Victory!!! The team got its first win here at Qinghai courtesy if Aldo.
It was quite a relief to just race a 100km circuit race today in the
city of Qilian, no KOMs, no transfers (the two things I hate most about
bike racing). The 10km loop had a lot of turns, so it rode like a crit,
and a sweet downhill sprint that suited Aldo's massive frame just fine.
I got in a break about 15km in with a handful of other guys and rode it
until we got caught just before the last lap. I can't say that I was all
that productive in the break as I didn't manage to get either of the
intermediate sprints (I seriously have one speed here), but my teammates
were appreciative that we had representation at least. As the bunch
swallowed up me and the other escapees, I had just enough time to admire
how well my teammates were riding as a unit near the front. As I
cruised across the finish line at the back of the group I was excited to
see Swanny Ronny grinning ear to ear, hands in the air, jumping up and
down. "Hey Ronny, don't shake up my coke!"
Rest day tomorrow, and thankfully we're at this same hotel for another
two nights. Not moving around makes life so much easier. I was finally
able to wash out my pair of jeans today (because they have 2 days to
dry) and was glad no one was around to see the amount of brown water
that came out of them. In my mind jeans never actually get dirty, and
washing them today was more of a superfluous luxury, so that was pretty
astonishing. The only complaint I have about this hotel and many Chinese
hotel bathrooms is that nothing divides the shower from the bathroom.
No tub, wall, 2in high divider on the floor, nothing. There's a drain In
the floor under the shower, which may make it a halfway decent design
if the floor was actually built accordingly. Instead the floor doesn't
drain so you have to wear shoes into the bathroom every time you need to
pee or use the sink. Aaaand the floor and baseboards have no doubt been
wet for who knows how long, cultivating an especially fragrant blend of
mold/bacteria.
Had a nice little America Day celebration out in the parking lot last
night with the other two American teams here (Jelly Belly and UHC). Jack
found Chinese branded PBR*, and the other directors came through with
some loud Chinese fireworks. Made for a great break in the monotony of
laying in bed, staring at channel 5, as we do every night.
*Technically none of the riders partook in PBR drinking. We just watched.
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2 comments:
Joey,
I feel so lucky to have googled your blog while searching for Qinghai Lake information. Haven't read something this good since John Leiswyn retired. I freqently write Kiel, and just like you I believe he is one remarkable athlete...you're awfully good also!
Earlier you mentioned watching Snooker...I know what you mean, while living in England in the 80's I grew addicted to the game as it was on TV all the time...actually can get halfway exciting at times...almost like darts! Best of luck the rest of the tour...let's get Kiel closer to that GC win the team deserves.
John Renz
Crown Point, IN
Meant to say - John Lieswyn
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