We're leaving this for history, or a return to Frankurt/Berlin. For more on us

Real-time News Update

Icelandic Air Flight 631 from Reykjavik to Boston is delayed an estimated 2 hours. While we celebrate the free wireless network, this man is incessantly complaining at the counter:

He must have left his hardware at home.

We've just now crossed September and are flying back to the MA in the afternoon. Aside from the Schwarzwald venture, August was a cloudy month and we need a few days to sleep it off. The apartment's clean and we're all packed.

We're leaving Germany and we'll miss it. D's been to a few of these so-called European countries, and I made it to 5 while I was here, but I have to say I was most impressed by this place. Of course, I had the chance to live here and get to know the people. Nonetheless, here's a 11 point list of what we already long for without one step back Stateside yet:

11: Hauptbahnhof as the central operating structure of us-without-cars

10: Apfelsaftschorle, as in the drink we'll experiment with and start selling to the Davis Co-Op.

09: Proper beer with the proper drinking techniques. These Germans can use almost anything to open a bottle (I swear I saw one harness and use a sparrow's beak), but when it comes to
consuming you gotta run the etiquette right.

08: Pedestrian Friendly gegen Street vs. Sidewalk. All these pedestrian only zones around the Old City and shopping districts are great, and the old excite-o-meter jumps a notch when an occasional car comes meandering down a cobblestoned lane.

07: Feldrenner, DM. Here's to great athletes, fun people and reinforced arms!

06: Lebanese Food, its singing chef and Moussaka.

05: Students letting me know how they'll "become a car next week." Diesel or unleaded?

04: You have to realize that the best ice cream place in Mainz has this super grumpy woman working the scoop and you'd think that if you were in such a position as to give out so much joy (and joy is what I feel each time I walk away with a cone), you'd be really happy and proud but this woman really scowls so much that you think she hates Christmas, the cold, and just wishes that everyone were a bit more lactose intolerant so that they would just stop but woman, I will miss you!

03: Alles muss Raus! That one bookstore in Mainz that was always having a going-out-of-business sale just, it seems, to prove the point that man is always "going-out-of-business." How mortal.

02: The Mainzer Dom, especially in the early summer when the sunset lights him into a bright brick hue at 10:00pm. This central figure was the pivot point of our directionless darts around town.

01: Our friends here, from co-workers to teammates to singing Lebanese chefs and grumpy ice cream ladies (I miss you!). Everyone was and still is great, and we can't wait to come back and meet again.

And then:


And then:

As of Friday, it's been a little easier to type with two hands now that the doctors have given me a half-cast from the elbow down. And for those who aren't aware, I'll refer you to here in order to spare myself the little discomfort I still have. Basically, I laid out for a huck, kept my arms out in front while landing on my chest and then hit a rough spot in the grass with my left arm, causing it to be caught under my sliding body, dislocating my wrist and audibly and undoubtedly breaking a bone in my arm. 5 hours after the crack, I was on the operating table under the care of some great doctors and nurses who made my adventure as pleasant as possible.

Then came the most boring few days of my time here in Germany, the monotony broken only by some teammates who broke me out to watch us win the Finals. Other than that, I read about 5 books during my stay and will never go to another tournament without a deck of cards just in case. D was great, by the way, taking care of the insurance and making sure work knew I needed time off. If you know my parents, you should ask them about the ordeal, as they had an entirely different perspective on the timeline of events. The rest goes like this: 4 weeks from now and back in Northern California, I'll get this cast off, start physical therapy, take up Disc Golf, and plan a return to a Sacramento Ultimate field in late winter.

The last few weeks here have been filled with medical treatment (had to stay in Cologne for a week after the surgery) and work, with a short foray to the Black Forest which we'll up date you on in a coming-soon post. Otherwise, that's as much of a Nationals report as I'm able to share, and I can't wait to play with Mainz in the future--maybe again at Rimini, and we'll see about German Nationals another year.

