And so herein continues a veritable hemmorage of Paris-Nice Prologue pics from yours truly....
First up, the mechanics of the warm-up. In my previous post, you surely noticed the near-anal attention to detail in the CSC camp. My wife, who has a history of near-obsessive compulsive behaviour in her extended family, was particularly impressed w/ the lined-up trainers in fron of the Danish team's bus "Did you see how the towel logos all line up" she asks... well, who wouldn't? I myself feel that that attention to detail is just slightly south of what can be construed as "normal" behaviour -- but who am I to judge? After 20 years with my wife, I still do not "get" the concept of the hand-towel ("why do we need a special towel so that our guests can wipe their hands? What's wrong with our other towels? -- note to all, do not go there... trust me on this one!).
Next up, the trainer wheel. Here in the 2nd and third pictures are the trainers and their dedicated wheels in front of what later would later be termed "the Boonen circus". The Quickstep bus is oddly quiet as all the riders are either in bed still, chowing down on brunch or out riding the course.
Pictures 5 and 6 show the trainer TT wheel switch off in the CSC camp. After the rider has warmed up and while he is suiting up, one of the many mechanics switches out the tired old trainer wheel for the turbo-charged real thing.
#7 Oh, and while we are on the topic of bikes, check out Liberty's gold plated Nokon cables and shifters --Manolo sure has an eye for the details!
#8 Merckx no longer on a Merckx. Deliver some wins and maybe they'll let you ride your Dad's bike!
#9-11. Floyd's TT rig up close and personal.
First up, the mechanics of the warm-up. In my previous post, you surely noticed the near-anal attention to detail in the CSC camp. My wife, who has a history of near-obsessive compulsive behaviour in her extended family, was particularly impressed w/ the lined-up trainers in fron of the Danish team's bus "Did you see how the towel logos all line up" she asks... well, who wouldn't? I myself feel that that attention to detail is just slightly south of what can be construed as "normal" behaviour -- but who am I to judge? After 20 years with my wife, I still do not "get" the concept of the hand-towel ("why do we need a special towel so that our guests can wipe their hands? What's wrong with our other towels? -- note to all, do not go there... trust me on this one!).
Next up, the trainer wheel. Here in the 2nd and third pictures are the trainers and their dedicated wheels in front of what later would later be termed "the Boonen circus". The Quickstep bus is oddly quiet as all the riders are either in bed still, chowing down on brunch or out riding the course.
Pictures 5 and 6 show the trainer TT wheel switch off in the CSC camp. After the rider has warmed up and while he is suiting up, one of the many mechanics switches out the tired old trainer wheel for the turbo-charged real thing.
#7 Oh, and while we are on the topic of bikes, check out Liberty's gold plated Nokon cables and shifters --Manolo sure has an eye for the details!
#8 Merckx no longer on a Merckx. Deliver some wins and maybe they'll let you ride your Dad's bike!
#9-11. Floyd's TT rig up close and personal.