Going International

It's been great the past few days. We have had some great food, tasty brews and a wonderful time. Hipolstein is a small town and we have been biking everywhere. The pool is a 5 minute ride and I pass all the small children walking or riding to school. It's great to see kids on the way to school that aren't being shuttled in a minivan. Everyone bikes around town and bikers are given a lot of respect. Today on my easy spin and elderly woman started cheering SCHNELL, SCHNELL, (faster, faster). I also saw an old man on a bike that probably dates to the war, WWI, riding with a pitchfork in his hand! The pool is outdoors, 50m with a metal bottom and it uses bromine instead of chlorine. It is the cleanest, clearest pool I have ever been in.
Me being a car guy, I am loving all the Mercedes and Audis and BMW's that we don't get in the states. Plus there are Opels, Renaults, Seats and other brands not available in the US. Wagons are the vehicle of choice, with 4 doors being a close second. I think I have seen 3 SUV's and 1 truck. It's all smaller cars and lot's of diesel engines.
I had breakfast today as part of an "unofficial" pro meeting breakfast. It was organized by The Triathlon Experience and it was a breakfast for there athletes and they could ask the pros questions. On hand were Luke Dragstra, Pete Jacobs, Bellinda Granger, Chris McCormack and myself. Most of the questions were for Chris naturally, but I got to say a few words about racing overseas and the benefits of living at altitude.
This will probably be my last post before race day. It's time to focus in and get ready to go hard. The bike course is hilly and hard. The fast times are a result of the incredible crowd support, not the topography! I can't wait for the gun to go off and see what the day brings.

Going for SUB 9,

AJ