Mr. B!

So I finally got my pal, Eric B, out on a ride. He's been hiding this winter using the graduate school application process as an excuse not to ride. With the temperature over 70 he wanted to poke his head out and see what riding was like again. After 1.5 hours his 'taint' hurt and he was ready to get home. I also managed to take 2 of 3 city line sprints from him. He's been off the bike a looooong time. That usually doesn't happen when he's fit. I have convinced him and another friend, Herbert, to do the Mt. Evans Hill Climb with me this July, so hopefully Mr. B will become a bit more motivated. I need him to pace me on the hill, the really big hill! I need to find some nice mountains in the Appalachians to train on. Maybe Skyline Drive or somewhere in NW MD.

Me and my boy, Ned

Here I am on March 3, with one of my early cycling heroes, Ned Overend. Back when I got started in cycling he was a regular in Velonews, tearing up all the Grundig races around the world and becoming the first UCI MTB World Champ. Because of him I bought some sweet, Specialized mtb shoes. They were black with red accents and were awesome. Unfortunately the Texas limestone and my lack of balance on the bike tore them up pretty quickly.
At 50+ he is still competitive with guys less than half his age. I hope I am like that when I grow up. Ned rocks it no matter what the age.