Day Two is one of my personal favorites. After a quick pre-dawn romp on the highway, the course plunges into some of the most remote, unpopulated and gorgeous parts of the island.

Day Two is also the day we hang out with Group A -- these are the thoroughbreds of La Vuelta. There are semi-pros, RAAM racers, cycling trainers and others who have reached great heights in the sport. Their idea of a nice recreational ride looks and feels a lot like a pro stage race from an observer's perspective. And having a front-row seat to a really, really good Tour de France "cover band" is still pretty darn cool -- particularly when a hotel with a great open-air bar a few steps from the beach lies at the end of the trail.

The first half of of the second two-thirds of the course is a ribbon of pavement atop a sea of rolling hills threaded through the drier -- but hotter -- part of the island. The landscape looks more like the western half of the US than a tropical paradise, but it is stunning nonetheless. In fact, it's stunning. Then it's back to the coast via a small fishing village/vacation spot that BEGS you to stop and explore (this is the part of the island where the locals come when they want to get away). The other half of the second two thirds goes along the coast through a tunnel of trees which are great to look at and provide welcomed relief from the sun.

It's mid-afternoon and all three groups are in. They are bathed and walking around with serious rum drinks served in fresh coconuts. That means it's time to quit blogging and start, um, "interviewing" some of the riders for the next blog post. Cheers!