May 2005 Archive

5-2-2005 Twilight Congratulations to Shannon Huchinson (L5 Flyers) on winning the Pro Women's crit at Twilight Saturday night. Shannon was overheard on Sunday saying that it was one of the best wins of her career.

Roswell Crit I attended the Roswell crit on Sunday and got some good photos. I left before the pro men's race was over as I was tired from racing earlier in the day. This crit reminded me why I don't like road racing. The course is good, the race is well organized, but I just do better when there is dirt or barriers in the race. I only got lapped once, so I was happy with that. The fact that the Women's 3/4 race averaged about 23-24 mph for the first 10 minutes put me into a really bad EIVCD (breathing attack...it is like asthma) attack. I got lapped and then hopped back in with a group. I can't wait for my mountain bike to be repaired, so that I can start racing in the dirt again.

Of course, I took tons of photos.

Pro 1/2/3 Women's results
1. Candace Blickem (Quark)
2. Sarah Uhl (Quark)
3. Shannon Huchison (L5 Flyers/Aaron Corporate Rents)

The Pro Women's Podium at Roswell
 

5-3-2005 HEY TIMOTHY ROBINSON!! You forgot your prize at the Roswell Crit on Sunday. Email me at sttarlite at hotmail dot com, and I'll put you in touch with the person that has the checks. OR if you know Timothy, let me know his email address.

ATHENS PHOTO NEEDED! Does anyone have a photo of Shannon Huchinson (L5 Flyers/Aaron Corporate Rents) coming winning the Athens Twilight crit. Aarons may want it for marketing purposes. They would prefer the "winning photo" coming across the finish line. The photo must be clear and non-blurry. High resolution preferred but not necessary. Drop me an email at sttarlite at hotmail dot com, and I will get you in touch with them. 

Athens Crit From Athens: Brian from @ the Hub Bikes just let me know that the Athens Tuesday night training crit is on! Every Tuesday night beginning May 3rd.

Where: Sandy Creek Park on 441 North about 3 miles from town (once in the park, follow signs to boat ramp, recommended parking is in the lots around the big loop road.)
When: Every Tuesday night
Schedule: 6:15 - B group 30 minutes plus 5 laps; 7:00 A group 45 minutes plus 5 laps
Cost: $2 park fee, plus $2 insurance and permit fee (gotta’ cover our butts), consider an annual park pass for Sandy Creek Park ($30 per family two adults and one child).
Prizes: Do it for fitness, fun and bragging rights; prizes and primes may be intermittent as donations are made throughout the season; consider donating anything to stuff the prize purse.
Categories: B group is beginner to intermediate and A group is intermediate and up.
More rules are forthcoming, but pay attention to this… Dropped riders will not be pulled and may re-enter the race. Dropped riders may not be eligible for prizes on nights when they are available. Aggressive and unsafe riding will not be tolerated.
For more race info visit: http://hubbikes.com/site/intro.cfm
For general park information visit: http://www.sandycreeknaturecenter.com/scp/index.php

NARC Update NARC was out in force at Athens and Roswell this weekend. Check out their race reports.

Twilight Women's Crit Winner Shannon Huchison, the winner of the Women's Pro crit, recounts her evening at Twilight on the L5Flyers page.

5-4-2005 Central Park Closed Sunday From SORBA-RAMBO: The mountain bike trail at Central Park will be closed this saturday and sunday for a professional disc golf tournament. It was agreed during construction that when The disc golf guys had big events it would be best to close the trail. I only wish we had more notice...so please get teh word out.

Signage will be placed at Kiosk and trail heads to state "trail closed" and reason for it. We have a group (carebear and co..) that are going to be doing some trail work on saturday and they will serve as "partol". There will be someone else partolling n sunday as well.

Exact time for the disc golf event is from 10:30am to 5:00pm on both days. So if you absoloutly had to get a CP fix it had better be really early or lafter 5pm.
 

