Blog: We are now halfway through the Prostyle Cycle Camp with TUI Cruises. Today we were on La Palma, where we not only pedaled hard, but also had a screwdriver workshop with professional mechanic and prostyle guide Guido Scheeren in the afternoon.
Unfortunately, the somewhat choppy sea during the night had largely deprived me of my sleep and I decided this morning with a heavy heart not to take part in today's tour. In this respect, I have to rely on the reports of the other participants, but their verdict was unanimous: a wonderful stage through a wide variety of vegetation and with a manageable level of difficulty.
https://youtu.be/ZTTm-yfnPro
75km over a total of just over 1.000Through gray-black lunar landscapes, vast banana plantations, and verdant forests. I certainly seem to have missed quite a few things – my replacement program consisted of a leisurely stroll through the beautiful coastal town of Santa Cruz. Narrow streets, charming little shops, a stunning view, and a good espresso at least somewhat compensated for the missed tour.
In the afternoon, one of the highlights of the Cycle Camp was definitely on the agenda. Guido Scheeren, prostyle guide and mechanic at Etixx-QuickStep held a workshop for mechanics on all aspects of the basics on bikes: what to clean, where and when, which small repairs you can do yourself and many other things. In glorious sunshine, the participants on the sun deck were given the concentrated basic knowledge of screwing on their bikes.
Why is it so important to clean the chain regularly? How do you clean your bikes quickly and gently? How can I adjust my circuit? In addition to such basics, it was also extremely practical: Guido showed how to wrap the handlebar tape in the fastest and most durable way or how best to deal with the tiresome topic of gluing tubular tires.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsP42oVLphw&feature=youtu.be
Of course, Guido also chatted a bit and talked about everyday life as a team mechanic - now we know, for example, that the former cross world champion Zednek Stybar meticulously attaches great importance to correctly wrapped handlebar tape and what happened to Tony Martin's tour stage victory this year everything happened in the team. After 90 minutes, many questions were answered, but Guido also eliminated the remaining question marks with his decades of experience as a mechanic.
At the end of the day, all participants and crew members met again in one of the numerous restaurants on board and enjoyed a delicious 5-course menu. But the evening will probably not be too long for anyone, because we are on our way to Tenerife, where tomorrow will be another hard day with many meters of altitude. Thanks to the escort vehicle, there will be numerous action photos and fantastic landscape shots at this point - look forward to it.
Until then!