I am Legend.

I went to Interbike at the last minute. I didn't plan on posting much about it as many other websters seem to make a career out of it these days ... and have much better cameras. However there were two incidents that I just couldn't help reflecting on. 1st, there was Lance. It was post press conference (plenty on *that* little floor show elsewhere) and he was steamrolling across the show floor w/ a pesky swarm on his heels. A few booth mannequins swooned as he went by. He was not smiling. Then there was Eddie. I'd seen him earlier in the day, doing his damndest to look interested, but looking more like he wished to just open a vein and end it all. It was closing time and the lights had just been shut off. A polite reminder to clear the hell out. I was waiting for a friend when he came walking by alone. Just himself, his briefcase and a nicely tailored blue suit. We made eye contact and I smiled bowed my head in polite reverence . He smiled back. Now don't get me wrong. I'm a Lance fan, albeit a guarded one. But Eddie is in a class by himself.

Speedvagen SS "Surprise Me"!

Well, It's Here! All I can say it HOT DAMN! I'm still smiling. More pics when it's built, but here's the closest approximation I can find.

Amen Brother!

*nicked from BKW* Go read the whole thing.

"Serve some good beer and frites at a cross race (legally) and you will quickly fill the woods with raving fans. It will take them a few years to know what they are screaming about, but it will work out eventually."

Keith Bontrager, 2004

Bike for Sale....a.k.a. Race Report, 9.13.2008

No matter what kind of pathetic shape I'm in or how long it's been since I've last saddled up, some part of my reptilian brain always believes it can win. It's a sad and clinically delusional fact, but a fact none the less. So the shellacking I took yesterday was an exceptionally large and bitter pill. I've tried to console myself w/ several rationalizations; It's early in the season. I'm not supposed to be rockin' the casbah. I was also pretty darn sick the week before and a bit overtrained. The night before the race I was feeling shaggy but figured I'd see how I felt in the morning. Well, morning came and I was feeling o.k. It wasnt' going to be 100 degrees so I thought I'd head to the course. I had fairly low expectations ( well, as I said mentioned earlier, my brain stem still had high hopes), but I was not prepared for the ego-nuke. I started slow and got slower. I wasn't like I was feeling bad. That would have provided a convenient out. Instead, I couldn't pedal. No power. HR ballistic. WTF!?!?!? I know I'm in much better shape than the previous year, but it was my worst showing in years. I've sacrificed a lot these past few months and at present, it feels like a waste. I mean I wasnt' in the mix from the gun. Oops. I'm not suppose to think about guns.