This past weekend I had the chance to run a triathlon in Mallorca, and on the same day I was able to share with my family not only a few photos from the experience, but also the course of the event on Google Maps, and how long it took for me to suffer and finish it!

I’d love to share with you my experience and invite you to do the same with your experiences…

The tracking of my activity in RunKeeper.com (I carried my iPhone in a waterproof case throughout the entire race)

 

Animoto Video I made from the photos of the event

Thanks to everyone who made this event, and the technology to share it possible.
 

It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them.  Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle.  ~Ernest Hemingway

Most people that know me personally have heard me speak about cycling in some way or another.  Whether it was about some grueling hills ride I discovered during the weekend, or in relation to my other business venture Orange Velo, at some point or another always end up boring my friends with what cycling means to me and what I’ve learned from it.

Every year I pick a couple of cycling races to cover as a sports photographer for either printed or online publishing companies, and ever since I’ve lived in Mallorca, I’ve done the Mallorca Challenge, a 5-day tour over the entire island that marks the start of the European professional cycling season.  This year was no different, and I’d like to share some of the images taken during the race, while covering the event for CyclingNews.com.

Why I these races?  I found myself asking the very same question at the beginning of the year when I was asked to do it by the media.  Besides the obvious reason that it helps me to add content to my business in OrangeVelo.com, I believe the real reasons have more to do with how cleansing, clarifying and sharpening the whole experience can be.  Imagine going down a mountain descent at 90km/h and from the back of a motorcycle photographing the action that the cycling peloton plays out as it nears the finish line.  Seeing up close the palette of colors streaking by some of the most beautiful and historic towns in Europe.

No matter how busy things get, I hope to continue adding a couple of these experiences every year.  And if you haven’t had a chance to see a cycling race up close, I strongly suggest you give it a go.  It will surprise you how entertaining the chess match played by the cyclists and their teams can be.  Here are some of the photos from all 5 stages from the Mallorca Challenge this year: