It’s great to be back in Girona after a very successful training camp in Mallorca.

Torres Chocolate signs, for some reason, symbolize Catalunya for me.

Beautiful weather in Spain at the moment.

Had a few very nice rides with Robbie Ventura over the weekend.

Random hole-in-the-wall bar stop with RV and Joel turned into one of the best jamon sandwiches I’ve ever had.

Climbing Sa Calobra with Marco Pinotti and Peter Velits.  My favorite climb on the island.

Still working my way up the 10km Sa Calobra climb with Pino…

At the top of Mallorca highest mountain, Puig Major, the light at the end of the tunnel is pretty small.

George and I have been happy to play tour guide these past few weeks.  The long rides we are use to covering by ourselves are made much quicker and easier with the help of some company.  Ted King has been based out of my house this past week and has, as far as I can tell, been enjoying his time here.  Another New Englander, Jeremy Powers, just made the journey down south to put in his final preparations for a bid at the upcoming Cyclocross World Championships in Germany.

Our training group has been getting more diverse by the day.  From sprinters like Frank Travieso to climbers like Chris Butler, we have had a great mix of riders to push each of us in all the aspects of cycling.  After all, sometimes the best way to progress is by surrounding yourself with better riders.

With a few of the locals joining us throughout the week our group has been relatively big and entertaining.  Some of them have been biting off more than they can chew trying to keep up on the climbs and pull through when we are rotating on the flats.  But it has all been in good fun.  I hope Greenville continues to draw in a growing number of cyclists.  When we are in the dead of winter, and the body needs the mind-numbing base miles for the season ahead, misery loves company.

In the afternoon we drove down the valley and alongside the famous Lago di Como (Lake Como) and then up to the top of the Madonna de Ghisallo.  There the church waited for us with open doors and a surprising amount of tourists.  We gazed at its walls, covered in cycling memorabilia, just trying to soak in as much of the history around us as possible.  But for that you would need much longer than a few minutes.  Every inch of the church is covered with bikes, jerseys and any and all things cycling related.  It was truly amazing to see this firsthand and a must for any cycling fan.  I was also very surprised and happy to see so many tour buses park outside with their guests interested in learning the history of cycling.  Cycling is defiantly growing at the moment, I feel.

The rest of the ride we basically spent bar hopping.  A couple cappuccinos at this bar and a few pastries at another in a town down the valley.  Not a bad way to spend the day, but I believe when I am back here in a month’s time I will be missing those opportunities for coffee stops.  We also made another quick trip up the Passo Santa Christina and it didn’t get any easier overnight.  We are hoping to get in one more solid ride tomorrow, but with rain in the forecast it is not looking likely.

Our ride today took us to the unexpected.  Snow covered roads diverted us from our original plan to climb the Mortirolo.  Instead we ended climbing up the Santa Cristina.  Brendan thought it would never end, and I had to agree.  I even said “I am glad we are not racing up this in the Giro.”  Once we returned home, after almost six hours on the bike, I checked to map to see where we had gone.  I realized that we would be in fact racing up the Santa Cristina this year!

Tomorrow we will once again try the Mortirolo, hoping that a new route will bring us to the bottom of the climb.  And if the snow stops us again there are plenty more mountains just waiting for us to tackle.  Being in such a beautiful area makes the training so easy.  Even though the computer read six hours, to me it felt like thirty minutes.  For now though it is time for dinner.  Brendan is in desperate need of more pasta!