Stage 21 - Erin

After three weeks of ups and downs I can't believe that the Tour de France journey is almost over. I actually feel a little depressed about it.

There was a heat advisory today with temperatures expected to reach 98 degrees. The wind was worse. Sustained winds of 21 mph with frequent gusts to 35 mph made this just about the most difficult ride of the three weeks.

I rode west into the wind so I could cruise home. I put in 44 miles and instead of counting the miles up I found myself counting them down. At about ten miles to go my heart was heavy with a mixture of joy and sadness. Honestly, I wish that it wasn't over.

I saved the last mile to share with my wife Peggy and daughters Emily and Kristin. We did our own glittering ride down the Champs Elysees (Rosewood Court). The trees overhanging the driveway served as the Arc de Triomphe. My family gave me a beautiful signed plaque to commemorate the completion of the Tour that I can hang on my office wall.

A number of you asked me some questions about my bike so I am including a picture of it here. It has served me well.

In the real Tour Lance finished his Lucky 7 and lots of people are wondering which of the Amereican riders will take Lance's place next year. Bobby Julich? Levi Leipheimer? Floyd Landis? George Hincapie?

I hate to break it to you but none of them will win. Bobby and George can be good on any given day, but not for 21 days. And they're getting old.

Levi and Floyd? You can't win without cahoneys and these two don't have a single one between them. Did you ever see them attack during the Tour? They are followers and while followers can finish in the top 10 they never win.

Ivan Basso attacks and can win. Alexandre Vinokourov attacks and can win. And there will be a small handful of others who can hope to win. But it'll be a long time before we see another American on top of the podium in Paris.

I'm really looking forward to next year's Tour. The field will be wide open and I expect an interesting and exciting race.

As for my plans for next year...it's too early to know. I had a great time this year and certainly won't rule out doing it again next year. I'd do a few things differently, like doing a better job avoiding saddle sores.

It would really be great if some of you decided to do it with me. Or if someone out there wants to drive behind in the "Team Car" (just like in the photo, below) so I don't have to stop in at every filling station to get water and Gatorade. Hey, a guy can dream can't he?

Thank-you all for stopping by. I plan at least one more entry regarding the Tour journey and then I hope to post something here at least once a week. Feel free to keep checking in.

Stage 20 - Kirchhayn

Today's ride was the shortest since the opening prologue. Only 17 miles.

In the Tour they rode an individual time trial were the riders start 3 minutes apart so that each rides and works alone. They go hell bent for leather from start to finish.

I used the opportunity to do a 3 mile all out ride to guage my fitness. There is a 3 mile stretch of road near my house that is fairly flat and when a rare windless day happens I'll ride it all out for comparison purposes.

The first time I rode it in May of 2004 my time was 7:40. This May my time was 7:11. Today my time was 6:57. My legs felt thick and I could only get my heart rate up to 163 so the heavy miles certainly were a factor. Still, the average speed was 25.9 mph.

Physically and mentally I'm feeling great. The long rides have just become a part of my life now. My weight has dropped from 164 to 161 and I think that's OK since I expected it to drop considerably more. My clothes fit loosely but I won't invest in a new wardrobe as I fully expect to gain the weight back as soon as the mileage goes down to reasonable levels.

Lance won today's stage and avoided becoming the first rider in 15 years to have won the Tour without winning a Stage. The worst part of watching today's Tour coverage was the interview with John Kerry.

John Kerry! What the heck was he doing in France? Not only was he at the Tour, he had full press credentials and even rode in the car that followed Lance during his ride.

Kerry lost so there's no real purpose in bashing him now. But what the heck!

Kerry was born into wealth and priviledge. His family's net worth was in the millions. Not enough for Johnny boy so he twice married into families with net worth's in the billions

The press got him mostly for his famous flip-flopping, but what I disliked about the guy was his insincerity.

Here's a guy who flys around in the family Gulfstream II jet, guzzling fuel at the rate of 600-700 gallons per hour all while claiming to be a conservationist. Think for a moment about this. His jet will use the equivalent of 758 full car tanks of fuel flying from Boston-Paris-Boston. That's more gas than most of us will use in over 7 years.

