newsflashes on another site. It’s quite the multi-tasking accomplishment each day as everything has about a 30-45 second delay. It is taking multi-tasking to another level during workdays, where I also have to meet deadlines and attend meetings. Let’s just say everyone thinks I’m a little moody in July because I am in my office all day and don’t have time to chit-chat. Like I said… serious multi-tasking going on. My focus gets entirely shot because there is such limited coverage of the tour, I have to check several websites to keep up with all the details. Not to mention this year I had the added workload of keeping up with all the rider's blogs and diaries which really added even more of a personal connection to the race and of which I REALLY enjoyed a lot!

At night I seek out the best tv’s in my locale and trying to make friends with the tv remote controller (usually the head bartender) for the nightly replay of the day’s stage where I regurgitate all the details of the day's coverage to whomever will listen or accidentally asks. Since it is only once per year I can’t watch each stage enough. Each time I watch I see different details, as I believe it is truely impossible to catch all the highlights just watching it once and from one perspective which is all we get here in America with our limited coverage. Generally after about a week and a half I usually don’t have to ask my venue to change the channel anymore. They see me when I come in and know I’m there for the tour stage. I order my drink, and drink slowly and usually order food. By the end of each stage there is usually someone new watching along at the bar and asking questions about the tour. I have found after several years now I’ve become a walking novice wikipedia on tour and rider facts. I know more the average person, and can talk on the subject for at least three hours since that is how long the stage is. After the weekend stages my party continues with friends and making new friends and a general celebration through the night.

This year was different on so many levels and added another layer to my traditional patronage of the tour. The race itself was different because I didn’t know the riders very well, with two new teams and the drug scandals I wasn’t sure who could do what. I also didn’t have any pre-tour favorites other than the American’s and the two new American teams. In addition, my habit of watching the tour at the same venue each night was squashed with my local pub not being very friendly on stage 9 as they wouldn’t turn the channel for me flat out saying 'we don't want to watch cycling tonight'. Other than my foul mood that we had to overcome that evening this caused us to have to jump around in venues and we never quite settled in one spot for the month. This made me agitated and little jumpy on if we would find a place in time to watch the stage each time. We spent one night at my 2007 venue whom bought me a drink on the house and smiled when they handed me the remote and a shake of the head –‘has it really been a year?’ Mike the bartender asked. In looking back it was a good thing to jump around in venues as it was always different and a different crowd. The addition of being car(e)free this year also added to the uncertainty of the tour. Lizzie- the cuz and my now infamous tour ’08 sidekick was a great compadre to this adventure. She was always game for helping to conquer the logistics and being determined to not drive and drink. We traveled the city by foot, bike, car and cab to endure multi-neighborhood escapades looking for the perfect venues. We took full celebratory advantage and ambitiously enjoyed the festivities of the epic journey throughout the entire month. It will go down in history as quite possibly the most fun tour celebration on American soil, ever.

With that said I am glad it has come to close, as I physically need to recover and re-coop and get on with my normal daily life. Every year I need those two rest days as much as the riders do by the time they roll around. And now being the day after the Champs Elyees my quads burned from over 350 miles pedaled this month myself, liquor shocking my system, bar food clogging my arteries and toasted legs from a loooong night of dancing to celebrate after stage 20. As I struggled in my morning commute I could only laugh to myself as I thought about how bad the young riders that just completed their first Tour de France must be feeling this morning. The media did several video interviews on how the Monday after the tour the riders almost feel lost and in shock. They say it is because the routine just evaporates after so much effort and excitement day after day for 23 days straight, and their bodies are shot. I feel my own version of this even though the reality is that what I feel is nothing in comparison. The websites and live ticker haven’t changed since yesterday, even though I keep checking. I am still not 100% focused as I feel melancholy after such an intense month is suddenly over and the compounded adrenaline has left my body just as I was getting used to it.

Even this morning as a few of the people that I have chatted with at work about the tour, tried to make small talk with me about the outcome I felt overly emotional and defensive. It is not like football or baseball which is straight forward- the tour has so many intricate angles to how and why it is won the way it is won. I will defend team CSC in their victory because Silence Lotto did not protect or fight for their leader in the same way CSC did. Carlos won because his team *worked* for him and after 3,554 kilometers he was less exhausted than the time trial ‘expert’ Cadel, and Carlos deserved it entirely. He rode smart and his team was stronger. He is a strong climber and with a tactical team in combination with his 8 years of TdF experience- to bring up possibilities of doping today with me is very irritating. It was truly exceptional the way the two new American teams rode, with so many young riders at their first tour. Between the 5 stage wins of Columbia and Garmin-Chipolete’s Christian Vande Velde taking 5th place in the GC it was an incredibly successful American Tour de France. I am very proud to be a fan.

Saturday night for stage 20 Lizzie and I opened that bottle of Prosecco before we headed out for another epic evening of celebration. We cheer’sed to the tour and our favorite American riders. It was appropriate that the champagne glasses and empty bottle were there for me on Sunday morning when I got home. It was a good reminder that the month has come full circle and it is time to return to my daily life that I love, just like the riders will do, and prepare for what is next on the schedule.
Many of the riders have the Olympics to prepare and look forward to.
Lizzie starts a new job this week.
I have Matt coming home in just 20 days.
Viva la Tour!