The Return

I slept well last night. The rain beating on the windows here at the Napa Valley Redwoods Inn, a large indulgent meal of French Cuisine (more on that later), and truly the best ride of my life all combined to knock me out soundly. 

There's so much to say, beginning with so many people to thank. Too many to name. My friends at Competitive Cyclist not only ensured that my bike was tuned to PROfection, but many of them deserve a lot of credit for imbuing me with passion for the spirit and culture of cycling, without which I would not be here. It has been said in a slightly different context that "it's not about the bike," but I would add the qualifier that it's not about the bike "per se." And the good people at Competitive Cyclist know the details of bikes and bike culture with the same acumen. 

My friend Andy Clark, who has gone out of his way to make high end cycling available to me for years, deserves so many thanks. He teaches me to this day from his many years of bike racing and bike riding experience, and I am always eager to soak it all up. Andy made the Rapha ride happen for me, both by dealing with some of the logistics and perhaps more importantly by indirectly teaching me why something like this is so important to do if ever given the opportunity. On top of that, he has quickly become a very close friend, and for that I am most grateful.

My family, and my friends: I got so many birthday wishes yesterday, and thank you all! Your love and support have enabled all my successes in life, and this no exception. 

My father looked at this opportunity, knew that I had a chance to do so many extraordinary things, and simply made it happen. His generosity toward me is and always has been without bounds, but I must say that he wasn't just showering me with this gift (again, "per se"). He was using his hard work to connect a life passion with the chance of a lifetime. Cycling has brought us even closer in the past couple of years, and it is my expectation that we will continue to ride together for as long as possible, but I sincerely hope that I'll be reading about his experience in the next Rapha ride. Nobody deserves such a wonderful experience more than he does.

My beautiful wife. She sacrificed so much for me to be here on this trip. Just in terms of important days, 1) A post-test party she planned, 2) Valentine's Day the very next night, 3) my birthday two days later. She has understood from the beginning how special this chance has been for me, and hasn't hesitated to encourage me to do it all. As always, she is willing to give of herself for me, and for her unconditional love I am eternally grateful. 

Well, I've got to get my stuff packed so that I don't miss my flight (... and have to stay here ... hmm). It's significantly more complex to travel with a bike and all of the gear. 

I looked down at the fading Rapha stamp on my hand from the party yesterday and initially thought that I might try to avoid washing the back of my hand to keep from rubbing it off, but then I thought about how the stamp can be thought of as a representation of the end of the trip. It has been nothing short of amazing, beginning to end, but now it is really time to get home. I thought before that I would long for the experience to continue, but I'm actually very much at peace with drawing the whole thing to a close. I did everything I set out to do, and now it's time to go home.