Did you know your tire is missing?

Has it really been almost a week since my last post? Gee, I thought I was better than that! I would have swore that I was sitting at the desk at home pecking out a blog last week.

Well, it's been a good almost week. The sleet, snow and ice have moved on and this week the weather just improves to a nice 77 degrees by Wednesday. There's a 30% chance of rain by the weekend and I hope not because of the LR Marathon on Sunday morning. I plan to be down there cheering on the bud's of mine that run. Hope it's cool in the morning for them.

Carve training camp was this past weekend. I missed Friday due to working. Missed Saturday due to going to Benton and not getting back in time (but it was worth it! Dad and I had a great time!). Sunday I was in the support car and Shelby was my partner in crime. He's a good guy. My plan was to drive awhile then take my bike off the rack and ride the rest but there were a couple of guys from California with Velo News (bike racing publication) that were riding and I gave up my tube, then my tire, and my gloves. So I didn't get to ride after all. Sort of bummed a little but I keep telling myself it was for a good cause. My new tire and tube at the bike store today at lunch was 45 bucks. Here's some pics from camp... http://clients.aristotle.net/artdept/client/chainwheel/carve/galleries/camp%2Dday3/

I did get out and ride Saturday afternoon for a bit and it felt good. I'm really needing to get with the training plan now. Not later... now! Feb was such a crappy month for training and I heard the weather guy say it has been raining or snowing 8 out of the past 9 weekends.

Toyota-United! Now I'm really excited!

Amgen Tour of California: Juan Jose Haedo sprints to a first place finish in stage one. And what team does he ride for? Toyota-United baby!!!

I saw a few minutes of it yesterday but would not read any bike boards until I saw the tape of the highlights I recorded at 1am last night. A couple of riders had a breakway early in the race and stayed out there for a long time. This was what was going to be a sprinters race and man was it. Bob Roll reported that they were riding at 30mph and that was a ways out. Then as they got closer the teams set up their riders and closer , closer, closer and it cuts loose! Sprint-oh-mania! Then out of the blue comes a smoking Haedo! No need for gasoline on the road, the man's already on fire! I was sitting in the floor of the guest room watching this unfold and when it was over I realized I had pitched the crap out of my leg! It was so great! For them to come out blazing as they have just makes me more excited about the Joe Martin Stage races in Fayetteville in May because these guys will be there and I'll get to see them live. Of course my team Carve will be there as well. Gord Fraser is looking pretty good for Healthnet and I spotted Brice Jones in the peleton. Just a great day of racing and a tape I'm sure I'll watch a few times!

I went to spin class at lunch and there were only 3 of us there besides the instructor. I like the classes better when it's sold out. At least we got new music. I did good on my eating until Terri called and said she was picking up take out on the way home and Captains D's was on the way. Why oh why do I do this? Push like a crazy fool in a lunch spin class, drink water during the day and then blow the whole thing by eating the junk? Ok, I admit, I loved almost every bite. Like a drunk that knows he's not supposed to drink and loves it while he's doing it and hates it and feels guilty afterwards. I've got to do better and the bad part is that Terri leaves for MO on business for the rest of the week and when that happens, Emily and I always eat out. I'll just have to eat out healthy. I guess I need to call my bud Gary and confess. Of course he's dropped about 20 lbs and ready for the Little Rock Marathon. But we have been strictly honest with each other on our training so it helps that I have to tell him.

One of my "E-coaches" sent me a note the other day that I liked. He told me that we were going to set my goals higher than others and train hard to reach them but remember the minute I reach them the bar is going to be raised higher. Other than Gary, I've never had someone who believed in me that much to push me that hard than "E". When I keep that in my mind, I do push harder such as in spin class I tell myself over and over than I have to keep my cadance up higher than the instructor. I also saw an advertisement for a sports drink from the winner of Kona Ironman that said, "Compassion. It's when those that were with you are now behind you." It's not a snob thing, it's just a statement to do your best and be competitive. I don't ever forget those who brought me to this dance! Mike, Kyle, Doug and Rick. The church guys.

All systems go...

I started my "true" training today. Probably the worse day in the world to start but a start nonetheless. I used my lunch time for core training and it was tough. Today was the arms and abs day and I was shaking by the time I got back to the locker room. I didn't start until 2 and had only eaten breakfast around 6 this morning so I'm the blame for that dumb mistake. Tomorrow is legs day which is usually an easier day for me.

