Caught On Tape: 2010 Amgen Tour of California

Watch for a familiar face about 90 seconds in.

U.S. Pro Road Race

I rode in the BMC Racing Team car for the U.S. pro road race in Greenville.

Behind The Scenes at the Amgen Tour of California

Sports Illustrated's Austin Murphy (left) interviewed George Hincapie.

Bob Roll of NBC Sports (right) interviewed Tejay van Garderen.

Lots of Belgians here (from left): Chris De Vos, Greg Van Avermaet and Rik Verbrugghe.

So This Is Girona

Great room here at the Meliã hotel in Girona.

Girona, Spain – I've heard and read so much about Girona, Spain. It's been the hotbed of homes for many American cyclists over the years, including a seven-time Tour de France winner, George Hincapie and now BMC Racing Team's Brent Bookwalter. Team mechanic Kevin Grove also lives here, so it was nice to finally meet his family today.

It's 2:30 a.m., so this will be a short one. Basically, because the motorcoach was out of service, I went with the soigneurs and Dr. Scott Major to the feed zone, where I made a video. On the way back to the finish, I nearly threw up we tore around twisting, narrow mountain roads. Ugh.

Back at the hotel, I struggled with decreasing internet access as dozens of riders began logging on – just as I was trying to write the race report and participate in a conference call. Thank goodness for Tether!

I'll let the pictures tell the rest of the story.

I'm not sure what the story is here. Serious wardrobe malfunction.

Proud Kevin and his two sons. (His daughter stayed home.)

Let's hope this isn't here very long.

I rode with Kevin (right) and Michael Sayers to the start.

Watching the race in the back of the caravelle at the finish.

Notice how I do my best to stay out of these shots?

Dining room of the hotel. American teams always eat before
the Brits, the Spanish, the French and the Russians.

One of the few times I've had a hot water pot in my room.

Ride In The Team Car

Riding shotgun with BMC Racing Team's John Lelangue.
Whenever I am on-site at a stage race, I try to get in the team car at least once. It's a chance to gather behind-the-scenes photos and video. On Wednesday, I asked BMC Racing Team Directeur Sportif John Lelangue about getting in the car sometime during the remainder of the race. He immediately said, "tomorrow." So Thursday morning, I was climbing into the car for a 193-kilometer race with seven categorized climbs.

The caravan is a moving city on wheels. Speeds are high at times and the terrain of the course naturally makes things dangerous. Check out the shot at right of the photographer on the back of the motorcycle. We were clocking 62 mph at the time.

Every director has his own style. I asked John if there was anything I should or should not do. "Just don't open your door," he said. I'm guessing he has seen my running with George Hincapie's bike in Canada. That was fine by me. Less stress.

You can see many of the videos I shot on YouTube and I've included the most popular one below (photo at right). Suffice it to say it was a good day for photos and video. But not so great for the riders. The racing was fast and the aggressive plan John laid out was executed perfectly but didn't lead to any results, unfortunately.

A couple notes:

- All this black clothing we have from lululemon reminds me of my days of working for Rock Racing.

- Team Sky has the most vehicles of any team: a motorcoach, large equipment bus, small camper, equipment van and five team cars. We have a camper, small bus, van and three team cars.


Jeff Louder gets help from the BMC Racing Team car.

A closer look at John Lelangue's dashboard setup.

A good crowd turned out in this little town.

Commissaire working out of his car.

The red helmet signifies that this is a motorcycle referee.

View of mechanic Nick Vandecauter and me.

Steve Morabito, chasing back after a "nature break."

Another view of more riders chasing back after their stop.

The BMC Racing Team was car No. 10 in the caravan.