RUSA 10th Anniversary 200k

Saturday 30 riders departed Morrisville, NC on a 200k route to Siler City and back. This is a familiar route and most of the riders were familiar. It is always good to see everyone at these events. Of course, it is good to see new faces.

At the control, Chuck Lathe was sporting his RUSA 10th Anniversary Medal eagerly signing brevet cards. We talked about wheels and bicycle designs until it was time to get back on the road. Chuck rode his red Randonneuse from his house to the control.

I had the opportunity to ride with some riders experiencing the sport for the first time. Bill and another gentleman (forgot name) passed us. They mentioned they had done some bonus miles already. They must have passed Dean and I at least 6 times. It took a while to register how this was possible. Three words: More Bonus Miles. From the Andrews Store they joined us for the ride into the finish.

At the finish, an entire group of riders and supporters were waiting with some burgers, hot dogs and cold beverages. This was a fantastic way to end a wonderful day in the saddle.

What? No Lessons learned?
Of course, I thought you would never ask.

The biggest lesson that I confirmed was lack of fitness. I need to ride more rides of 3+ hours on a regular basis. (Not only when there is a brevet.)

On a very positive note I completed the ride without the aid of any NSAIDs. This is a first!

Olympic Cycling

On the eve of the Opening Ceremonies for the Olympics in Beijing I'm excited. There are hundreds of elite athletes that will compete for their countries and try to bring golden glory home. Heck, it is exciting enough just thinking about the possibilities for the medal count for swimming phenom Michael Phelps who could bring home 8 medals alone. We have a pretty strong swimming team.

On the track, we have a strong team all around in many distances. This year we even have some strong distance runners. The race I can't wait to watch is Jeremy Wariner in the 400M. Wariner has run the fastest 400m of the year. His agent and mentor is the 400m World Record holder Michael Johnson.

Of course I will be watching the cycling events as well. We have a great team road cycling team with big George Hincapie (Team Columbia), Levi Leipheimer (Astana), Jason McCartney (CSC), Dave Zabriskie (Garmin-Chipotle), and coming of a surprising TDF finish Christian VandeVelde (Garmin-Chipotle). With this team, we could bring home some hardware.

Zabriskie and Leipheimer will also compete in the TT.

Competing the track is the future of US cycling, Taylor Phinney. Phinney rides for the Chipotle development squad. He was the 2007 JR World Champion in the Pursuit and is the son of US cycling legends Davis Phinney and Connie Carpenter. He is the phenom!

So while you are recovering from a ride or a RUSA 10th Anniversary Ride, you will have something to watch.

Daily Commute -- photos

Shots of my daily commute.

First Landing State Park on Shore Drive

Up the Lesner Bridge

View of Chix Beach

Chesapeake Bay - Lynnhaven Roads

Lynnhaven Bay