Poland 2&3

It's another late night here in Poland. I can't say I really enjoy starting stages at 330pm, or maybe I prefer less finishing at 700pm. Either way, it makes life hard because as much as I enjoy a long, relaxed morning, I don't enjoy eating dinner at 930pm. Enough of the complaining though. 

The race update is status quo. The first three stages have been field sprints, all won in impressive fashion by the current yellow jersey. Tomorrow the hills arrive, and it is unlikely to be a pure field sprint, but a large group kick could be possible. I'm looking forward to the test and hoping the legs/fitness will respond favorably. It has been a taxing first few stages at times. I have seem my heart rate near max several times, and I have felt on my limit several times, which is slightly concerning; however, I am remaining confident it is a lack of race speed, and a different form of speed/power required in the flats than on the coming climbs. I will find a likely answer tomorrow, and the following days. 

For the last two stages, I don't have anything special to update. A funny story from yesterday is in order. I was riding behind a guy who made this up and down waving gesture with his hand behind his back every time he was about to stand up. As much as I appreciated his unusual gesture, it took me awhile to figure it out, and I originally thought he was just farting! Sorry for be inappropriate, but it is little things like this that keep us cyclists sane! After the stage yesterday, we followed the GPS to our hotel, but we ended up in some random small town where there certainly wasn't a hotel. Long story short, GPS was confused, 30km turned into 80km+, and in the end we got into the neighborhood but had to hire a taxi to direct us to the hotel. It was a funny but impatient situation due to the late night. Everything is all settled and fine now though.

Tomorrow we have a good morning with normal wake up time, short transfer and normal stage profile/length, but I am dreading the 230km transfer after the stage. I suppose this is just part of racing, but it seems that nothing is fast in transport here. All the roads are under construction or small and slow. I won't hold it against Poland though because they have put on a good race, and the country's support of the race is impressive. There have been people along the roadside everywhere, not just at the start and finish areas. It shows an amazing support of the event and cycling in general. Hoping for good weather from here to the finish, but we have to take it day to day. Time for rest, recovery and preparation for the stages ahead. Good night.