Last week we hear Kerry moaning about Supreme Court nominee John Roberts, saying that the "Senate must learn whether he (Roberts) has clear, consistent principles" and "I will be active and vigilant". If that's true, why is Kerry hanging around the sports stars and celebrities in France instead of being in his office working?

See this report in the current Atlantic Monthly to read how Kerry is Congress's most absent member, all while drawing a salary that he isn't entitled too. Hypocrisy at it's highest.

And to think that this great country came within a few percentage points of having the two guys pictured at right in the White House.

But the worst of all of course, was having a pleasant Saturday morning watching the penultimate stage of the Tour de France absolutely ruined by being forced by OLN to listen to Kerry blabble on about meaningless crap. Here is one of his lines regarding Lance Armstrong maybe becoming a politician, "He understands the seriousness of a number of different choices". What?

Stage 19 - Port Washington

Once again it was Barry "The Boss" to the rescue. I needed some big miles today and after riding in the rain last night my enthusiasm was pretty low.

Barry called, told me when and where to meet him, so early this morning off I went.

We rode north and east to Port Washington (see photo, below) into the strong headwind so that we could have a tailwind along Lake Michigan most of the way home.

We rode 54 miles together and I took a long way home so that I ended up with 62 miles. I only needed 47 but yesterday's ride was 12 miles short. Even with the winds we averaged over 19 mph.

Why is it that almost every time I go for a bike ride, or drive in my car, I see some other driver toss a cigarette butt out their window? In addition to littering (Why don't cops start ticketing this? Could be a big revenue generator. $163.00 a pop here in WI), it's a fire hazard and it's just plain rude.

I understand that smokers clearly don't respect themselves so I shouldn't be surprised when they don't respect others.

It also highlights just how disengaged natural selection has become. Today's society supports and protects everyone, whether deserved or earned or not. Most of the smokers that I know wouldn't survive two days without some assistance from society at large. Put them in an independent setting and even a loss of eyeglasses would probably prove fatal.

Further, because the need to prevail (survive) is not really necessary as it might have been just 200 years ago, the warped gene of a smoker, which would have died if not for society, continues to multiply, weakening the human race with each generation. Ay, carumba!

Hey, only two more stages to go! The Tour is almost over and I'm not sure if I'm happy about it or not. It's been difficult, but it's also been fun.

Stage 18 - Riveredge

Sprinkles at the start. The route was northwest to Jackson, north to West Bend, east to Newburg, southeast to Saukville, southwest to Grafton, Cedarburg and home.

How's this for a juxtaposition; a Harley-Davidson motorcycle hauling a large, mean-looking guy with a beard and a ponytail pulls up next to me at a stop sign. Over the thunderous roar of the mighty V-twin I can hear what he is listening to on his radio, Scottish Highland bagpipe music.

(If you click on the V-twin link you can scroll down to click and hear the Harley. Clicking the 'bagpipe music' link immediately opens up a bagpipe sound sample, so be careful if you're at work)

The music seemed out of place to me until I realized that the Harley rider was undoubtledly paying homage to James Doohan who had passed away last night. Doohan was the actor who played Montgomery "Scottie" Scott on TV's Star Trek series. He played a Scottish engineer who was famous for doing the impossible (repairing the good ship Enterprise just before the Klingons started firing, etc.). Of course, the character is best known for a line spoken to him by James T. Kirk, "Beam me up, Scotty."

Later along the route I passed the Riveredge Nature Center which I can highly recommend if you or your kids are into learning about nature and habitats.

About ten miles from home the heavy rain started. I was going to seek shelter from the storm under the last existing covered bridge in Wisconsin but when I got to the bridge the rain had let up. Unfortunately, five minutes after I passed the bridge the rain came down even harder than before. On top of that, a hard wind drove the rain and at times the rain hitting my arms and legs actually hurt.

No turning back, I raced as fast as I could under the conditions; slippery roads, brakes that weren't gripping well and it was hard to see because of the rain and darkness.

Even under these conditions you can get into a zone of sorts. Which is helpful because it's pretty miserable otherwise. Although by the time I got close to home the rain didn't bother me any more and it provided today's moment of beauty; instead of avoiding the deep water I started aiming for the rivers and puddles, splashing as much as I could. Just like a kid. Ah, to be young again.

