Tights Spot

I received many admiring glances as I paraded through the airport in my XU2 compression tights, overlaid with standard khaki shorts and a collared shirt.  One youngster looked at me like he thought I must be Peter Pan’s father.  Betsy had observed on the way to the airport, “You are a fashion statement unto yourself!”   My tights, of course, had nothing to do with fashion and everything to do with performance.  “All of the pros wear them,” a friend of mine, who works pro races, had informed me.  “They REALLY help with recovery.” 

On my arrival in France, the Boyz were a bit skeptical of the look and utility of the tights and I took some Texas-sized ribbing.  One claimed his wife would divorce him if he walked out of the house wearing such tights—this from a guy dressed in harlequin-colored, skin-tight shorts and shirt, showing lots of leg.  Eventually 20 year old Nick, less schooled in the old ways of looking at things, came to my rescue saying, “Dad, you need to drop it.  That guy can CLIMB!” 

By Day 3, the comments on style are being replaced by questions:  “How do your legs feel today?  How much do those tights cost?  All the pro riders wear them?”  If my climbing stays strong, don’t be surprised if the Boyz look like Robin Hood’s Merry Men before its all over.