Amgen Tour de California

The Amgen tour came through yesterday. The last several years they have ridden from Santa Barbara to Santa Clarita, and we have gone to the Town Center Mall to see them come in. It was great because they would come down Magic Mountain Parkway, turned right at Mc Bean, go past the finish line, then right on Valencia, then right again on Tourney Rd. They would do three laps then hit the finish line, which gave us multiple chances to see them go by. But this year they started at the mall and rode to Pasadena going through our valley, up Soledad Cyn through Acton by Jeff's house, up Aliso canyon to Angeles Crest Highway, then over the mountains to Pasadena. Bottom line, we didn't get to see much this year.

I really wanted to see it this year as Lance Armstrong is riding on his come-back for the Tour de France, for which this ride is a qualifier. Jeremy and Kristy and the girls were at her parents house and the race went up Bouquet Canyon right by them, so I went over there and we waited on the sidewalk till the peleton came by. It was fun, but really, really short.

First the sponsers cars come by. The SAAB sponser was handing out cowbells, the traditional noisemaker for bike races. We didn't see what they were doing till they started to leave, so we didn't get one, at first. But shortly after they left a man walked up to Nyah and gave his bell to her. After they went by, Jeremy wasn't excited about having a cowbell in the house with two highly creative and active daughters, so Nyah gave it to me. It now has a place of honor on my bookshelf. (I found out later that SAAB was selling the same bells at the starting line for $8 each.)

The lead cars and police went by about 5 minutes ahead of the riders with lights and sirens going, and then the riders came through with the television and photo motorcycles, then a long line of support cars. The whole parade lasted about 15 minutes, but the riders went by in less than 15 seconds.

I was so busy trying to get a good shot I never got to look at them. I tried to identify Lance from the photos but I can't make him out. I did think I saw Floyd Landis in it.

It was over in the blink of an eye.

By the time I got back to the house and got the on-line live video feed they were already miles up Soledad Canyon. I was especially interested in this part of the race because I ride this road so much myself, and even though I know how fast they are I couldn't believe how they were burning up the road.

In celebration of the whole thing I watched "The Triplets of Belleville" afterward. (Inside joke)