3 days into cuba training camp

3 great days of training under my belt since arriving in Cuba on Tuesday.  As indicated by some of the reviews that were posted on some travel sites, the hotel that we are staying at would definitely not be up to the standards of either my wife or Brian's, but it is great for cyclists on a budget!  There is plenty of food, it is pretty healthy, and the poor taste and bland food helps to cut weight!  The rooms are clean, we have A/C and we can drink the water out of the taps, so I am happy as a clam.

So far the weather has been great.  We had a little bit of rain this morning, some cloud yesterday, but most of today and Tuesday were sunny and hot.

Some local riders latched onto the group pretty early and have been showing us the local routes and pushing the pace to see if they can crack a few canucks :P  It is really interesting to see the gear that these guys have because apparently there isn't even a bike shop in varadero to buy any cycling stuff even if one has the money...  Looks like most of the locals have been gifted cycling kits from Canadians and other riders that come down here for training camps.  It is really interesting to see a guy riding tires that are shredded and patched on a carbon fibre frame and then the guy next to him is riding a full steel bike 10-speed (not the 10-speed in the sense that the cassette has 10 cogs, but 5 cogs on the rear... a true 10 speed!) with steel handlebars and no bar tape!

I think that my father would love it down here in Cuba.  There are lots of old classic american cars that look like they have been pretty well maintained, the beer and cigarrettes are cheap, and people smoke everywhere!  The people are friendly, the food is cheap, and the weather is beautiful year-round.  I have to say that I like cuba a lot better than Mexico so far for everything except for the food (but it may be better at nicer hotels).  Probably the crowning jewel of Cuba... no loud obnoxious Americans!

Internet runs around 8CAD/hour and is pretty slow, so posts are likely to be a little on the thin side while I am down here.  Not to mention that the weather is so nice that I don't particularly feel like sitting inside on a computer during the day!

So far, this is definitely the best training camp I have been on yet and for the price, I think that this might be a good way to get onto more training camps while it is cold and snowy in the winter without upsetting my dear wife by being on the road all year long.  I am thinking taht I could probably sell her on a couple of weeks/year at an all inclusive in Cuba or something comparable... :D