Back to Europe

It’s 2011 and The Boyz (French Alps 2010)(Swiss Challenge 2009) are back in Europe once more, still chasing the memories of  carefree boyhood days.  Race ya!  Fastest!  Strongest! No hands!  Watch this! 

We would have dreamed of Tour de France fame and the Pyrenees if we had only heard of them in the 1950’s.  Just to prove that age does not beget wisdom, we’re going now, in 2011—a bunch of 50-somethings, with an outlier or two—to chase dreams we never had.  Or maybe just  to test ourselves to see what we still have.

The pre-expedition chatter has been relatively quiet this year.  It has centered on who is most injured or least-trained, which does not bode well for the future.  The pre-trip “facts”, as presented in email so far:

-Todd had his other hip replaced in June.  His doctor told him not to go.  He’s going anyway.

-Jim sprained his knee skiing this spring.  Also torn meniscus.  He’s rehabbed enough to give it a go.

-Jack spent a year’s worth of Medicare on a knee.  Except he’s not old enough for Medicare.  In a burst of optimism, he bought a plane ticket a week ago.

-Charles has prepared by doing lots of 1 and 2 hour rides.  Sunday he got dropped on a 60 mile group ride.

-Markham hurdles “sore and stiff” to get out of bed in the morning.

As far as hard intelligence goes:

-The Westies sent a delegation to train in the Alps this summer.  NOW, they’ve sent their leading strategists to Spain a week early to acclimatize to altitude and scout the big climbs.  They call it “riding with our wives.”

 It could be the Westies turn at the top this year.  That would be at the top of Col du Tourmalet on Day 4, which has been declared Race Day.  Whatever the aches, whatever the suffering, one thing is as durable and certain as mountains—we’re going to have an epic adventure and call it FUN!