Four Days To Go

The countdown is here: T-4. The preparation is fun and I'm looking forward to soon doing the real thing. The increased cycling has ramped up my fitness (though there is still plenty of room for improvment). I feel great. Up until about one month ago, I have been a pretty consistent runner but an inconsistent cyclist. This event has "forced" me to do more cycling and I am thoroughly enjoying it. I hope to keep it up after the event.

This past weekend, I went to Sacramento for the prologue of the Amgen Tour of California. After a good ride in the morning, we took in prologue and it was a blast. Watching those incredible athletes sprint for over 4 minutes was something to see. The last ten riders or so was a who's who of cycling and boy did they put on a show. The Governator then did a great job handing out the awards at the awards ceremony. Just when I thought that it could not get any better - I was given the opportunity to meet LANCE. What a thrill it was to meet someone that has been so inspirational to me in fighting cancer. I read his book 5 years ago while I was going through chemo. It was inspirational in many ways and it helped motivate me to take charge of the situation (as much as I could) via nutrition, exercise, education about the disase and treatment and asking lots of good questions. Moreover, LANCE is inspirational to cancer patients and cancer survivors because of what he represents - that anything is possible after being diagnosed with cancer. Whenever I think of my limitations or get tired or sore I think of what we have been through and what he has accomplished. Then I push harder. Thanks, LANCE!

Let the Good Times Roll

Ten days to go ... Stepping up the training has been good, both mentally and physically. It's good to be challenged. It sharpens the mind and the body.

Training Ride Picture

Ouch

Went on the training ride yesterday with Team Type 1. Everything was fine until the second climb (Ballard Canyon) and then the hurt was put on me. Ouch. Couldn't recover from my miserable climb. Guess I need to spend some time on the hills. Other than that, it was a great day. Met some some terrific folks, appreciated Team Type 1 turning out (they were fantastic), it was good to learn the course a little and get the feel for what a TT might be like and it was a spectacularly beautiful day. Many thanks to Carol for organizing the event. Time to climb.