Afterwork I came home and hung out with Emily and her boyfriend Sean. Nothing like a dad around to pester them. Emily even made dinner. I had to pass in order to ride on the trainer first which was probably just fine with them since they got to cut up in the kitchen while I spun. The nice part about the spin was that I had recorded the first day of the Tour of Cailfornia. Man what a bunch of big names are there. Yesterday was a time trail that was only 1.9 miles but it was up one of the famous "hills" of San Fransico. I think it was Telegraph Hill but don't quote me on that. Levi with his Specialized bike won! I mention the brand Specialized because that's the same brand is mine! Zoom zoom!

Speaking of the Tour of CA, this afternoon I had gotten my work done to the point of having a couple of priddly things left to do so I Googled San Fransico television stations. Lo and behold, one of them was running t race LIVE ad free! I sat there at my desk for a few minutes and watched the race. Couldn't believe it because no one had said anything about it on the bike boards. It will highligt on ESPN2 tonight at midnight so I'll have something to watch tomorrow. It's a very exciting stage today and there are attacks right and left!!

Tomorrow I might go in early and do my core training then spin class at lunch and be done for the day. It's a good thought that I hope I still have at 5:30 tomorrow morning. HA!

The Olympics have been fun to watch and my favorite, the freestyle skiing is on now.

Later!

Is this what cabin fever feels like?

Like I said yesterday day, icey weekend number 2. I came home from the office Friday and haven't been anywhere since. Not that we couldn't get out but I really didn't need anything and Terri and Emily wouldn't stay home ALL day no matter how bad the weather or how sick they might be. Terri's brother Ronnie went to FL for the week and left Terri in charge of his dogs. He doesn't excatly live in our neighborhood and she goes over there 2x a day. He said just to leave them in the house... all week. Thank goodness she's going over there. Yesterday one went out in the his backyard and wouldn't come in no matter what so she had to leave it out there. I think he needs to put them in a kennel when traveling. Oh well, enough soapboxing...

I got a lot done around the house since it was icey and sooo cold outside. But since I didn't get to ride I'm going to go watch another race from last year while I spin on my trainer. At least tomorrow will be 38 and the thaw will be on! It's also President's Day holiday for some folks so at least the raods will be light traffic.

The first stage of the first Tour of California happened today. ESPN2 will run it at midnight central time. VCR is ready! At least I can watch that will I spin tomorrow. I get a stage per night so I'll have a whole tape!

Sleet and snow! Weekend number 2

We had sleet and snow last weekend and this weekend it has made a pest of itself! It started sleeting last night after midnight and has sleeted off and on all day. Sometimes hard. Roads are still in really good shape for this weather but tonight when the sun goes down it's going to change unless we have wind to dry the roads. It's funny watching the television because it's a continuous ticker line of closings and the churches started closing first thing this morning.

Carve camp was this weekend but has been cancelled until next weekend. Sort of depresses the weekend. Hunter put a note on the message board that he as going to ride his mountain bike on the city streets starting at 1:30 this afternoon. It was an invitation to join him. Crazy man, he is! But then, he is the best on the team. Go figure.

I did get out in the garage and got it really cleaned up. Just backed the car out and got to work. Still want to get some cabinets to go out there and really tidy it up.

I watched Lords of War this afternoon on DVD. Slow movie with alot of language.

I guess I'll get on the trainer and spend for a while this evening since I ate a Wendy's Chicken sandwich with cheese and fries and coke. Fat boy here needs to get rid of that!

Champs for Children

On of my favorite radio stations is camped out in our lobby doing the Champions for Children radiothon. B98.5 did this last year for us and it was talked about all year. They really go all out and they have parents and kids on there telling their stories. Sometimes you laugh and sometimes you cry ... and sometimes both. Thanks B98.5! We love you too!

Ok, I got out and rode after work yesterday and got in 15 miles. I planned to ride at lunch today but the wind is whipping and I was afraid that I would get over by I-430 and then coming back would be headwind and it would s-l-o-w me down. So I went to Burger King and got a kids meal. Hey, I'm cutting back remember? I really wanted a BK Big Fish biggest size combo meal!

Another note, today it's a windy 64 degrees and tomorrow is supposed to be about 74 and windy then it's going to bottom out for the weekend. 3 days of freezing rain is forcasted. Oh man! We have Carve bike camp coming up for the weekend. I just hope it's not a bust.

