A Bicycle Ride with Floyd Landis

It was a Friday. I received unsolicited intelligence from an undisclosed source that Floyd Landis was in town. A few minutes later that intelligence was independently verified twice by two 4th-hand observers. Yes indeed "Floyd Landis is in town". My suspicion started to rise that Mr. Landis would show up at a local ride the following day. So my peeps convened via mobile-cellular technology (texting) and we decided to discretely rendezvous at the non-disclosed location the following morning at O-10-hundred hours. We arrived and waited and looked around. No sign yet. Then and after a while the one and only, 2006 Tour de France champion, Floyd Landis arrived at the location of the ride departure. There were about 20 cyclist gathered. There was no "star-struckness". I remained cool.

We were off. At times he was on my wheel. At other times I was on his wheel. We stopped at stop signs and red lights together. I heard the same voice in the paceline that I have heard on OLN and VERSUS interviews during the Tours de France. My friend (codename) "Butterscotch" unknowingly tried to run him off the road as we climbed up the short and steep Potato Gap. Floyd was boxed in as we were climbing more slowly in front of him. I blurted, "don't let him out!". We chuckled. Ha ha. There goes Floyd up the climb ahead of us. I can't hang with that. I am hurting. I hoped that I would not get dropped on this rare-opportunity ride. I dropped my chain. Oh, the team car is waiting on me. I hang on to the car as we go up a few of the short climbs. I wasn't going to get dropped. There were no officials, so pull me all the way up. Thanks! ...again, over and over....thanks!

It was like a normal ride.....a normal ride with Floyd Landis. It was pretty cool. He had yellow shoes on. He once wore a yellow jersey. Outside of Marshall, we raced a locomotive going down the tracks beside us. I witnessed Floyd waving at the train conductor. The train conductor waved back. Oh how cool, "he is normal" I thought to myself. The train blew its horn loud. I was getting dropped. I got dropped. Behind me the team car was closing in with several other cyclist drafting behind it. I "got on" and was saved from getting dropped all-together. We rode at 32 mph drafting the team car up the slight grade to catch Floyd's group. This ride would have been fun even if Floyd wasn't here. This is a good day.

My bicycle recording device gathered this elevation-distance profile. I did not take any pictures to protect the innocent. I have memories and some sore legs. It was a great ride. Now I can say that I rode with Floyd Landis. That is cool. Just another day in the Life of Frank. Let me be. Over and out!

Rory Sutherland was on the ride too. The 2008 NRC individual winner.