Charlotte Racing Looking to getting a little mountain bike racing during the week, check
out the Charlotte Summer Mountain Bike Series this Wednesday in Charlotte, NC.
Looks like the weather going to be great. Lola's will be catering the Wednesday night race. That's right, free food for the race participants. Lola's is owned by fellow mountain biker Bruce Stewart and is located in downtown Charlotte at 401 N Tryon St. Next time you're downtown and  ready
for good home cooking, stop by Lola's and check out the daily lunch specials. They also have a complete catering service. www.charlottemtnbike.com

Last Snake Creek Gap TT From SORBA NWGA: The last ride of the 2005 Snake Creek Gap 6 Mountain Time Trial sries is this Saturday. Even if you don't consider your self competitive you might want to come up and try this out. NWGA Sorba is providing shuttles, sags, t shirt, after ride BBQ and some $100 door prizes at a local bike shop. We ask for a $30 donation and a SORBA membership to ride it. This is a great chance to do some true cross county riding, point to point for either 16 or 32 miles. It is very technical and isolated. check out the map of the course on our web site www.nwgasorba.org. This is a good way to learn the shuttle spots and routes for this 32 miles of mountain bike trails.

5-5-2005 WBL News Press Release: The secret cabal of the WBL has been meeting behind closed doors for several days selecting a new commissioner/CEO. For days nothing but black smoke has been billowing from the rooftop of World Headquarters. (When a new CEO is elected, like the selection of the pope, the news is announced to the world by a plume of white smoke.)

This morning at 1 a.m., white smoke rose from the roof at World Headquarters in downtown Athens. At first, the smoke was so thick many thought the building was on fire. Big Jon Atkins then appeared on the roof and began ringing a bell. The crowd roared. Big Jon's eyes were rimming with tears as he was surrounded by a halo of smoke on the clear, moonlit night. To those below, it looked like his head was on fire. It appears the WBL has elected a new pope,...er CEO. A press conference is planned for later this evening when it is expected the name will be released!! Stay tuned.
 

The NARC Junior Ladies-Jessica Smith, Sara Cochran and Andrea Beltran-show off the hardware they won at the Raccoon Road Race in April.

Trish's Favorite Photo I've been asked which is my favorite photo that I took at the TdG. I have to say that this is my favorite-Trent Lowe (Jittery Joes-Kalahari) receiving the Best Young Riders jersey after the Stage 3 TT. I love the expression of complete enthusiasm and happiness on Trent Lowe's face. Throughout the week, you could see the sheer joy that this 20 year old had. It was very refreshing to see a rider loving riding his bike and seeing the spotlight for the first time. Watch out for this kid...he is going places.

5-6-2005 Greenville Ribbon Cutting
Saturday, May 7 - 9:30 AM to 1:00 PM
CELEBRATE THE OPENING OF GREENVILLE’S FIRST DOWNTOWN BIKE LANE --
AND RIDE A LAP WITH OUR SPECIAL GUESTS:
- GEORGE HINCAPIE OF THE DISCOVERY PROFESSIONAL CYCLING TEAM
AND - CRAIG LEWIS OF THE TIAA-CREF CYCLING TEAM!
Saturday, May 7 9:30 AM to 1:00 PM Buncombe Street Methodist Church parking lot
(at Richardson and West North in downtown Greenville ANTICIPATED SCHEDULE:
9:30 to 11:00 Free bicycle safety checks, helmet giveaway for kids, face painting, and chalk mural drawing
11:00 sharp Speech and ribbon cutting by Mayor Knox White
11:15 to 12:00 Inaugural lap of the bike path, with George Hincapie and Craig Lewis in the lead
12:00 to 1:00 Free food and general festivities
SEND A MESSAGE LOUD AND CLEAR:
WE WANT MORE SPACE FOR BICYCLES ON OUR STREETS! Sponsored by the Greenville Spinners Bicycle Club. For more information or to help out, call Jason at 235-5109.

New WBL CEO The WBL announced late last night that the Gentleman Briggs Carney has been reinstated as CEO of the WBL. Former CEO, the first lady of the WBL, Ms. Candi, has been elevated to the status of "goddess," the first ever to reach these Arcadian heights. The WBL has promised to release a complete narrative of Carney's rise to the throne, his fall into the gutter, and his ultimate recapture of the reins of leadership. Carney has yet to release a statement other than to say he has picked a title for himself: "Papa Pope I." Full details to follow.

