I have arrived in Belgium

It is official, I have arrived in Belgium ready to race my heart out.

Dad and I headed to Boston yesterday with plenty of time to deal with the hic-ups and not be stressed about missing a flight. We managed to pack 2 bicycle, 4 sets of wheels and all of the clothing I will need to race for the next 19 days into two checked bags and one carry-on bag. I was definitely warm and styling in my Revolution Cyclery and Wilcox & Barton casual wear - Thank you both.

There is much to be said for smiling, being patient and polite when checking bags. By our calculations of airline rules, we had two over size, overweight bags that should have cost about $450 to fly. However, the agent thought that was too high and "adjusted the baggage" to a better number, then was kind enough to give my dad a "Boarding Pass" to allow him to get through security and wait with me prior to the flight. She definitely made the process much easier. Kudos to her.

TSA was an interesting experience. I am glad that Dad and I spent so much time packing and securing everything with the ability to take it apart and put it back together quickly. The oversize boxes were opened, unpacked swabbed for explosives and "lovingly" repacked. Then TSA at the gate had no idea what the pedals & shoes (I think it was the aggressive toe spikes) in the carry-on bag were, so that bag was unpacked and rescanned. I should have the pack/repack sequence down pat for the return trip.

The time in the gate area was relaxing and pretty un-eventful. I boarded (early) without a problem and then the plane sat on the tarmac for an additional 1 1/2 hours while the luggage and cargo from other flights were loaded (a bunch of delays at other airports was the cause). The flight to London landed about an 2 1/2 hours late and I was on the ground in Brussels around 6:30a our time. The bikes & wheels are scheduled to show up on Saturday as they decided to see London for a bit.

All in all a good day of travel.