After 6 weeks back home in New Jersey where Doc put me thru a quick block of the Cam and Reinaldo bike program, I am finally back in camp. I enjoyed my time home very much catching up with family and friends while laying the foundation for Swiss Camp. I will be here in Leysin, Switzerland for much of the summer and too be honest I was a bit sad to leave the beloved Jersey Shore on Sunday but realize that it is necessary for me to spend as much time as possible climbing these mountains in order for me to one day achieve the goals I have set for myself.
I arrived Monday morning after taking the red eye direct to Geneva. I escaped the Newark Airport with no extra charge for baggage , thank you Continental Airlines!!! Special thanks to my big sis Heather for sharing some of her half a million miles for helping me get here. I had no hicups catching my train and quickly found myself sitting on the trolley car ascending the moutain on my last leg of the journey.
View From The Trolley
Leysin is everything everyone said it would be. It is absolutely gorgeous, exactly what you might picture a European Ski Town would like. Chalets, restaurants, and shops all strategically placed along the mountain side. I am staying with Caroline, A.K.A, The Bean for my first week and then moving to another apartment where James and Many will be joining me in July and Jo from time to time when he is here.
View While Climbing Le Col de le Croix
View From The Bean’s Pad
I have really enjoyed the first few days here and anticipate the coming weeks as the real training will begin tomorrow in ernest. I can remember last year reading a bit about Team TBB and their training camp here and thought, wow that place sounds amazing, maybe one day I can go train there? and now I am here ,a part of this team, Holy Sh#t!!! It would have been very easy to stay back home in the cozy beach house and keep pretending that one day I would become a champion. But after making the ascent up the famous climb here 4 times in my first 4 days, let me tell you, there is no pretending going on here. Everytime I make that journey back up the moutain I will think about Doc’s first words to me when I arrived, Welcome my friend, here is where you decide if you want to be a champion or not!
Internet service can be spoty at times but I will try to update weekly, especially since there are only 2 english television channels so when I am not watching french tv trying to learn the language I will have time to blog. Lots to come; races, epic training sessions, le tour de france, the beard will come and go and come again, the mustache might even make an appearance, and who know what else I might come across that I think my friends might want to read about. I leave you with a quote from the great Lance Armstrong:
“I rode and I rode, and I rode. I rode like I had never ridden, punishing my body up and down every hill I could find. I rode when no one else would ride”
This must be the moto over the next few months as my journey continues up the moutain!!!
View Of The Track
SD
