Just chuggin' along

        It has been a week since my last post, so I wanted to get another post up here so you didn't think that I had lost so much weight that I withered away to nothing and got swept up by the wind. I was going to post on Sunday, but Bev and I spontaneously went to see The Rovers perform at a breast cancer charity event. As always... The Rover ROCKED! Thanks Eddie for my pink santa hat. I will post a picture of me wearing it soon.

        It has been a pretty crazy week. I had jury duty on Wednesday. This involved going to the courthouse and sitting there in the prospective jury area until the judge decides that you are no longer needed. They give you your $15, pat you on the head and say "Thanks for coming." Then you have to call back after 5:00 pm the rest of the week to see if they need you to repeat the process. Fortunately, I only had to report one day. Christmas must be the slow season for the courts.

         As far as riding, please check out my training log (see the link) to get an idea of how much and how hard I have been riding. I have taken a few days off during the week and I have found that my legs have responded to that quite well. Yesterday's ride was GREAT. During the ride a couple of the guys saw a meteor shoot across the sky. I didn't see it, and I am not sure that I have ever seen a meteor before. I have seen shooting stars and maybe they are the same thing... I don't know. In any event, 2 of the guys said WOW at the same time, so I don't doubt that they saw it. We also saw the crescent moon through the fog, which was a pretty awesome sight. Now, I have seen shooting stars before and I have seen a crescent moon before, but there was just something different about seeing them from the saddle of a bike at 5:45 in the morning.

         Each of the past couple mornings, there has been a LOT of chatter (and recruitment) about "randonneuring" and "brevet's". (I will let you wiki or google the two terms). Basically, randonneuring is long distance, unsupported endurance cycling. Focus is not on competition, but on self sufficiency. The distance of the events (called a brevet) vary from 200 K (125 miles) to 1200 K (750 miles). Each distance has a time limit in which the rider must finish. For the 200 K you must finish within 13 hours and 30 minutes, for the 1200 K you get 90 hours. The time limits do not seem to bad... 125 miles in 13 hours 30 minutes, just under 10 minutes per hour. Keep in mind that the clock runs constantly once the event begins. You are given a card that has certain control points on them, and each control point must validate your card to prove that you were there. So the time that it takes to get your card stamped at the control points counts against your riding time, as does time to get a cup of coffee, something to eat, go to the bathroom and so on. It is about friendly camaraderie and not competition.

           The big recruitment push in the mornings is to get as many SPP riders as possible to ride the brevet that is coming up on January 9th. It is a 200K brevet that begins in Ashland, VA and rides out to Tapahannock, VA and back to Ashland. It has rolling hills, but no steep climbs (or so they say), so it is very tempting. It will certainly be a great gauge for where I am fitness-wise for the New England classic in July. As the weather gets better, I want to be riding as much as possible.. Even though the brevets are not supported rides,(meaning no support vehicles if you break down, no predetermined 'rest' stop, no free coffee, bananas and bagels etc.)  they are with a group of people that I know and enjoy riding with. I have found that it is so much easier and more fun to ride in a group as opposed to riding alone. SO, barring any scheduling conflict that can't be resolved, I am hoping to do the Tapahannock brevet. Stay tuned for a full report.

             This past week I have also been busy trying to organize and compile materials for my upcoming fundraising effort for the New England classic. I am sure that you will all be hearing about that more as the time gets closer. I have a personal web page on the America Diabetes Association website that I will link from here once I have it set up. Donations can be made online at that website. If any of you have any creative fund raising ideas please leave them in the comments section below.. I am willing to do just about anything (as long as it is legal and doesn't involve painting) to raise these funds. Thanks for your support.

              Thanks for reading my blog. I have found out that it is not only my Mom, Bev and Emily that read this blog. (Emily only reads it because I pay her to.) I appreciate you all taking the time to check it out. Thanks.