I am very glad to have the Volta Catalunya behind me now.  What a rough week, from hard times in the race to uncomfortable times out of the race.  I am just happy to be at home with Courtney.  It is has been over a month since I last slept in my own bed or was even able to prepare my own meals and just function as a normal person.  I am sure I will reap some benefits down the road from all of the racing this month, but for now I am just looking to relax!

Spring has arrived here in Spain.  The winds, coming from the south, are blowing stronger each day and bringing with them warmer temperatures.  A very welcomed change from the harsh winter we have endured.  After a few days on the couch, with long mornings of enjoying coffee, I should be back in working order.  Just in time for what might be the hardest week of racing of the year in the Basque Country.  The Vuelta al Pais Vasco is a race that strikes fear into every cyclist and whenever it is spoken of one word always comes to mind, “Ouch!”  The endless climbing will surely be great prep for the Ardennes and the Giro, but it will come with its fair share of suffering.  But I will have plenty of time next week to worry about all of this, for now it is all about enjoying life at home.

It is a strange feeling to be racing so close to home, but one I really like.  This year’s Volta Catalunya, like the past two editions I have competed in, started just down the coast from Girona in Lloret de Mar.  A very familiar prologue kicked things off, and the following day we started on the outskirts of Girona itself, in Salt.  I really feel spoiled to have a ProTour race that passes through Girona, as well as the US national championships taking place in my home in Greenville.  It is a taste of what it is like to be Belgian, for instants, and being able to race the Tour of Flanders, or many of the other big races near your home.  You know every corner, every hill and every pothole.  And you have that little bit of extra motivation to perform well.

I spent most of the first stage thinking about all of the training and suffering I had done on these exact roads to prepare my body for these races.  I also couldn’t help but notice how much easier we glide over the hills in the race compared to when I am training by myself.  I am always amazed at how fast the bunch can get moving when it wants to.

HTC-Columbia has already had a very successful Volta Catalunya.  The prologue went very well, and Mark Cavendish has made it very clear that he is back from some early season setbacks with a great win into Banyoles.  Within just a few short weeks of proper training and racing he is back to winning and showing why he is the fastest man on two wheels.

Now we head into the mountains, direction Andorra.  The next three days will be very difficult I feel.  There might not be a mountain top finish to any of the stages, but the roads will be constantly tilting up and down.  And if the previous races this year are any indication, we should see some epic race days ahead.

With a huge block of racing down the center of France, I have spent the last few days recovering with Courtney and her aunt and uncle, Bobbie and Bill, on the Cote de Azur. I am a world away from suffering through crashes, snow, crosswinds and mountains. Now I am just enjoying the time with family and catching up over some great dinners and wines. We have spent several nights in Monaco, Vence, Fayence and we will soon end our trip in Nice, but for now it is all about enjoying every minute of the day.

My training will get longer as the week progresses, but for now I have been filling my days with cooking classes and spa treatments, as well as just relaxing in the sun on our balcony. This morning the alarm sounded at an early hour of half past four, as we had to meet up with chef Jacques Chibois at his restaurant, La Bastide Saint Antoine, for a full day of following him around. We drove into Nice and joined him on his weekly food run through this massive market that is only reserved for professional chefs. It was amazing to see how much food Jacques needed to purchase to just get him through a few days. By the time the sun came up, we had filled an U-haul sized truck full of vegetables, fish, meat and even flowers.

Then, it was back up to Grasse where his restaurant is located to tour the grounds. Down in his wine cellar we browsed through over 20,000 bottles, some of which dated back to the 1800’s! Once we had a good feel of the restaurant we were seated at a small table in the middle of the kitchen and served a very large eight-course lunch. The food was amazing, but what made it the best meal I have ever had was being able to walk over and watch them put together each ingredient and knowing that we had picked it all out this morning.  With all of this accomplished before it was even two, we were all pretty cracked. So I have been staring at the mountains from our balcony ever since, and the sun has long disappeared. A very nice rest week I must say…