Nice - Day2, Sunday June 21st

There’s really very little indication that an Ironman is about to hit Nice. In fact none. Well none that I could spot. The local paper barely mentions le Tour de France starting the week after in Monaco. Woke this morning feeling rather stiff. Suspect it was the weight of my luggage yesterday. Mr Backbreaker was right. Had a lie in. Wandered down the Promenade de Anglais past were the beach start and transition will be. Really no indication that it’s coming. Nothing laid out. No signs of warning. Read my book on the prom. Had lunch outside a café. Wandered back to the hotel over the remnants of Ville de Nice. That’s now my favourite part of the city. Forget chilling out on the beach, which is far too crowded. Up amongst the gods looking down on the city is the place to be in a lovely park with grass areas. Got some photos showing Nice, the swim area, the mountains in the background where the bike course goes and the run up and down the Promenade des Anglais. Easy spin on the bike this evening with a t-run to follow. There are a lot of cars and a lot of traffic lights on the main roads along the coast. There is a cycle way along the prom and you just have to love the way other users be they cyclists, runners, roller-bladers or pedestrians just don’t see you coming at them even when it’s a heads on. I’m sure my new found talent of invisibility would soon wear off if I was to walk into the ladies beach volleyball changing room. The drivers seem pretty considerate though – think I’ll stick to the roads particularly at busy times. It is nicely warm here. Warm enough to feel hot the whole time and make you sweat loads, but not warm enough it seems to make you want to stop. Think the plan needs to be drink loads. Plan tomorrow is to ride a shortened version of the bike course – just need to work out how to get onto the route, it wasn’t obvious this afternoon. Watching Eurosport with French commentary, you try and fill the gap in yourself. Now wondering if any team playing the All Blacks has pulled a mass team moonie in response to their hacker. Think that’ll ruin my chances of ever being selected as England captain.