The main reason I’m in London is to attend Rouleur Live, a three-day convention about professional cycling.  About thirty men and women pro’s will be interviewed onstage.

The whole shebang got going last night at the Truman Brewery – an event centre.

I walked fast from dinner because my phone was dying.  No phone … no entry.  I prayed that I could plug in at Rouleur so I could find my way home.

I wasn’t really present to the cycling world displayed since I was nosing around for an electrical outlet.  Once that task was complete, though, I started to drink things in.  Hundreds of enthusiasts were lusting over the latest bikes and equipment, sampling the yummies, and sipping the beers.  Happy faces at every turn, almost all of them younger than mine.  Whatever our stories, we all shared a love.

I found a seat in the front row of the main stage, waiting for interview number one.  The man of the hour was Alejandro Valverde, a recently retired Spanish cyclist.  Alejandro spoke no English but the interviewer was skilled in translation as well as questions.  And his appreciation of the cycling legend was clear.

Videos of some Valverde races were shown on the screen as the two of them talked:

Look at that joy!

I remember watching Alejandro on TV in Canada.  It was a privilege to experience him live.

Later in the evening, Ellen van Dijk from the Netherlands and Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio from South Africa were among the guests.  Both of them are in their late 30’s and retirement from professional cycling is creeping closer.  As well as their personal achievements, Ashleigh and Ellen enjoy playing mom, mentoring their young teammates.

So far on the stage at Rouleur Live, photos suddenly show up on the screen.  And here’s a lovely one …

Ellen’s a mom!  So cool to see her beaming onstage as well as onscreen.  (Ashleigh is second from the left.)

The world of cycling is so much bigger than who won the race