Updated Race List I have posted an updated race calendar for GA/AL. It is current as of 4-27.

SORBA-Gainesville News From SORBA-Gainesville Bridge Project This Saturday morning at 9:00am we are meeting at Chicopee to assist Charlie Bennett and the Boy Scouts with the building of a bridge. The bridge will conclude the new section of Devil's Backbone and get  us ready for the TNT time trials. We will need to help them move materials into place and where ever they may need us. Hope to see you there.

National Trails Day At last night's meeting I handed out an agenda that had NTD on June 5th. I noticed that this morning it is on the first Saturday of  June every year and I had printed the wrong date. National Trails Day at Chicopee will be on 6/4/2005. We will be doing a joint celebration with Elachee Nature Science Center. Details to come later.

Ride of Silence There will be a ride of Silence May 18th at 7:00 in Chamblee if you are into that sort of thing according to the Georgia Bikes Spring Newletter (PDF).

Janet Edgerton (BMW-Bianchi) races during the Women's 3/4 crit in Roswell. Photo by Dan Edgerton.

5-9-2005 Raisin Hit by Motorcycle--from Cyclingnews.com

Saul Raisin (Crédit Agricole) was hit by a motorcycle at the first stage of the French race Four Days of Dunkirk on Wednesday. The American was forced to abandon the race with an injured hip and collarbone. The 22 year-old Raisin had finished the Tour de Georgia 13th overall and runner-up in the young riders jersey. Meanwhile, the Four Days of Dunkirk has unfolded like a young talent contest, with stage winners and GC leaders all possible major race contenders for the future. Philippe Gilbert, who took stage two and the overall lead yesterday, is a promising 22 year-old Belgian rider from Francaise des Jeux, and Linus Gerdemann, who surprisingly took the first place on GC today, has been described by his team CSC's manager Bjarne Riis as the biggest German talent since Jan Ullrich.

 RAMBO-Big Creek Work Party Start Time: 09:00 AM, Location: Big Creek Information: Come one, come all. Just come out and get involved for a worthy cycling cause! No charge for the work out and the satisfaction you'll receive. Next work party at Big Creek is Saturday, May 14th, start at 9:00 am and work till 1:00pm. Cycleworks will be providing pizza lunch for all volunteers.

 5-10-2005 99x PSA's From the Atlanta Bicycle Campaign: "Thanks for all the input on the billboard/bumper sticker design. The overwhelming favorite was option # 2 (without the "wavy" message). We got back to 99x, and they were able to get the message up on their billboard near Stone Mountain almost immediately.

It is located on Highway 78 - Stone Mountain Freeway (past the mountain) about 1/4 mile past Lake Lucerne Drive. It is on the left side of the road facing east-bound traffic (heading out of town).
Attached is a picture of the billboard and a map showing it's approximate location. If you drive out that way you'll notice a few trees partially obscure the view until you get closer.
The bumper stickers of the same design will be available shortly.

Also, the radio psa on 99x is now running, and will continue during drive time, morning and evening until about June 20. To listen to the psa open the attached mp3 file.

Once again, thank you for your help in providing a strong voice for bike safety in the Atlanta area.
99x has expressed interest in continuing a positive relationship with the bicycling community, so I hope to set up further communication with them in the near future." Trish's note: I've heard the Public Service Announcement several times on 99x during drive times.

5-11-2005 Photo Contest Hey! I made the Velonews.com photo contest!

5-12-2005 Slow Week It's been a slow news week. Don't forget about the Helen Mountain Bike Festival and Race this weekend. Union City is happening for the roadies.

Nancy Lux (BMW-Bianchi) races at the Dilworth Crit in Charlotte last weekend. Photo by Dan Edgerton.

5-13-2005 Cyclists Arrested Interesting article in Creative Loafing.

Good Luck Ladies! Good luck to the Travel Girl and Forum Cycling Teams that are headed to the NRC Joe Martin Stage Race in Arkansas! From what I hear, both teams are fielding full squads. Joe Martin is supposed to be a great race! Let us know how you do!

