I’m sitting here watching the Vuelta al Pais Vasco (Tour of the Basque Country) and was thinking that you can watch bicycle racing nearly everyday of the week nowadays. I’ve been trying to limit my time on the computer and am doing a pretty good job. I don’t really look at it much after the morning. I figure it is better to live life than to follow everyone else’s life. It seems like so much people do on computers now is to follow their friend’s lives. Kind of weird.
I have try to put my A cross bike back together today. It has Di2 electronic shifting and I have a really hard time going back to manual shifting after riding Di2. I just need bars and stem, plus cranks. And I have to seal up a couple wheels with tubeless tires. I’m doing an 100 mile gravel road race tomorrow in Lawrence. It is called the Gravelleurs Raid and it pretty hard. Tons of climbing. I did the race last year after torrential rain. This year looks good, dry, but windy of course. I’m riding 32mm Hutchinson Bulldog tires that are pretty bald from riding. I rode the same tires last year with no problem.
I finished Dennis’ van yesterday. I finally lowered the suspension some to get a better angle at the hub. I attached a brake rotor to the hub and got underneath the van and hit the rotor with a sledge hammer. It took quite a few wacks, but finally broke loose. After that it was clear sailing.
Trudi took a 17 hour ferry ride from Genoa Italy to Sicily. She is now sitting on top of Mt. Etna for a two week BMC training camp. She got to meet up with my friend Sara Dickinson, who lives in Genoa. That was nice. She is stressing a little about how much work she has scheduled the next three months, but that is always in flux.
Okay, want to watch the finish of today’s stage, then get my bike together. Queen stage of the race. Only a time trial left tomorrow. Super steep climbs. Glad it is Friday.
Original hub.
Knocked off.
Finished.
Dennis and I got cupcakes yesterday before the dog walk.
I made pizza last night.
The dough.
Sara, Trudi and Yo, Sara’s daughter, in Genoa.
Trudi flew into Pisa and had a little time for tourism.
Trudi’s hotel room view of Mt. Etna.
This is BMC rider Fabian Lienhard. Notice the ruler in his pocket. Trudi said he brought it from Switzerland to set his seat position. Swiss.
Tucker looking cute with the extra pizza flour on his nose.
It was great racing today in the Basque country. I’m glad I subscribed to Cycling TV. I got a Chromecast thingie and put it on my big TV screen too. Too bad I can’t put the Giro on the Chromecast…the Bein Sports online software doesn’t work with Google Chrome. I’m hoping Bein Sports puts the Giro on their cable TV channel, but I’m not holding my breath..they seem to be all about soccer and rugby.
It’s a great motivator for me to watch live Euro races in the AM here in the states. When I’m in Europe and the races are in the PM, it kind of gets in the way of my riding.
if you use the hola extention for Chrome, you can get anything, including Bein. https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/unlimited-free-vpn-hola/gkojfkhlekighikafcpjkiklfbnlmeio?hl=en
… so we’re friends now? Cool.
Brother Steve, you have posted some brilliant photos of Tucker but todays is absolutely priceless!!! Totally cracked me up. Also, congrats on NOT ripping all the skin off your knuckles removing/replacing that rotor.
Well Done
Just don’t be sandbagging as a “master” tomorrow 😉
Your feelings about Di2 surprised me. I would have guessed that you’re more of a mechanical kind of guy, especially since you like to fix things with your hands. Now I’m wondering if you would explain your position on Di2 in a reply, or as a separate blog post.
I hope at least they let Trudi, who never seems to age BTW (how do women do that?) take the overnight ferry and bought her a cabin to sleep in? The other question is why they didn’t have her turn left at the coast and take a shorter ferry crossing from just north of Rome? Either way you end up in Palermo I think. Tell her if they they give her any free time and a car to drive down to Siracusa, we’ll buy her the best seafood dinner she’s ever had. Etna’s great but I wouldn’t want to spend a whole lot of time up there. One of these days we need to haul our bikes out there and ride up the damn thing.
Steve, re: rust removal, check this out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLaBFkeHG0A
A German company (Clean laser-systeme) came out with industrial 1000W laser (VERY expensive for the private person)