Valentines Day

Yep, it's Valentines Day and yep I already have the gift and card. The card was bought weeks ago because I waited til the night before one year and had to basically have a ballroom brawl with another guy that had waited too long too. Ok... maybe not but it would have made a good story. Emily woke up to a HUGE stuffed dog that looks like Sadie (by the way, where is Sadie?! I know, that ain't right! HA!) and a heart shaped box of chocolate, which I will get my hands on and a card.

I got to get out an ride after work yesterday! The sun is finally out long enough now to get a ride in. I rode down and out for 15 miles and then met up with Jim Britt and we rode with lights on the river for another 20 miles so I had 35 miles in by 7:30 last night. Been awhile since I've pulled that off after work! When I started it was 52 degrees. 2 hours later it was 42 and a cold 42. On my first down and back the deer where beginning to move around and when Jim and I rode back out the field had a dozen or so out under the full moon. Deer in the field at night are one of my favorites sights to see as long as the deer stay still. When they spook and start running, it's bad news.

I got an email for a guy up in WI asking me about rides around the Mt Home area. Come to find out they are racers and are opting to use Arkansas as training base this year rather than AZ. He said AZ has just gotten to crowded with traffic. What an honor to have someone from out of state ask me something like that. I put a lot of time into the email and gave him several resource links as well.

By the way, my ride last night rolled me over into the 600 mile mark for the year. Actually 611. There are several AR guys that log their miles where I do that have over 1K already.

Y'all have a happy Valentines Day!

Brrrrrrr!

Yes, it is raining, sleeting and changing to all snow "after 2pm"

Ok, we've had this great warm winter that I'm not complaining about but when we get the white stuff and cold temps it just makes it hurt that much more. Yep, we're cold weather whimps and darn proud of it!

Since I had to go home and play Mr. Mom after work yesterday, I set up the trainer in the guest room and plugged in a race from last year and spun for an hour. It felt really good. I bought my clothes and plan to spin this afternoon over in the fitness center before heading home.

Valentines day is coming up next week and I already know what I'm getting for Terri and I got the card weeks ago. I told her that I wanted black socks. She laughed and looked at me funny. But I was serious. I have all these "singles" in my sock drawer. I told her I need a pack of black gold toe so if one of them runs off to wherever socks AWOL to then I would have others that matched. Black socks for Valentines day....HA!

Toyota-United Cycling Team

I'm excited! I usually don't get this way with new cycling teams but this group is solid! Toyota-United http://www.toyota-united.com/ has me ready for the races in north Ark in May. These guys are making there race debut next weekend at the Tour of California against some heavy hitters such as Healthnet, and Discovery just to name a few. When you look at there team roster, it's great! They also have a foundation that helps homeless families and kids. That's something I don't see every day.

I've been off the bike for a couple of days. We had a cold snap and all my buds that have gotten out are sick with colds. I really wanted to get out and ride the Monday "Nite Lite" ride but stayed in by the fireplace. I know, it was a whimpy thing to do. If I don't ride after work today then it's time to plug in last year's races on the tube and spin on the trainer.

Oh, a friend of mine, Shannon Boshears, has the title track song for a new movie coming out called "Come Early Morning." It's getting big press from the Sundance film. Here's the website, which is cool! Shannon's name and the name of the song is up in the top right corner. Be sure to turn your speakers on because it's playing in the background of the website too! Way to go friend! I'm mighty proud of ya chick! http://www.comeearlymorningthefilm.com/

Staright into the wind

Yesterday Bill Stewart and I left from Sherwood at 8 a.m. and rode right down JFK with not problem. It was early enough that most folks were still at home. We got from Taco Bell in Sherwood to Mr. Mason's BBQ in about 20 minutes. Not bad at all! Bill was riding his "fixie" which is bascially an indoor racing bike. He had one gear. It was something to see this guy ride like he does with just one gear. Yep, he couldn't change to a granny gear if the hill got steep and he has to keep pedaling on the down hills.

We met up with the others and took off and a route I never thought of riding but it was really nice. There was a bike shop out in East End called the Outskirts. It's a great little shop with a friendly owner. Most where mountian bikes which I would expect out there. Lots of off road stuff. I hope he does well.

