Today Sunday is rest day. I am on the third and last week of this Tour with three of the toughest stages ahead of me. The next three days we climb the Alps; and we climb them every day, several times a day, for 8-9 hours a day. But that starts tomorrow, today is rest day.

As I reflect on the journey so far, I look at the “could have’s, should have’s”. And top of my list is structured preparation. The guys that are fairing best have been with a coach and power meters for the past 6 months. I did not believe in either of these tools, but I can see the results in this trip. So I am a believer now.

I only concentrated on the endurance aspect. In addition, one needs to be able to sustain power for 45 minutes to an hour at a time. And one needs to measure the power output and work on increasing it over time. I have no idea how many watts I spend on Dickey Ridge for example. And the climbs in France are not short. That is where a power meter and a coach help maximize the “zone” where you can pedal strong and maintain the power for the whole climb.

Then there is the toughness factor. The better athletes are able to concentrate to the point where they are able to work through the effort and get through it. The only parallel I can relate to is the focus factor in business. The nuances that distract you in this challenge are the body and environment ailments. The better athletes somehow block that out and continue. I am still learning to do this.

As to the support during the trip, it has been wonderful. As I stated before, Destination Cycling does whatever they can to help us succeed. You raise your hand, you get water; you are hot, all of a sudden you see them coming with sorbet bars to hand out. At lunch stops, we will have watermelons, apples, candy, two different types of sandwiches, cokes, water, juice, it is awesome. You get a flat, you get another wheel and are towed back to the group. You are having a bad day, a van stays behind making sure you are not left out. At night, the hotels have your bags waiting in your room, and dinner is always top notch. The staff encourages you and support you along the way. All this goes a long way towards making this challenge doable.

Another aspect that makes this doable, is that this is fantasy camp after all. If you have a bad day, which I have had a few, you recover as best you can and get participate again the following day. There are no time limits or DNFs to worry about. So we all continue to chug along.

Today being a rest day, I get to relax as best I can. I am so used to getting up early so I am up by 7AM. After breakfast, this morning I soaked my legs in the pool. The cold water did wonders to tired, aching legs.

Now, a bit past noon, I am on the bike on a leisurely stroll around Gap. This is the second city where we get a chance to see the actual Tour de France arrive.

Anyway, I sign off for now, and will try to rest for tomorrow’s Gap to Alpe D’Huez stage.