by Chris Geiser

Well it’s about that time. We have had a great couple of days discovering Hameln, visiting the expo, riding the bike roads, checking out the course, and finding a bratwurst, which took longer than we thought it would. We have discovered, that Hameln is the only city in the world where if you say the word “rat” in a restaurant, no one gets upset. Since it is race day morning, and I have finally gotten up on time, I will keep it short so I can get to the start line.

Jack and Aleksandra get signed in.

We hit the expo as early as we could given my propensity for oversleeping. Tried on jerseys, talked to the mechanics, and caught up with some of the folks we have been meeting along the way. As usual, people were from everywhere, maybe living here now, but once lived in New York, we had a number of interesting conversations before heading back to do a little leg loosening out on the farm roads surrounding the city.

Marking the start line on the way out of the expo.

With the day being relatively short, and knowing we would want to have a more normal schedule, we would keep the ride fairly short and pretty easy. We went out via the course markers, and onto the bike roads, and did a few zigs and zags to see what was out there. At a certain point there were a few tourists and e-bikes out there so we had to keep the speed to a dull roar as some of the roads are narrow, but that gave us a chance to soak it in. The weather could not have been more perfect.

Back to Hameln, back to the expo, and back to get to the supermarket to buy food for the morning, and for the train trip on Monday. We wandered through the squares of the city on the quest for a quick bratwurst, and finally found the perfect place. As we got to the front of the line — they were out of bread. We waited while the baked the next batch, and it was worth it. By this point I was so hungry, I was ready to order two. Somehow the more reasonable sector of my brain took over and corrected me. But that may have been because while we were walking and following the Pied Piper tour guides, I was sneaking cookies out of my grocery bag. Sue me.

The Preparations

With the last of the preparations underway, pumping tires, putting numbers on jerseys and doing a cleat change. This was not a good time to find out that my worn cleat on my left shoe was so hammered-up that I couldn’t get it off. Luckily my spare shoes, saved the day and I put the new cleats on those. But not until 45 minutes of trying to get the last screw out proved fruitless without a bigger screw driver. I would not have gotten that far, if Clarence had not arrived with a more diverse set of tools. Clarence is a triathlete, runner, cyclist, and all around good guy who lives part of the year here in Germany. He was with us at the Gavia camp in May right before GFNY Championship NYC, and was staying at the same hotel here in Hameln. We got in touch, and he mentioned that he recognized the De Rosa SK from all the photos, and he and his friend Philip came back to the garage to finish prepping with Jack and I, before we all headed to a pre-race dinner. Half-way around the world, we run into people we know, and create great times.

Dinner at the same Italian place as Thursday evening. L-R, Clarence, Philip, myself, Aleksandra, and Jack.

Well — it’s about that time. A quick shower, something to eat, and off to the start line to get it done at GFNY Deutschland! There may be more after the finish, but definitely more as we make our way on the train tomorrow morning!

Tschüss!