We're IN!

My older brother (Arizona) and I (Connecticut) have been talking about doing a long bike ride for years. Today the RAGBRAI lottery was held to select 10,000 bicyclists to ride across Iowa for seven days in July (60-100 miles a day) and we were selected.



You start with your rear wheel in the Missouri River and end with your front wheel in the Mississippi. We camp at school football fields and such (and it sounds like there is a bit of partying that goes on each night, too). You eat at food stands set up by every boy scout troop and church and civic group along the whole route. There's about 22,000 cumulative feet in climbs (Iowa is not flat ... who'd of thunk it, huh?), but I sense that Connecticut just might be a bit hillier (average distance between hills here is about 200 feet). Iowa heat and humidity in late July might be a concern, but there don't seem to be very many "serious" bikers on this; most seem to have big grins on their faces (in spite of their hangovers).

Now, I need to start some "serious" training. I did a 40-mile ride last Thursday (felt fine for first 30 miles, but couldn't walk a straight line after the last ten), but have kissed off until today (a week later). Being accepted means I need to start riding just about every day with a goal of doing two 60-mile rides on two consecutive days.

If you want to read more about this, read RAGBRAI Guide for Virgins.

We're psyched for this; it will be great to ride ... it will be great to be with my brother again!

See you on the road!

So, since I got a flat tire earlier this week, and since I promised myself that if one of these old, tubular, sewn-up, glued-onto-the-rim tires ever went flat that I would go buy a new bike, and since I had a major "gulp" upon learning just how much a decent bike costs these days (my old one is over 30 years old), and since my wonderful brother convinced me to crack open my old wallet (if I can find it around here someplace) with the words "What the heck else am I going to spend my money on? I’ve suddenly realized that instead of saving for a rainy day, I’d just view life as a constant gentle shower and spend some money," and since (ta-dah!) today is my 63rd birthday, today I started in earnest looking for my new bike.


It's going to be one of these two ... which do YOU think I should get?

The Classic


~~or~~
The Tetrahedral

My brother sent me a very short email about a month and a half ago. The message was simpy "Dear brother of mine; Our time is short. Let's go" and attached was this very inspirational picture:



( My response ... )