Sometimes big things happen in small places.
Today the Amgen Tour of California made its way through Solvang. It's astounding to me that part of this major world class event is staged in our little Valley. The riders flew by, about a block from my house. I watched from the bottom of the hill, where they rounded the corner, so close I could have reached out and touched them! I didn't want to get arrested so I kept my hands to myself :^)
The amount of people thronging our streets was pretty amazing. The booths, the groupies, the traveling masses that accompany this race -- it's overwhelming. It's not every day that you see a jumbo tv screen on Copenhagen Drive, towering over thousands of people, each hoping to catch a glimpse of the riders speeding by. Our population seemed to have quadrupled for the day.
One of my neighbors, a semi-pro biker, paid the thousand dollars to ride in the amateur pre-race. Other friends volunteered on the route or helped cook and serve food to the riders. For this one day each year, the town shuts down to accommodate the time trial. We don't get mail, many roads are closed, schools are out and we all throng downtown to see the spectacle.
This is the third year that Solvang has hosted Stage 6 of the race, and the first time I've been up close and personal with it. Already the EZ ups are down, the gates have been loaded and the bikers have moved on to the next place.
And Solvang is back to being a small town.
8 comments:
How fun! And, what a great shot you got of Lance as he whizzed by! Very cool! :-)
How fun! I'm glad you saw it! And what a great picture!
That is too cool! Great pics! Lance is a biking legend!
Oh wow! Solvang is crowded enough when Lance isn't roaring through the place. What an awesome thing to see, Sherrie!
I know, it's crazy. Even Santa Barbara is Lance obsessed. Enjoy!
Kelly -- I was amazed by how close I was on that corner. I got a lot of great shots.
PJ -- I'm glad I got to experience it too!
Kelly -- Lance is a legend. He's brought so much recognition to the sport.
Rena -- This was a whole new level of crowding -- simply amazing!
Patty -- Everyone is Lance obsessed this time of year!
Awesome. And how great that everything shuts down for this and allows you to really enjoy it.
I'm sending this on to my husband. He was watching them ride all through our Santa Cruz mountains (where he frequently takes his bike, just a little bit slower!) through the live feed & loving it.
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