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In Bilbao, Spain, on the Bay of Biscay

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We arrived early this afternoon in Bilbao, just as the rain stopped but the heat persisted. By mid-afternoon it was upper 90's-- "but it's a dry heat." The breeze, and the relatively low humidity made it just about tolerable. We checked into the AirBnB that Tom had secured, guided only by internet descriptions and reviews, and, in a word, it's pretty scrumptious, 6 bedrooms and 4 baths shared by 5 guys-- hmm, the math doesn't work out quite evenly. All that mattered to me was that I was designated the senior member and soon-to-be 70, so I got the biggest room.  So sorry I have no partner to share it with.  I had two goals for our afternoon and overnight in Bilbao, and those were 1) to see the Frank Gehry designed Guggenheim museum, and 2) to have some good food and drink. I got both, and both exceeding my expectations. A few steps back: I had heard of Bilboa since before I hardly knew where Spain was, since my father-in-law, Bob Ple...
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The Ultimate Etape 6 of the Raid Pyrenees: Ax les Thermes to Port Vendres; 3 climbs; des Descentes Ênormes

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The 6th and final day of our epic tour, the Raid, and me with mixed emotions: eagerness to meet the day's challenges, to ride again with my cycling amis, to see the Mediterranean when we reach our last destination. Some apprehension over the climbs and the mileage, 2700m of climbing--the most in any one day this week--and all in the first 65km; then another 100km, losing all of our altitude on our dash to sea level, for a total of 165km. That's just over 100 miles, or what cyclists call a century ride. And I'm grieving already the end of this epic Raid, and that 4 and possibly more of our team have fallen to COVID and won't be riding with us today.  We know the drill well: rise, pack, breakfast, suit up and lather up, and depart with our guide and domestique, Constantin, leaving behind ailing Tom and Murray smoking their Gauloises and sipping their cafe au laits. What a hero of a rider-guide! By the end of the day Constantin will have pulled our group on a m...
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The Penultimate Etape 5 Raid Pyrenees St Girons to Ax les Thermes, with 3 climbs: Col de Port, Pas de Souloumbri, and Col de la Marmare

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Best laid plans and all-- the day started witih one of our members, Tom, feeling sick-ish, and thinking he might have COVID, despite a negative test. This after Paul left yesterday to fly home early after testing positive two days ago. By the end of our cycling day Murray, my roommate of the previous 7 days, tested positive, as did Tom. Isolation, possible return itineraries for the two of them, tests for everyone else-- no other positives, including me. Clean living, perhaps, and only 17 days post-vax, perhaps. But the way this virus works, no one is ever completely not at risk. The rest of us are watching for scratchy throats or other telltale symptoms. Of course we feel badly for our three fallen comrades. I admit to a bit of relief that it wasn't me, and hope and pray I stay healthy.  A modest upside is since Murray was immediately assigned a separate hotel room, I have a lovely, lovely room to myself overlooking the town of Ax Les Thermes, and its hot springs. ...
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