After a couple of stops here and there be started our trip back toward Little Rock. And I remember seeing on the weather before I left that it was going to get "breezy" during the afternoon. Well, it got a little breezy before afternoon. We turned right into it and fought it all the way back. When we finally got back to Mr. Mason's Bill and I were supposed to ride back to Sherwood. We were too tired. I would have done it and so would have Bill if the wind wouldn't have killed us. Doug lives a block from Bill and they both live about a mile or so from me so Doug packed us in his van and saved us. Doug is one of my favorite riders around. Very strong rider that doesn't know a stranger and has a great sense of humor.

I finished painting the guest room when I got home but had to keep drinking Dr. Pepper and Frap's to keep me moving. I knew I would crash if I stopped.

Terri made brisquet for everyone for dinner so once againthis week we had a family dinner at the table with both kids and their dates. It's been a fun week!

The afternoon is supposed to be cool and calm so I'll head out for an hour or two and get my riding in. Come home and watch the Superbowl for a bit. Not a big fan of either team. Still wished the Denver Bronocs were in the bowl.

Wash out

I should be getting dressed for a lunch time ride but it's a wash out. The weather guys didn't call for rain. Maybe it will be done by 4 and we'll have a little wind to dry the roads off.

I'm hoping to ride tomorrow. Carve is heading back to the mountian for training and I'll just stay over here on this side of the river. I've heard that once they go back to the mountian that it's hard for most riders to keep the pace with the elite team. Jim has a ride starting from a great bar-b-que (Mr. Mason's) spot downtown so I might go ride with those guys.

Goals for the weekend:
1) Eat light and cut the fried stuff.
2) Get in at least 50 miles but try for 75 and up.

By the way, Emily passed her driving test... everyone stay off the streets! HA!

Maybe it's time to fasten my seatbelt

No, I didn't have a wreck but instead sat in a PR meeting this afternoon that was the starting point for the state bicycle tour. There were some great ideas coming out and I walked out more excited than ever about this year's ride! There are some tricks up the sleeve!

I'm trying to cut back on my eating and drop some pounds last month before my serious training really kicks in. I secretly slated Feb 1st as "kick it in" day. It's fitness center and serious cycling start up time. I went the lunch spin class and Rance and I seemed to be in a little friendly competition. Both had a good sweat going on. Rumor has it that his classes are harder when I'm there. If that's true, cool beans!

I'm taking my bike to work tomorrow and riding during lunch. I think that will be fun and a chance of pace!

Tyler's back!

A beautiful day in Little Rock!

We got a call last night from Tyler and he was in KS. We thought he was staying there for the night but he drove through and stopped about 4am at some truck stop for breakfast and about 6:30 he was coming down our street. It's good to have him back. He'll be job searching and apartment searching. A college graduate! Still great! I'm going to put him to work producing a really knock out promo for my summer tour. Hay, that's what he majored in so it's the least he can do for his dad! HA!

I was supposed to be at Gator's by 6 last night for a night light ride down by the river but I got there about 10 after and I could see the group leaving the parking lot. Try as I may to get my gear on and pedal like a madman to catch them, just didn't happen plus they took a turn so I missed them all together. I rode 15 miles in the dark, well with my headlights on. I saw deer, armadillo and a raccoon couple. At one time there was a loud crashing in the brush just beside me. Someone said this morning it was Bigfoot heading back to the mothership! As loud as it was, I almost believe it.

Today is beautiful outside as I finish my Backyard Burger chicken sandwich for lunch. Days like this make it hard to stay insdie and work but I got to pay some bills and support my daughter's mall habit! HA!

So many people

Got up and went to church. Sean met us there and then came home with us for lunch. He and Emily are completely nuts over each other. He's a good guy and we enjoy having him around.
We had a good time at lunch because Terri made his favorites and I blamed him for not getting fried okra, he laughed an said but you're getting upgraded mashed potatoes.

I went out to ride some distance since it rained yesterday and I didn't get to go out. I rode with the club and then rode quite a while afterwards solo. I kept the speed up around 18 and that was witht ehsouth wind blowing. With the club we keep it in the 18-20 mph zone but you get to tuck in behind friends which makes it a lot easier. I also did some hill work in preparation for the ride I'm leading in a few weeks called the Triple Bypass. Not the big one by the same name in Colorado. I would love to go out there and ride it one day. I ended up riding with a fellow Carve rider and talking about the upcoming camp. He said that he can train all year just to try and ride Donnie or Hunters wheel. Those guys are superhuman on their bikes. There were so many folks on the bike paths today that at times you couldn't get any speed. Still a good day that ended with 52 miles under my belt.