5-16-2005 VELODROME REOPENS!! That's right! The Dick Lane Velodrome is reopening! The first Grand Prix of the year will be June 11th from 4:30-8:30 pm!! The Grand Prix flyer is here. Even if you don't race, this is a fun, family evening to see some great track racing!

From the DLV: lease Note: The velodrome is not open for training at this time!
We are still in the process of installing new boards and repairing the velodrome surface.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Velodrome Volunteers Needed We are asking for volunteers to help ready the Velodrome for its reopening in May.
Work days and times are:
Saturday May 14th 9:00am to 4:00pm, Monday, May 16th 5:30 pm to 9:00pm, Saturday May 21st 9:00am to 4:00pm, Saturday May 28th 9:00am to 4:00pm, Please contact Pete Antonvich @ 678.362.4046 or via email @ info@savedlv.org if you can help out.

Next Beginners Class
Starts Thursday June 2nd @ 7:00PM
sign up today -> send email to info@savedlv.org

Bicycle Little League - Starts Monday May 23rd (8 and up)
Mondays and Thurdays May 23rd @ 6:00PM
sign up today -> send email to info@savedlv.org

Wednesday Night Training Races
TBA

Reopen Dedication Race
Saturday June 11th

Regionals and National Qualifiers
Saturday and Sunday June 25 & 26th

Josh Arwood (OTR Cycling) wins the Cat. 4 Men's crit at Union City

SORBA TT Series The SORBA Summer time trial series is back:
5/26 - Devil's Backbone at Chicopee Woods
6/02 - Central Park in Forsyth County
6/09 - Devil's Backbone at Chicopee Woods
6/16 - Central Park in Forsyth County
6/30 - Devil's Backbone at Chicopee Woods

----------------------------------------------------
Races start at 6pm
$5 per night ($25 at first race for non SORBA members)
http://www.rambo-mtb.org/ for more details.
 

More Tacks I had another report from the White/Brewery ride that there were tacks this weekend. "Unfortunately, the "rumors" about tacks in the road are true. We encountered them today, on Spring Place road at and near its intersection with County Line Road. There we encounted two riders who had each experienced front and rear flats. They picked up scores of tacks from the road. I caught one in my front wheel about a quarter of a mile towards 140 from that intersection despite riding slowly and carefully. They are regular thumb tacks, but have been painted flat black to make them essentially impossible to see while riding."

Up the Creek Without a Pedal I have to thank the CVCA for a great century on Saturday! The Up the Creek Without a Pedal Century is one of the best in the area! The rest stops are great, the roads are fantastic, and there is always someone to ride with. Also, it was nice meeting Chris Pettit, who runs a great Atlanta touring website called Atlbike.org.

More Sales Stuff Way back when, I collected Breyer horses. I am selling off part of my collection. Take a peek here.

More Bike Sales Stuff I have more stuff for sale on the Sales Page, including a TEAM PEGGY jersey!

5-18-2005 Joe Martin Stage Race As you can see in the photo above, two L5 Flyers went 1-2 in the Cat. 3 Men's division at the Joe Martin Stage race in Arkansas this week. Congratulations to Erik Koep and Daniel Karnis! Erik wrote a great race report that his teammate Mark Burroughs  shared with Southeastern Cycling. Check it out!

Bike to Work Week This is National Bike to Work week. Why not put your car away one day and commute by bike? If you are reading this website, chances are you already ride! Need commuting advice? See the Atlanta Bike Commuter. I've biked to work in the past on a regular basis, and it can be a lot of fun.

The Atlanta Bicycle Campaign is sponsoring Bike Trains on Friday, May 20th. See their website under "Bike Month Activities" for details.

Ride Honors Fallen Cyclist Trish's note: This is a Western, NC ride. The second annual Fletcher Flyer bicycle ride, to be held Sunday, June 5, 2005, will be dedicated to the memory of its creator, Gregory Wilcox, who died in a cycling accident less than two months before the event. The Fletcher Flyer, sponsored by the Blue Ridge Bicycle Club, is held as a benefit for the clean air initiatives of the
Western North Carolina Alliance. The total elevation gain for the 100 mile route is 4,044 feet (for comparison, the Hilly Hellacious Hundred has more than 8,000 feet of climbing and this year's route for the Assault on Mount Mitchell will involve approximately 12,000 feet of climbing). The first edition of the Fletcher Flyer, in 2004, was a huge success, particularly for a first-time event, and Greg and the organizers eagerly anticipated its second year. Tragically, Greg died from injuries he received in a fall during a bicycle ride in April 2005. Members of the Blue Ridge Bicycle Club and the Western North Carolina Alliance have dedicated this year's ride in memory of Greg. All participants will receive a green ribbon of remembrance, and Greg's mother is expected to attend the event.

