Royal Saturday
Today the prince of Spain got married 3 blocks from our hotel. It was mayhem. Not becuase of the thousands of people who came to see the newlyweds drive around town. Not becuase of the thousands of spectators here for the World Cup Mt. Bike race that goes off tomorrow. And not becuase this city isn’t crazy enough - the worst part about all of it was the torrential downpour we all stood in to catch a glimpse of the happy couple driving by. It was insane. Not sure who faired worse - me or Adam who was pre-riding the course in the same rain. Either way, I got some great footage and Adam got assimilated to the course. Later in the day I did a poignent interview with him and learned his story. It’s almost tear-jerking to hear. In a nutshell, he raced all last season, kicking ass onthe UC-23 (23 and under racers) tour only to get to the World Championships feeling ready to take the title only to take a warmup lap then be told by the UCI (Union Cyclist International - the governing body of cycling) that he could not race because he missed a drug test early in the season - which he simply had not been informed of or knew about. Adding insult to injury was the USA Cycling organization that had fostered Adam’s cycling growth - telling him not, “Sorry, we didn’t tell you about that little detail” but instead telling him, “You should have known about that test - you need to pay for the 2 nights in the hotel we booked you in and leave.”
Wow. Welcome to professional bike racing.
Photo shot this evening of next door to the Palace - check the photos for more shots. Luckily for all, the rain went away and the afternoon was sunny.
