Memories of a morning’s cycling
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Carlos Sastre / February '08
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/Photo: Tim de Waelle |
Sometimes I get on my bike to simply to enjoy the company of fellow cyclists, either on a regular or not so regular basis. On these occasions, I always try to share my passion for wanting to escape civilisation and go back to nature, becoming one with our environment. Pedalling through these surroundings, you forget that you exist and discover a peace that revives you both physically and mentally.
In our team, it is common practice for our sponsors to accompany us for a few days in certain training meets. During these events, we make use of the time to talk and enjoy rides together whilst we train. As it happens to be the start of the season, we even allow ourselves the luxury of taking it easy, enjoying the company of people who show us great support and who are enthusiasts of our sport.
In the recent training camp in Majorca, I went out for a relaxed ride alongside one of the CSC lawyers on one of the first days of training, when I still hadn't adjusted all the settings on my bike and when we were trying some of the new materials for the first time. He is a great person, he’s really close to the team and also a good friend. Whilst the rest of my team mates were working on something else, I decided to take things easy and adapt myself properly to the bike before going out to accompany the rest of the riders.
All this took place on the Soller mountain pass, which I had a great time climbing on my bike in the company of my friend. Conversation flowed freely and pleasantly against the backdrop of magnificent scenery, with mountains, trees, sunshine and peacefulness that helped shape our words. “There are still really great things to be achieved with this sport”…A moment of silence, only broken by the sound of birdsong, whilst beads of sweat started to gather on our foreheads and our rhythmic breathing filled our lungs with oxygen.
“Do you think feeling as I do, I could leave it? When stress takes control of us, our only goal is to take it to the maximum until there’s nothing left. We don’t observe, we don't evaluate, we don’t even listen to each other. We live our lives without enjoying what surrounds us. We only think in the negative things we are feeling and they get stuck inside us”…”But being able to be here, near you and feeling that we have something in common, a passion for cycling, has allowed me to climb this mountain pass without hardly realising it...”.
A photographer was waiting for us near the top of the climb. What a face of suffering. Shoot and flash a smile. The final portrait depicts Carlos Sastre struggling to keep up with his good friend. This will definitely be the memory of a morning’s cycling in good company.
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