The Fletcher Flyer begins and ends at Fletcher Community Park. New for this year's ride are a half-century (50 mile) route, to complement the metric century (62 mile) and century routes; a post-ride lounge; and upgraded lunch options. All rides will begin at 8:00 a.m. Entry fee is $25 through June 3 and $30 on June 4 & 5. More information and registration forms are available at www.blueridgebicycleclub.org, at area bicycle shops and by contacting the Western North Carolina Alliance at (828) 258-8737.

5-19-2005 Oops! Oops! Yesterday I said the L5 Flyers Joe Martin race report was written by Mark Burroughs. It was actually written by the winner, himself, Erik Koep. Sorry Erik!

5-20-2005 Velonews Gallery One of my photos from Stage 3 of the Tour De Georgia, "The Youngest Fan," made today's Velonews gallery.

Brownwood Bike Rally Don't forget the Brownwood Bike Rally on Saturday to benefit the East Atlanta Kids Club. There are fat tire crits!

5-23-2005 TdG Behind the Scenes If you want some great stories from behind the scenes at the TdG, read Scott Hodges rant on the Addictive Cycles website. Scott (and Grant) own Addictive Cycles in Braselton, and Scott works for Mavic at several large races every year.

National Trails Day From SORBA: The first Saturday every June is designated National Trails Day (NTD) in the United States, and this year the Southern Off-Road Bicycle Association (SORBA) offers a variety of activities on several trails to celebrate the day on June 4th. Work parties, picnics, games, and rides will be offered

Central Savannah River Area (CSRA) SORBA is devoting the day to enjoying the trails. The club is having a ride at 10am, followed by a picnic on June 4th at Baker's Creek State Park in McCormick, SC. CSRA SORBA will provide hotdogs & Power Ade.

Northwest Georgia SORBA, working with the Armuchee-Cohutta Ranger District managers, is holding a work party on the Georgia Pinhoti Trail from 8:30am to 1:30 pm at the USFS Work Center in Villanow, Ga. Bring hydration and a snack for the trail. Lunch will be provided for all at the Pocket Road Recreational Shelter. Volunteers will trim weeds and brush, construct grade dips to assure that excess water is removed from the trail, pick up litter, and assist certified chainsaw operators by removing cut tree limbs from the trails. After a picnic lunch, volunteers will enjoy a bike ride on the trail. James Stankowitz, President of NWGA SORBA, will be presented the Trail Worker of the Year, southeast region, by the American Hiking Society. James is a tireless worker who has done much to improve the trails in this area, and this is a great day and a great way to honor his efforts.

Gainesville SORBA, working with the Elachee Nature Center and REI, will work on the Chicopee Woods Mountain Bike Trail System and the Elachee Hiking Trails. Volunteers will enjoy a picnic lunch and their choice of a bike ride or naturalist-led hike after the trail work is done. The event begins at 9am on June 4th. The ride and hike begin at 2pm. Prizes will be awarded to volunteers.

A SORBA-wide NTD weekend is planned at Woodring Branch Bike Trail at Carter's Lake. The event, co-hosted by the US Army Corps of Engineers, begins Friday, June 3rd and runs through Sunday, June 5th. Free camping is available at Woodring Branch campground for Friday and Saturday nights, but participants must register in advance at www.sorba.org, beginning May 20th. On Saturday, June 4th, volunteers will gather at 10am to finish construction on Woodring Branch, the newest trail at Carter's Lake, and will work until 2pm. A free lunch will be served to all volunteers. Group rides will take place on Friday night, Saturday afternoon and night, and again on Sunday. SORBA sponsor Kona Bicycles has donated an 18" Caldera mountain bike frameset to be given away on Saturday evening, along with other prizes donated by event sponsors Hawley, Thomson, Maxxis, and Dick's Sporting Goods. Paul Molla, with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, is working with SORBA to host the event.

