9 September 26
Vuelta a España
The Vuelta, the final of the three grand cycling tours of the year, is in the middle of the final week. I’ve been following it more or less daily, watching the stage on Peacock with commentators Bob Rohl and Christian Vande Velde, both of whom were professional cyclists. (I also sometimes catch the post-race commentary on the Lanterne Rouge Cycling Podcast where an Australian and a Belgian offer a wry but very knowledgeable take on the day’s events.)
We picked up a Peacock subscription in order to watch the World Cup, because they were streaming commentary in Spanish. We’ve held onto it in order to watch Premier League matches, but I’m enjoying the Vuelta as a side early-morning entertainment. The cyclists are, as I write this, heading into Sevilla after an almost completely flat stage. A dangerous bunch sprint is expected.
I’d really rather follow cycling in the broadcasts of the countries where they’re taking place, especially since Bob Rohl, a somewhat goofy, good-natured big guy (for a cyclist) really needs to work on his geography. (The Guadalquivir drains into the Atlantic, not the Mediterranean, Bob.) And then I remember that this kind of snark about Spanish geography is what got me kicked out of geography class in boarding school without enough guts to join the German class three weeks into the term. The monkey on my back all these decades later is what set me off on the German-learning kick…
Previous: Riding the Vuelta with no Nose Hairs Next: