Tour Of Utah, 2017 Edition...

Friday several hundred people rolled through our sleepy little town, some in cars, some on motorcycles, but it was those on bicycles that people came to see. For the second year in a row, we watched as the Tour of Utah raced down Main Street.

Like most kids, I grew up on a bike. We had the Schwinns and the ten-speeds. That was about it. I was a pre-BMX kid, but the Schwinns and ten-speeds seemed to satisfy all our needs. And like a lot of us, I watched the movie, Breaking Away and ABC's Wide World of Sports and realized people can actually make a living riding a bicycle. I also followed the sport as Americans made strides in the Tour de France, before all the doping scandals hit. I admit, all that bad press has soured me a little on  competitive biking.

I don't know if the Tour of Utah bike race is a big deal. It sure looked like a big deal as the participants rode past with their support vehicles and major sponsors. And when the motorcycle cops blared their sirens an people began clanking their cowbells, it didn't matter how big or how little the event was--it was cool to see these elite athletes fly by, powered only by the strength of their own muscles.

Like last year, I was fortunate enough to have the off work when they came through. Thanks Tour of Utah organizers for that. I hope that I can enjoy the sport next year, and for many years to come.

It's Not Everyday World-Class Athletes Race Through Your Town...

Sure, I've heard of The Tour of Utah--it's a bike race, right?

Yesterday we got to see it first-hand.

And it was awesome!

I don't really follow cycling. I could--it's got a lot of things I like in a sport. It's a team sport, but also an individual one. The courses they ride change depending where they race, and it's human-powered transportation. All cool stuff!

We knew the race was coming through our town so we checked the live feed as the group went through Ogden Canyon. We watched as the leaders kept their distance from the peloton (I am learning the lingo...), and we followed the bikers as they went over Trapper's Loop and up I-84. That's when we decided to drive down the hill and wait for the race to come to us.

There were a lot of people who waited with us. The excitement built and soon cop cars and motorcycles filled the road.

Then came the first group, almost a dozen. I tried videotaping them and taking pictures at the same time. After a few minutes, the main group rode through. In our little town, it's not unusual to see half a dozen bikers on our streets, but I've never seen anything like the main group riding up the road.

We came home and rewound the live feed and watched on the internet what we had just watched live. They raced from Antelope Island to Bountiful, and the last two hills those poor bikers had to climb are brutal! It's hard to climb that hill in my car.

And the bikers did it twice.

No, I haven't really been a fan of the sport, but after seeing my first race, I just might be.