The topic of conversation the past week here in Girona has been the heat. It seems like everything is revolving around it at the moment.

Today on the ride I knew it was going to be another brutal day when I was reaching for my water bottle before I was even out of town at nine in the morning. At this point in the day the sky is a clear blue and you can even make out the Pyrenees in the distance. As the day progresses it is as if the sun is so strong that the blue burns off and by late afternoon the sky is a bright white. Something that you wouldn’t dare look directly into.  The mountains become a blur, even the trees and buildings lose their lines. Its hard to make out much of anything other than the sweat pouring down your face.

It is day just like today that you fully understand why siestas were created so many years ago. It simply is impossible to work in the afternoons.  As a cyclist you just have to survive these few hot weeks each year. We ride early, almost two hours before our normal start times the rest of the year. Some even chose to head out before the sun is up, with lights attached to their bars. I guess I just enjoy sleep too much for that.

Our rides become very predictable, with our routes being planned around water stops. Venturing out to a new road or a new climb just doesn’t happen this time in the year.

Off the bike is still all about survival. Drinking cold water to restore the body’s supply and putting off all trips out of the house until the latest moment in the day when the heat is subsiding.   Fortunately for us here in Girona the heat won’t last forever and like the rest of life it seems to pass very quickly.

The late finish and the after party for the Tour of Poland meant that we would be spending another night there and traveling back on Sunday. When it’s possible, we all like to get home as soon as possible, so that usually means a late flight home and a really long night after racing all day. That wasn’t an option for most of us here, it is not so easy to get in and out of Krakow apparently.

If you put a couple hundred bike racers and staff together, add some alcohol and no place to go you will have one crazy night. I was one of the few that managed some sleep that night, a solid two hours. When the alarm sounded at 5:00AM I was not in the best mood, but it was time to get up and head back to Girona.

After two flights, a long layover and a good taxi ride I was back in my place in Girona and ready for some down time. After doing longer stage races there is always a few days of taking it easy to get the body recovered. I took the free time to catch up with a few friends in town. I had a nice cookout at Timmy Duggan’s with a few other of the Garmin guys one night, drank some wine with Will Frischkorn and Mike Friedman on another night and did a lot of sleeping. Then after a few days of relaxing there is the annoying task of waking the body up and getting the blood flowing. It is never easy to get going again. It usually takes quite a bit of suffering for a few days before you feel like you belong on a bike. It is made a little easier if you have some friends to join you in the process. Michael Barry and David Millar were in the same boat this week, so we pushed each other on a few rides in hopes of finding some form. It is also getting fairly late in the season, so it helps to have some company out of the long and hot roads of Spain. I have a few more days to get things in order, then it is off to Ireland for the Tour of Ireland.

Well, I am once again back in Girona, Spain. Fresh off of a very nice five week break in the US. I packed in so many great times there, but like the rest of life it went by way too fast. This stay in Europe will be different than any of the others this year as my wife, Courtney, will not be joining me. Leaving loved ones behind is the hardest part of the sport that I know of, but that makes me even more motivated to have a successful fall here.

I have had a couple of days now to adjust to the time change and recover from the travel. Most of my time as been spent restocking the house with food and water. This means walking the sixty stairs up to our apartment many times. The rest of my time has been split catching up with friends here in Girona, either on the bike or have a drink in town. There is such a good group of guys here and that makes a lot easier here alone.

I am off to the Tour of Poland tomorrow. It has been six weeks since my last race, the Dauphine, so I have no idea what the form is going to be like. I also have never been to Poland and have no idea of what the country will be like. Right now I am seeing grey, concrete, and very few windows. It should be an experience nonetheless.