Homeboy ESPAСA: Yankee Goes Home
Our Spanish Homie checks in this week from… Hummelstown? His reign in Spain is on temporary hiatus – but it looks like love really does conquer all – could it be his ticket back to the land of very windy, hot races…?
Well, I made it home ok. Surprisingly my luggage made it without delay for the first time in quite a number of trips – always a relief when you’re traveling with a bike and cycling stuff that is worth more than most used cars.
Nothin’ like reconnecting with your own homies with a ride through your local hinterland.
There’s Always A Girl Involved
So, why did I jump the pond and come home. What am I doing? I’m only about 80% clear on that to be honest, but I’ll give you the short version. First we’ll start with why I really was in Spain. I finished college in Sevilla 4 years ago and met a girl, Irene, my girlfriend. Thanks to college loan commitments, I had to come back to the U.S. to work and pay them off, which took two years. During that time I went to Sevilla for a couple of weeks every chance I got. When I finally had some cash in the bank at the end of 2002 I decided to quit my job with a company I like to refer to as “The Evil Empire” and go to Spain to see if our relationship really had anything or not.
When I arrived in Jan 2003 I started the job hunt right away, not knowing how difficult it was going to be. I was lucky and had a formal offer by the end of May. However that meant I had to take a trip back to the States to finalize the work visa. Well, 6 months later I found out they were going to deny me the visa. This is where the story gets really long, so we’ll just say it was a lot of political BS.
Look at those smiles – and the wine had nothing to do with it!
During all that time I was here in PA, working a part time job and racing cyclocross. Since I had done some Elite races in the Spain the previous spring, I decided to try and get into a team for the 2004 season. I started sending letters and “resumes” to all the teams in southern Spain. I got accepted and before Christmas I was back in Sevilla. When I left I thought it was going to be a “permanent” move, and that I was ready to get married and everything.
Well, this is another place that this short story could become a book, so let’s just say Christmas with Irene’s family turned out to be a disaster and put the marriage thing out of the picture for quite some time. I raced all spring as you know, but I was also job hunting with very little success due to my lack of a work visa or residency permission. This all came to a head when in June I had an interview with the “Evil Empire” for a position in Valencia, Spain. I really thought that since I had worked for them before that they would help me get the work visa I needed. Well, after telling me I was their number one candidate, etc, they told me that it was all too bad though because they weren’t going to pursue the paperwork for me. That was quite a blow to me mentally and I started to get pretty depressed.
The EVIL EMPIRE Leads to Love
The only thing I could think of was going home. I don’t know why, but I just thought going home would fix some stuff. I was really thinking of packing it in for good. However, the end of June, July and the beginning of August were really good for me and Irene and our relationship. We spent much more time together than we had been and it made me start to think that this isn’t over yet. We had an especially good week together at the beach in southwestern Portugal.
Years from now we’ll surf the PEZ archives, look back at this pic, and fondly remember the true love that blossomed on this spot.
Unfortunately I had already scheduled my plane ticket so when Aug 12 rolled around I had to go. Irene knew it had been a real up and down time for me so she said I should go home and visit my family and friends, clear my head, and then we would figure out what to do. We talked some more about the big “M” word and we both know that if I go back it will be because we are both ready for it.
So where does that leave me now?
Well, I’m at home in Hummelstown, PA. I’m probably going to stay until Christmas and if things go right she’ll come over and then we’ll go back together. As far as bike stuff goes, I’ll be doing the PA State TT Championship this weekend and then I’m going to do the Green Mountain Stage Race in VT in September. If I am here until Christmas I’ll probably do some cyclocross too, as that’s really my favorite discipline.
Oh yeah, I guess I’ll be looking for some kind of part time job too. Well, that’s my life in a nutshell. My friend Rodolfo in Sevilla really admires the fact that I can move life across the world in three pieces of luggage so easily. I’m starting to wonder if that’s such a good thing or not. Well, that’s all for now. Stay tuned as the rest of this soap opera unfolds. Hasta la prуxima.
Nate
Nathan Deibert is a 27 year old, young American living in Sevilla, Spain, riding for the Campos Lorca Elite-Sub23 cycling team, and living a dream every day. Drop him an email at [email protected]
Gratuitous Sponsor Plug Thanks to:
Campos Lorca-Miсa Car: My new team sponsors. Campos Lorca is a great local bike shop in Mбlaga, Spain.
Mike Kuhn: My coach for the last 3 years and counting. If you’re looking for a great coach in the central PA area or around the world, send him an email: [email protected],
or take a look at the website: www.endurancenetwork.com
Holmes Cycling and Fitness: The best bike shop in all of central PA. They’ve got everything you need from serious race equipment to great recreational equipment. Check them out at: www.holmescycling.com
My Parents: for never telling me I was crazy through all the years of chasing this dream.
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