46 miles today. I felt great on the bike. I've been sleeping good and I continue to watch what I eat and to make sure that I drink enough. I'm finally coming on form, I think.

Stage 17 - Milwaukee

After yesterday's long ride I was hoping to take it a bit easier today. The plan was to split the ride. 25 miles in the morning and 30 in the evening.

But then Barry called. By the time we met out on the road he had a plan; ride to Milwaukee and back. So much for splitting the distance between two rides.

We headed east into Cedarburg and to the shore of Lake Michigan. Then south through the North Shore communities and into Milwaukee. On the way back it began raining and we ducked into Fiddleheads (a pretentious coffeeshop in Thiensville) for some water and a hot cup of Oregon Chai.

Fifteen minutes later is was still raining and since we both needed to get to work, off we went. The rain got heavier as we rode and by the time we split up in Freistadt neither of us could see very well through our glasses. Which is too bad because Freistadt is the home of Wisconsin's oldest Lutheran Church and we couldn't get a good look at it.

I haven't said much about the real Tour de France because frankly, it's been boring. Lance has such control over the peloton that the final outcome was never really in doubt. And as we know, if the outcome is certain, there is no adventure.

Once upon a time there was another Armstrong, who undertook the grandest of adventures. The 20th of July, today, is the 26th anniversary of Neil Armstrong's famous step onto the surface of the moon. Here is what Neil Armstrong said about exercise, "I believe that the good Lord gave us a finite number of heartbeats and I'll be damned if I'm going to use up mine running up and down a street".

Think about that the next time you ride.

OK, it's time for me to weigh in on the issue of drug use in cycling.

I struggle with this because I'd like to believe that doping isn't a problem in the peloton but almost everyday a Tour cyclist is found, "medically unfit to start" a days stage. This means one thing, and one thing only; the rider failed a drug test. Even the term 'medically unfit to start' seems to be an attempt by the Tour organizers to give drug use a very low profile.

The Tour de France is big business. Cycling worldwide is big business. Lots of money is made and if it were publically known that most cyclists doped, a wrench would get tossed into the big money machine. So almost everyone associated with cycling (riders, teams, sponsors, organizers, manufacturers) have a vested interest in keeping this an under-publicized problem.

The question is; are the interested parties working diligently to detect doping and stop it, or are they working hard to cover-up dope usage?

Here is a very short list of well known riders who have failed drug tests; Marco Pantani (1998 Tour winner), Jan Ullrich (1997 Tour winner), Tyler Hamilton (2004 Olympic Gold Medalist), Richard Virenque (7-time Polka Dot Jersy winner). The list of lesser-known professional cyclists who have failed drug tests would overload this blog.

If all of these guys needed dope to get them to top form, how is it that they all somehow maintained top form after, presumably, getting off the juice? Plus, all of these guys denyed it prior to the test failures. Just like riders are denying it today.

EPO is the drug of choice and it's essentially a synthetic way of blood doping (removing and storing your own, or someone else's blood and then re-injecting it near race time to increase the oxygen carrying capacity of your blood).

Research has shown that EPO can increase speed and endurance, two things much needed in cycling.

The differences in top athletes is so small that you can see how one might be tempted to reach for the syringe in an effort to win (and claim fame and fortune). And that's what troubles me. We know that some athletes take it because they've failed a test. And we know some athletes have prior test failures but still perform at the top. We also know that there are methods to use to try to "beat" the testing system. Click HERE for one example.

If you were a top rider all of this could only mean one thing; should I take the juice to gain or maintain an advantage? I expect that it would be difficult to answer 'No'.

And then there is this article regarding Lance Armstrong's financial donation to the organization that tests Tour cyclists. Sounds great that Lance wants to support drug testing but how can the testers be impartial to Lance? He paid their salaries. He paid for their equipment. A clear conflict of interest.

Lance apparently "quietly" donated a "fair amount of money" some years ago. His position for not announcing the donation is, "(It's) not my modus operandi to advertise what I do". Really?

Could you imagine the much publicized firestorm if Barry Bonds had donated money to a similar organization in baseball? But in Lance's case how many of you actually knew about the story? Additionally, if you Google this issue most of the headlines you'll see are similar to "Armstrong Aids in Anti-doping Effort". Do you think those would be the headlines if Barry Bonds had done the same? Not a chance.

