Bayernrundfahrt 2008 - Final Preparations

Here we go; the final day before the big race. Yesterday I was a bit worried as my back was suddenly acting up. It has never done this before but I ended up on the floor for a few hours to relax. This morning was much better and throughout the day has been fine. I canceled my final "warm up" ride today. Didn’t need to risk anything.I have packed all the gear including different bottles of water, sports drinks and other fluids. Some are for the drive out there which is about 2 hours away and others for the race prep, the race and also post race drinks. Race starts at 11.30am so I do not need to leave but just before 8am which means a decent night’s sleep.I got the starter list mailed to me today. Here it is:Bayernrundfahrt Starter ListThere are about ~700 riders on there. I am sure some more will show up tomorrow so it will be less than the 1000 the organizers had hoped for. The weather is to be fantastic for the spectators but a bit warm for the riders with temps around 28°C or 82°F. So one of the big things to take care of is hydration. I am well known for not drinking enough when the fun gets started. This course consists of 6 laps with a long accent then a sharp decent back to the start. This means the best drinking opportunities are across the starting line and during the accent. Seems there is some concern that the decent may be a bit tricky. Sounds good to me but there will be no drinking going on. There is a 30kmh minimum cutoff for the final lap. I am not concerned about making it. Should be really ok. But if it does not work out then I will be fine too. I made it to the starting line, well prepared and ready to ride.The bike is prepped. Ready to go. Here are a pic to show you what I am riding.I am wearing a retro 7-Eleven jersey and black shorts. I only wear this jersey here when racing and then bring it to FL for the summer training camp. I like the memories of the 1980’s cycling and the guys who rode then. Today, it is hard to get excited when one rider can drop the pack and gain 6 minutes on a really tough climb. So I stay in the 80’s.I am excited. It is almost over. I can rethink what I want to do with my weekends again. We’ll see what I decide. Race report to follow.Bring it on!