Well, back to racing and what a way to return. I'm at the Tour de Nez in Reno, Nevada, and I'm getting to experience the place in all it's glory. We're staying at the Silver Legacy Casino and Hotel, which is part of the same complex as Circus Circus and the Eldorado. All three casinos are joined by walkways above street level, allowing the happy gamblers to wander between establishments without any outside indication of the passage of time. It's perpetual early evening in the casinos and always a good time for budweiser, cigarettes, and plunking change into the Dick Clark's Rockin' New Years Eve slot machine. All while contemporary country music is played on the overhead intercom system. The perfect vacation.

Aside from the usual blue-haired types at the slot machines and the mullett-and-tank-top crowd at the all-night buffet, we're also sharing the hotel with the participants of the Reno Rodeo (preferred parking for duallies in the garage), the women's bowling tour (the promotional poster shows a woman bowling in a swimsuit), and some sort of high school volleyball tournament (packs of giggly 15 year olds with pink cell phones constantly at the ready). So, I guess a bunch of skinny cyclists in garishly colored lycra should fit right in.

The racing so far has gone reasonably well for the team. Karl put in a good time trial and won the first crit on Thursday, putting him in the leaders jersey. He managed 6th yesterday in the road race, which was enough to keep him narrowly in the lead. Now we have just one more criterium tonight in which to defend his lead. On a personal level, I'm feeling quite a bit better in the last couple of days. I've had some bad luck, getting caught behind a crash in the crit and getting a poorly timed flat tire in the road race, but I wasn't here for personal results anyway. It's just great to be a part of the team again. Since my crash in April, the guys have had an incredible run of results and I'm enjoying finally getting to be a part of it again. It's been tough just reading about it from home.

That's all for now. The slots are calling my name.