Wednesday, September 2, 2009

I was informed yesterday...

That I forgot the link to the Livestrong Challenge photos.

So, in the spirit of giving (which is a rare spirit for me) go to town. http://picasaweb.google.com/robdamanii/LivestrongChallenge#

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

After a long hiatus...

Here we are again. Yes, it's been nearly 2.5 months since my last update, but there has been good reason for such an issue. I have been very heavily training for the Philadelphia Livestrong Challenge for the past couple of months. This has meant that weekends have been spent consuming pasta, riding copious miles on my (new-to-me carbon) road bike, and practicing how to suffer mightily at the hands of steep and long slopes.

Why? What's the point?

I have two family members who were claimed by cancer, and I wanted to help the Lance Armstrong Foundation to put this mean bastard to rest, once and for all. So I trained, I trained hard, I suffered, I considered giving up, but I persevered. I rode the 100 mile Challenge, which also happened to be my first ever century (I only began road riding last year, and I was pretty much unable to complete even the metric we tried last year.) What a century to start with, right? 100 miles in 85 degree heat, 90% humidity, sunshine blazing down on the roads....it was fantastic.





So, right on.

Now it's back to relaxing. No more training schedules of 75 miles on Saturday, recovery ride Sunday, intervals Monday, etc etc. From here on out, it's going to be "mountain bike whenever I feel like it, road ride to keep some fitness, and drink beer as necessary."

I've been looking very longingly at my long neglected mountain bikes hanging in my garage. My Dawg has been whimpering at me, wondering why he hasn't been run in a while, and my King is still asking when his first race will be. Well champ, hopefully I'll have a free weekend here and there to make that happen.

Here's mud in your eye.