One of the riders in the club is one of my Tuesday/Thursday bunch "Fast Girls and Slow Guys" club. Jenn is married to Chris and they both are great folks. Anyway Jenn works just about a block or two away from my office so we are going to ride a few days a week at lunch.. There are others around that ride lunch as well and I'm hoping to get some ACH folks to ride. It would be get to have a lunch crowd.

Tyler is leaving denver behind tomorrow around noon. I wonder how he really feels about that? I hope he has a good safe trip back.

From 1 to 3

Emily and Her friend Melissa in Denver for Ty's graduation.






Terri wanted me to paint Em old bedroom since she moved into Ty's old bedroom. Her room was some shade of Disney screaming rah-rah blue that young teens would have. Now her new bedroom is a relaxing color with a few AR Razorback stuff here and there. She says she's going to UA Fayetteville so she's getting a head start I guess. Anyway, Terri and I discussed the color for the new "guest/office/study/junk/spinning" room. She wanted it a shade darker than the rest of the house so her and Emily ran down to National Homecenter (Sean works there) and got paint. 3 cans of paint! I was to paint the guest room, plus the kitchen about the chair rail the same color as the rest of the house and below the chair rail is going to be maroon or as it says on the can "Berry Cobbler". Yep, the Cobb's paint their rooms cobbler!

I left the office early because I had not gotten a chance to ride this week and they were saying 80% chance of rain on Saturday so I got home and out the door. I rode every street in about a 5 neighborhood area and got in 17 miles of hills. That's all we have in this part of central Arkansas. Well, it's makes for a good cyclist.

I got up this morning fully expecting it to be raining and it wasn't! I could go ride but when I stood out on the deck while Sadie did her business i could feel the mist. No thanks on the ride. I would rather ride in the rain than the mist because it's like black ice. You don't know you are about to hit the wet spot until it's too late. Bust your tail!

We got some photos back from Denver so I'll post them. There are some good ones from Ty's graduation and one of me at Invesco Field (Go Broncs!)

Just another Monday

Just a basic day of sorting through electronic applications. I did manage to get over to the fitness center at lunch and work on the core stuff. I'm keeping the same program as I used last year before my state loop ride. I was 5 days of fitness center at lunch and riding afterwards but I talked to one of the trainers today and we discussed for now try fitness center 3 days a week and ride as often as possible.

Just got a call from Terri and Tyler has officially pulled out from Denver and is on his way to Arkansas. Will stop in Salina, KS for the night and drive on in tomorrow. Wonder how he feels leaving Denver? I'm thinking sad to leave but happy to be coming back?

Cloudy afternoon on top of the hospital...


I went to spin class a couple of days ago and when Rance said tighten the tension I really put the screws to it and the class did a lot of climbing. My legs are toast! I didn't go to the fitness center today but will head out for a recovery ride here shortly. Got to get those legs back in shape.

The weekend is threatening a wash out. Last Sunday it rained all day so not riding. My miles are starting to suffer for a year that started out so good. Sort of whinning today huh?

Today was Chris Taylor's last day as the manager of the Fitness Center. He is headed to bentonville to work for Shelter insurance. He's a good guy.

I'm going to lead a ride in a couple of weeks that will go over 3 mountains! Stay tuned.

Rainy Sunday workouts and Denver

Woke to lightening and thunder about 5:30 this morning and rolled back over. I have to admit, the rain is nice. Been raining steady all day. We went to church and another guy, Greg Clark from Tulsa, OK was speaking as a try-out for our new pastor position. I really liked this guy.

We're in the 3rd quarter of the Broncos vs Steelers and I'm hoping for a Bronco miracle here! I'm not much of a football crazy like so many of my buds but Denver I really like. Maybe because I've actually been to the stadium last month.

Speaking of Denver, Tyler let us know yesterday that he is returning home! It's one of those happy/sad sort of deals. He loves Denver but I think there is a little girl living in North Little Rock that he loves too. He'll be moving back in a couple of weeks. He has been looking at different video jobs around and has some good leads already. I'm not too worried about him finding something. One of the nice things about him moving back is that Terri will stop worrying all the time. She'll take care of him no doubt! HA! Mom's do that. Mine still does. HA!

I went to the hospital fitness center this afternoon and was surprised to see a crowd. I pulled out the fitness schedule Rance had me on last spring and loaded it into a Excel spreadsheet so I could add several extra columns to track weight and diet. I'm going back to my 5 days a week in the center as core strengthening and as the days began to get longer I'll either ride my bike 9.7 miles to work or ride after work. Since my bike tour is a month earlier this year, I've got to get on the stick. I really need to be out there riding 6 days a week like I was to get some of the extra weight off. By the way, I woke up some lazy muscles that had been in hibernation. I could feel the love!