All of Europe, nevermind the US, has been sloshed with heat of late. Are we in Death Valley or is this the Amazon? Is it my trendy Euro super-diesel engine, or should I sweat through that protest of those polluting, American capitalist dogs across the Atlantic?

Ah, but no. We're in Deutschland, and there are more important problems brewing in this weather.

And back to our between Beziers Mediterranee and Montelimar. Admittedly, this is our first post about an exciting and scandalous Tour de France. However, we are still here, and we were also there with K & D when the riders departed from and returned to Strasbourg during Stage 1 of the Tour. You'll see, on the left, some actual photo-journalism on Dotde, as we gave full camera capabilities to our editorial assistant Uwe, willing to risk arrest for the most exciting shots of this year's Tour.

So. Let's do make some live-updates while the peleton's letting the break-away break 20 minutes away from the pack.

Discovery's eldest Ekimov just stopped on an overpass and relieved himself on the traffic passing beneath, another notch on the surly scale that I first noticed after he snot-rocketed upon Simeoni after Armstrong's infamous chasedown in the 2004 ride. And while Lance's absence was quite predictable, Ullrich and Basso's missing goes to show that there are those still around of the character that our Patron now laughably spoke of as he said, "To all the cynics, I'm sorry for you. I'm sorry you can't believe in miracles. This is a great sporting event and hard work wins it." Vive le Tour forever." Whether those cynics are the hungry riders themselves will be ruled by committees and courts in the next few months. Our general editorial opinion states there are too many official doping and cycling bodies to rule in a justifiable, agreeable, and resolvable manner. And that it's also pretty beat that Vino can't ride.

Either way, we're being provided with one of the most exciting and unpredictable Tours in the past six years. Phonak's Floyd is hip atop our GC, and you should absolutely listen to Dave Z.'s take on Stage 9. Disco's almost out of contention, and CSC can't quite keep up the blood-oxygen levels they were able to manage in the Giro. Telekom's exceeding expectations without Captain Jan, and with 4 riders high in the GC they might have the best opportunity to confuse those defending yellow with a team attack. Tuesday brings L'Alpe D'Huez, and Wednesday may be the most difficult day in the saddle with two HC climbs. So keep your eye on yellow, and keep on clapping until you see red spots:

Here's to you, Laurent Jalabert

D, Uwe, and myself will be in Paris to celebrate yellow, and hopefully Stu O'Grady can drop back a bit more as this sprinter's, as of now, only 29 minutes in front of La Lantern Rouge.

As for today, Oscar Pereiro, Sylvain Chavanel, Andriy Grivko, Jens Voigt, and Manuel Quinziato are 25 minutes in front, and Phonak's just about to quicken the pace. So enough of this stuff for now, and we'll be sure to sign on in the Alps. Otherwise, we're divided here at HQ on whether or not the break will be swallowed. We're approaching two category 4 climbs. D takes Voigt or Quinziato. I think we'll get a challenge to Phonak, thus sparking the pack.

A lazy day in Mombach, between Beziers Mediterranee and Montelimar, gives us time to address recent and ongoing events in Germany and abroad. First and namely, the Klamkas made quite an entry into D-land and were forced to evacuate sooner than planned, nonetheless providing a great experience for D and I, and hopefully themselves. Highlights include the Rheinfels Castle in St. Goar (which tops Heidelberg on any given day, potential tourists). Allowed to wander in and out of rooms with no supervision whatsoever, there's an air of adventure about the place. A hat trick of M entering and emerging from various passageways gives you a whiff of what may be in store, if you choose to visit:

And part of the castle, itself:

Group Picture, after a team-time trial climb against the train schedule (note A sitting out this year's Tour de France after a crash with a bus in the Rund den Mombacher Steig):

Navigational dials for the next family trip may be pointed towards Alaska, though the state may lack the scaffolding to maintain the interest of these keen tourists. The general lack, however, of American public transporation may provide for a safer journey.

D attempts to sink a ship cruising off the coast of Hydra.

J prepares his attack on the Acropolis.

Yes, we're back in Germany... but what happened in Greece? Did these events work out as planned?



Updates coming soon.