A weekend of privilege, fun and cycling...
Roughly nine months after registration and a couple thousand dollars raised for charity, the Gran Fondo finally arrived this past weekend (Oct. 9, 2010). Thanks to my many very generous friends, I was one of the top fundraisers for the event. So, what should have been a crowded century ride, turned into an incredible weekend of fun for me and Kathy.So, this is how things went down...
I received an e-mail early last week telling me that my fundraising efforts were very much appreciated and although I did not raise the $8k required for the top-fundraiser award, they were inviting me to a series of events throughout the weekend in appreciation of my efforts. The first event was a Friday morning group ride with Levi Leipheimer, his personal mechanic and friend Glenn, a few local pros and some of Levi's fellow Team RadioShack riders...specifically, Bjorn Selander (former U23 U.S. TT Champ) and Ben King, current U.S. National Pro Road Race Champ. There were 14 riders in the group (including me and Levi). We met at 10:30AM on Friday morning at the Hyatt Vineyard Creek in Santa Rosa. Because I was notified kinda last minute, I had to scramble to get on the road from my home in San Ramon and get there in time to ride (I had arranged for Kathy to arrive later with our friend Jason.)Riding with the pros...
I have to admit, I was a little nervous and awestruck when I first arrived as we stood around chatting and making introductions, but quickly relaxed as we pedaled out of the parking lot for our two hour ride. Within minutes, I was up front riding alongside Levi enjoying the experience. As I pulled out my little pocket camera to get a quick snapshot, Levi chuckled and told me, "Hey, don't sweat the photos, we have a professional photographer along taking photos for all you guys." The ride was an incredible experience, chatting with the pros and being part of a select group the day before a 6,000 rider event! BTW, the photos turned out great - I've organized them into a slideshow for all to see (the link is at the bottom of this post.)Flash forward to Friday evening...
Kathy and I were invited to a "VIP" reception at D'Argenzio Winery. We'll, that may have been the "bust" of the weekend (very few people showed up), but at least we got to meet some real nice folks who we'd run into later in the weekend. But, not all was lost...Levi showed up and hung out for a bit. Kathy got to meet Levi and take some photos with him. Incidentally, we had heard that Patrick "McDreamy" Dempsey (you know, that hunky dude from the TV show Grey's Anatomy) would be in town for the ride on Saturday...Kathy thought he might show up at the winery reception, but no such luck :( Saturday morning, up early and ready to roll...
The ride started at 8AM sharp from the Finley Center in Santa Rosa. There were 6,000 cyclists in attendance for the three rides - Piccolo (35 mi.), Medio (65 mi.) and the Gran (103 mi.) Up front, there was a roped off VIP section, follow by self-staging areas for all riders. Initially, I had thought about "crashing" the VIP area as I had met Yuri Hauswald, a local pro with Marin Bikes the day before and thought he'd probably let me in since he was the "gatekeeper". However, not wanting to push my luck, I casually stopped by to say, "Wassup" to Yuri then proceeded to line up about 20 feet behind the VIP section. Kathy was nervous to start up front with the "fast" riders, so she disappeared back into the sea of cyclists. Unfortunately, for Kath, I could see "McDreamy" up ahead in the VIP area and I was bummed she didn't get to see him!We're off...
About twenty minutes into the ride, I was flying along at a pace that should have left me totally cooked by mile 50, but I seemed to feel okay, so I decided to keep the hammer down. I was behind some dude, who was riding a bit slower than me, so I moved out around him, glanced to my right and...McDreamy appeared! I immediately sat up, slowed to his pace and looked over at him..."Hey, my wife is lookin' for you! I think you're the only reason I was able to get her to participate in this craziness!" I yelled to him. He replied, "Well, where is she?" I gave him the "back there somewhere" thumb and said, "Somewhere behind us!" He chuckled and responded, "I'll be back there in a bit, I'm sure I'll see her!" We smiled, I replied, "Have a great ride!" to which he said the same and onward I pedaled. I immediately thought, "Jeez, what dumb luck riding alongside McDreamy in this absolute mass of humanity on wheels with identities hidden in dorky bike helmets and sunglasses." I also thought about how Kathy had once again missed out, so I quickly pulled out my cell phone and snapped off a terrible photo of McDreamy from over my shoulder...I was determined to get her at least a quick view of him - if only through the crappy lens of my cell phone while barreling down the road surrounded by bike nuts!Riding, climbing, descending rapidly, riding, climbing...
The ride itself was excellent. I was making good time, the weather was perfect, the scenery was amazing and Coleman Valley Road was looming at mile 75! I loved the constantly changing scenery from vineyards to oak covered foothills to redwood forests to sweeping ocean views. Did I mention the steep climbs and even steeper descents?! Wow, Meyers Grade was nothing less than treacherous. The overall stats from the ride were something like 103 miles, 8,500 feet of climbing and all you can drink cold beer in the VIP tent at the finish line!The VIP tent is near...
I managed to reel off the miles at a pace faster than I had previously thought possible for me and finished the ride in 6:53. About the same time I finished, I pulled my phone out of my jersey and saw a text message from Kathy...she was in the VIP tent waiting for me...and McDreamy was there!!! Finally, Kathy got to feast her eyes on Patrick "McDreamy" Dempsey! I made my way into the VIP tent where Kathy said, "What can I get for you?" My response? Well, it went something like this..."A cold beer and a photo of you with McDreamy." She whispered to me, "I stood right next to him - wow! Unfortunately, they asked us not to bother him when they let us into the VIP area." I told Kathy, "Hold on, I chatted with him on the ride and now it's time to get your picture with him." I walked over near Mr. Dempsey, made eye contact and motioned him over to me. I mentioned our chat on the ride in the morning and something about my wife wanting to meet him. He laughed and said, "Oh yeah, I remember" and then turned to Kathy asked her name and introduced himself. Without further delay, I asked the two of them to smile for the camera and...see below, enough said?
VIP tents are cool...
Maybe the best part of the weekend (aside from my Friday ride with Levi) was the VIP tent after the ride. I saw my friends Forrest, and Marshall, Levi, Patrick Dempsey and several other kinda famous people from the bicycling community. My friend Forrest who's a real character (in a great way) and knows almost everyone gave me a personal introduction to his friend "Brian." Brian Lopes is a 4x World Champion mountain biker! The "all-you-can-drink" ice-cold Fat Tire Ale and good food were cool too! Photo: (L to R) Marshall, Forrest, Brian and Me (yeah, they finished way before me, that's why I'm still wearing my helmet!)
The "after" party...
Well, you'd think it would all end after the VIP tent, but it didn't. My friend Forrest mentioned that Yuri was having a small, private get-together later that evening at a place in the historic railroad district in Santa Rosa and we were invited. As it turns out, Kathy and I spent the evening with a dozen or so people that included Levi, his wife Odessa, Ben King, the organizers of the event - Carlos and Greg, Team RadioShack's Sponsorship Manager, Glen, Forrest and his lovely wife Nicole and of course our gracious host Yuri. It was kind of surreal, hanging out at a huge event and being swept into a small inner-circle of people who were at the center of it.Finally, we ended our weekend with a restless, overtired sleep Saturday night, a BIG breakfast the next morning and a leisurely drive home where the couch was waiting for me to spend the rest of the afternoon.
My heartfelt thanks...
Well, I had a hell of a weekend and I'm very grateful to my friends for their generosity. Because of you guys and many others, I was rewarded with a unique and very fun experience. Thanks so much for your support!
Patrick
Picassa slideshow http://bit.ly/9fM7ID