It was fun the other day when I plotted the route for the summer tour. I remembered certain places and can't wait to return! I'm really hoping I can get a Hampton Inn sponsorship for the 5 nights I'm in towns with Hampton's. I've just not had a bad experience with them whether it's business or pleasure.

I did get a good ride in yesterday. Started midafternoon and rode til sundown for 42 miles. About 5:30 I was towards the end of the ride when I rounded the corner and noticed a lot of cars coming through the gate by the river. Most were trucks. Then it dawned on me, George Strait was playing Alltel Arena to a sold out crowd. Guess it was tailgate party time. I made it to the turn around and then got to buzz back to the car with tailwind! That's the best way to end a ride.... zoom zoom!

Coming back around to what's important

It's been an interesting day for me. It started with a change in what I eat for breakfast. This morning it was granola, a banana and a small glass of chocolate milk. I felt better this morning than I have in weeks and I really didn't sleep that well (woke about 3 times during the night). But something just felt different.

Work was sort of crazy with quoting salaries and some system problem uncovered. A little stress there.

There was a lunch for all the employees that are part of the Travel to Wellness fitness program. The food was great and catered from Capers. Then we had a speaker for UAMS Center on Aging. Dr David as he is known. It's funny because a lot of people try and not say his last name which is Lipschit (sp?). He was one of the best speakers and he was funny and very real. He made us to glad to be alive and gave you hope for turning old. He told us that weight is not the most important thing but being happy and loving. I think that sort of stopped everyone in their tracks. He was telling us different things about being old and that if a person is overweight a little or chunky but they have a wonderful life of happiness and love then they are far better than the ones that are on every diet and trying to look Hollywood ruining realtionships, etc. I walked out feeling great!

Then I get home and hug my wife and daughter. We have dinner and they go to run an errand and Em asked me if I had ever heard of Lynard Skynard. I just laughed. Kids! Anyway she had downloaded Simple Man and loves that song. She asked if I liked any other of his songs. Again, I laughed and told her that "he" was a "group". They left and I was alone to list to some of the songs she had downloaded. She had a great collection of all sorts of songs. Then I saw a few I dared myself to listen to. Butterfly Kisses, Beautiful, I don't want to miss a thing, Here to worship. I listened to Beautiful first and got teary eyed. It's the song my neice Linsey walked down the isle to marry Joe. And she was Beautiful. Emily was in that wedding as one of the maids and she was beautiful as well. During the song it dawned on me that someday she would be walking down that isle. Someday a long way off but someday. I picture my beautiful daughter walking with me holding her arm, dressed in white carrying flowers is just overwhelming. The next song was Butterfly Kisses. That one is special too because of the words and every dad is lying if he says he can keep I dry eye and think of his daughter(s) during that song. It's too powerful. It was also a song played just a year ago this week at my friend Geoff Hartmann's celebration of life (funeral). He left a wife and 2 daughters. I'm certain that he is waiting for them on a cloud somewhere with butterfly kisses. One of the other songs "Here to worship" by Sonic Flood just took me to my knees. I realized that things have gotten sort of off balance lately. I've slipped in places and haven't been the dad/husband/leader I should be.

Isn't it strange that all these piece came together today? Is it wonderful how God works?
Today was just Beautiful...............

You're gonna do what again?

I had a meeting with our Foundation department the other day and Fred, the VP, and I had a discussion about the money raised. I said, really, ten thousand dollars is not a lot in the grand scheme of things. But Fred disagreed and said, "George do you realize you saved a life by doing your ride last summer?" The money I raised paid for the helicopter to go get a child. When he said that everything stopped for a moment. I knew right then that I would be riding again this summer.

The first plan was to ride from Canada to the hospital but things just weren't looking good for that. I read a couple of journals and saw the problems folks had along the way. I looked at maps and there were places that bikes couldn't go. So I'll do a repeat of last year. I had fun and I won't have the nervousness I had last year because I've done the route. I'll go a little slower this time and take more photos. I'm also going to ride from Saturday, June 3rd to Friday, June 16th.
I meet with the marketing team on Feb 2nd. Then I'll start parting everything together. Honestly, I can't wait!!!