Livestrong Laptop? Ok, this Livestrong thing has gone too far. HP just issued a Livestrong Laptop.

Velodrome Racing Starts! That's right! Racing will start at the Dick Lane Velodrome THIS Wednesday, May 25th! (Sorry guys and gals, you have to take the Beginner class not matter what Cat. you race in order to qualify to race on the track.)

This is from Steve Hill, the publicity guy for the DLV: "Anyway, here's the info for next Wednesday: Track opens at 5:30, racing starts at 7. Look for announcements soon about several different advanced technique classes, such as motorpacing (both riding and driving the motor), madison, and other track technique classes. I'll be teaching at least three different classes at various times during the summer, all centered on advanced techniques that are necessary to progress beyond regional-level racing. (Trish's note: Details will be forthcoming on those.) Finally, as you are well aware, there is the first Grand Prix of 2005 coming on June 11th. We really need a big turnout from local fans - it will help with our grant and sponsorship requests for next year. So right now, if anyone wants to help the DLV, in addition to making a donation, come watch some super-fast racing on June 11th!

GTC Club Championships The Gwinnett Touring Club held their club championship race on Saturday. Don't let their name fool you, these guys can RIDE! The course was the challenging Yargo-North Gwinnett High School course. Riders were racing only for guts, glory, and the admiration of fellow club members. Dan Coy attacked just past mile 0 and time trialed his way to victory for 60 miles. 7 riders were in hot pursuit but were unable to catch Dan and rolled across the finish line 5 minutes later. Dan's HR chart can be seen here.

Mt. Mitchell This past Friday was the assault on Mt. Mitchell. The results are posted here. Jeremiah Bishop, a mtb pro with Trek, won in 6 hours, 11 minutes. Fast racer chick Patty Shoaf from NC was the first female finisher in 7:08. I heard that it rained for the first several hours and that conditions for those that finished were really tough.

Thanks Thanks to the L5 Flyers for letting me tag along on their Sunday ride. If you are looking for a challenging ride, they leave Outback Bikes at 9:00 am every Sunday. They rotate between the 43 County loop and another one in Buckhead. 

I Miss My Mtb I miss my mountain bike :(

Bike Raffle Conquering Cancer, a nonprofit cancer charity, is having a raffle for two bikes: an Orbea Lobular road bike and a Giant Trance 1 mountain bike. Tickets are $20.00 and are limited to 650 per bike.

Webpage Updates This Week Lucky me! I get to do my civic duty at JURY DUTY this week. Since I don't know what my schedule will be like, website update may be sporadic. Send your condolences to me at sttarlite at hotmail dot com.

Erik Koep and Daniel Karnis (L5 Flyers) win 1-2 at the Joe Martin Stage Race-Cat. 3 Men. Photo by Erick Pierce

5-24-2005 SORBA TT's The SORBA Time Trials start this week. From SORBA: "he Thursday Night Time Trial Series begins this Thursday, May 26th at Chicopee/Devil's Backbone! Registration begins at 5:15pm-Racing begins at 6:00pm. Your best ride will be timed and points will be tracked. See the SORBA Website for complete details. Registration is available onsite. Presented by SORBA-Gainesville & SORBA-RAMBO. Sponsored by Reality Bikes, Northstar Bicycles, BikeTown, and Maxxis. Mark your calendar for the subsequent dates: June 2-Central Park, June 9-Devil's Backbone, June 16-Central Park, June 23-Devil's Backbone."

Bored I was SO bored at Jury Duty today. I read a book and a half. Does anyone have any good cycling books I can borrow?

Next Series 7 Race Cancelled According to the Series 7 website, the race at the Atlanta Motor Speedway has been cancelled.

5-25-2005 Brownwood Fat Tire Crit From Daren Comer: "Brownwood Park Fat Tire Crit May 21 East Atlanta The day started out overcast but the heat was on the roads around East Atlanta. The Women's race saw Bromley Metz (Forum) show her sprinting abilities taking all primes and the win over Chamblee Moreadith (Forum) in 2'nd and Lisa Statsfrom (RBM) in 3'rd.

The Men's race saw a strong field with Chris Wiley (of Atlanta Pro Bikes) making a cameo return to street racing! Brannon Amtower (APB) timed a perfect counter attack after a break was reeled back in and was soon bridged by Tyler Grahovic (Pacesetter Steel) and Patrick Jones (APB). The two APB lads worked hard against the on form Grahovic setting up Jones up for his first street victory with Grahovic in second and a spent but pleased Amtower in third. The final corner nearly sent Edward Moreadith (APB) packing as he came in hot on the front, he held on but was pipped at the line into 5'th place by Ben Carter (Pacesetter Steel) who took 4'th. "

GTC Club Members get ready to race in their club championships last Saturday. Photo courtesy of the GTC.

5-26-2005 Today's Question Ladies, why can men be so dense at times? If you know, I'd appreciate the insight. Email me.

Jury Duty Today's other observation/experience: Jury Duty is BORING! Most of the people smoke and wonder "why the h*ll" you would ride your bike so far although most people are curious about cycling. I did meet two cool ladies that had lost significant amounts of weight. SHOCKING!! How did they do it? Would you believe by eating healthy and exercising? Wow! Who would have thought?!?! No fad diets, no diet-of-the-moment, just good old fashioned exercise and eating a balanced diet. Kudos to them!

I Miss My Mtb Have I mentioned that I miss my mountain bike :(? Come home Big Blue!

5-27-2005 A Sprinter's Guide to 3 Gap by Anonymous From Dahlonega, go for a while until you hit a terrible climb at about 5 miles out. Think this is the first gap, only to find out you’re not even there yet. Finally crest this massive climb and ride another 5 or so decent miles from the rock pile to the base of the tallest mountain in the world. Begin the epic ascent up Neel’s Gap, which lasts an eternity and is almost all uphill. Man, this climbing stuff is really hard when you are going 6 mph with a heart rate of 190 and you only have 46 miles to go. When you finally reach the top, take a breather, sleep a while, and eat some food before the glorious descent down the mountain. Watch and laugh as you pass all the skinny climbers who you last saw just outside Dahlonega as you hurtle down the mountain at speeds approaching 100 mph. Start braking several miles before the sharp left onto the second highest pass in the world, Wolfpen Gap. Halfway up the gap, you realize that the constant puking is making you lighter and helping you negotiate the altitude and accompanying freezing temperatures. It’s also making it hard for the skinny climbers to pass you as they slip and slide in the trail behind you. However, after torturous hours of climbing the 19% average grade and being passed by everyone except the old man in the walker, you finally crest the climb and begin the wily descent down the mountain. As you increase to the 100 mph level, you realize that the small children that passed you on the climb need some warning before you run over them so you start howling like a siren to scare them off the road. This works and the inertia of the descent carries you half way to the store stop. After covering the final half to the store, another stop for food and sleep is warranted. This revives and replenishes you and it’s time for the final climb of the day, Woody’s Gap. The smallest and easiest of the three gaps, it only takes a few hours to climb. At the top, you realize that all the work you have done to this point is worth it as the road tilts down and you begin your descent. As your brakes spontaneously catch fire and your tires start to melt, you realize you have set a new land speed record of over 600 mph. Afraid that the approaching sonic boom will harm the children, you wait to get close to those skinny climbers who laughed at you on the slopes of Wolfpen as you weaved back and forth to maintain forward progress. As they come into view, you push a few pedal strokes in the 11 and as you pass 761 mph, the accompanying sonic boom paves your way through the carnage of these so called cyclists. At the rock pile, the momentum of your descent allows you to crest what you thought was the first gap with relative ease and the approach back to Dahlonega is uneventful. Unfortunately, no one told you about the “climb” beside Wal-Mart and although you have a seemingly insurmountable lead, the entire group passes you on this last gut wrenching climb. As you approach the finish in downtown Dahlonega, your spirits are lifted as the road turns flat, but all hope is lost when that old man in the walker comes screaming up the Wal-Mart climb and beats you by a walker to the finish.