What does all of this mean? I don't know.

All I know is that I rode 56 miles today, I've got four days left and I've never taken drugs, really.

Stage 16 - Holy Hill

Because of work commitments I decided to swap tomorrow's mileage for today's. That means a goal of 74 miles today and 56 tomorrow.

I split today's by riding a bit at lunch and then going big after work.

The route went west to spend one final day climbing in and around the Holy Hill area. For you Velocity riders I have good news and bad news. The good news is that the construction on Shannon Road is complete and what was once a rough and tumble road is now as smooth as a baby's bottom. The bad news is that Shannon Road is now open and during the Hell Loop ride we'll have to do the terrible climb again.

To make today's climb of Shannon Road even worse than usual a honey bee went down the front of my jersey. The bee and I both panicked. The bee stung me on my left pectoral and I smushed the bee in my jersey. I don't know which was worse; the pain of the sting or the pain of the climb.

A little while later I noticed what appeared to be ominous black clouds overhead. I followed the cloud trail to the west and saw what appeared to be a massive tornado. A black, v-shaped cloud reaching from the ground up to the clouds overhead.

Noting that the rest of the sky was clear blue I became confused. It all made sense when during the evening news it was reported that a pile of 1 million tires had caught on fire. The huge plume explains the 'tornado' that I had seen.

At the end of my ride the nearly full moon was rising and the sun had already set. I was in a nervous hustle to get home before the light faded when an open topped Jeep drove by and 5 seconds later a pack of firecrackers exploded about 20 feet behind me. Scared the bejesus out of me.

Just about the time I recovered from that shock another car drove by and a Coke can and a hamburger box came flying my way.

What the heck is going on here? Don't these idiots know that the full moon is tomorrow night?

These incidents caused me to think, "What is bejesus anyway?". I did a little research, and for an irreverent and funny synopsis go HERE.

Today's beautiful moment came when I received a weekly report from the host of this site that tells me how many people visited and where in the world they visited from. An average of 38 of you visit each day. You come from 9 different states as well as the country of Belgium. It would be great if the Belgian visitor would send me a quick note to tell me who you are and how you found the site.

To all of you - Thank-you. It's nice to know that someone out there is following the adventure.

Today's totals; 3594 vertical feet in 79 miles of riding. The biggest ride of the Tour.

Rest Day #2

Nothing like a rest day after 362 leg breaking miles in 6 days.

My mind and body have seem to come to grips with what's happening. I'm sleeping better and all of the aches and pains have diminished to the point where I can ignore them.

My legs hurt of course, but that comes as no surprise. The worst part is my hair. It's got three permanent rows from wearing a helmet too long. The picture above was taken after a long ride but even after a lather, rinse, repeat the rows won't go away.

At this point in the journey I'm 92 miles ahead of schedule and feeling good about completing the goal.

I went for an easy 30 miles on what must have been the nicest evening we've had here in Wisconsin for a long time. It was warm but not hot, light winds, little traffic and the low evening sun gave everything a golden glow.

I think one of the reasons I like biking is that it makes me feel like a kid. Riding along country roads, destination unknown, is one of life's simple pleasures. A chance to look at what's happening in the neighborhood and around the block. No phones, no day planners, no office politics. Just you and the wind.

Today's moment of beauty added to the already youthful spirit of the evening. Midway during the ride I was riding parallel to some railroad tracks and a train came up from behind with it's horn blaring. The tracks crossed the road about a half mile ahead. I charged as fast as I could to beat it to the crossing but the train arrived just ahead of me. The engineer smiled because he had won, and waved because it was a fun race. I waved back and enjoyed the rumbling of the flatbeds and boxcars as they roared past.

Stage 15 - Parades

Someone turned the oven on. It was 90 degrees at 9:00 am when I set out. At mile 50 a sign at the bank said it was 94. But of course it’s a dry heat, so nothing to worry about.

Today’s route was northwest to Hartford, south to do a loop at Holy Hill (our version of the Pyrenees), southwest to Hartland, east to Sussex, north to Menomonee Falls and northeast home. A total of 60 miles, which was 3 miles short of today’s goal. Still, I’ve gotten through the second week of this thing and tomorrow is a rest day (Yippee!).

The town of Sussex was hosting a parade today and because of my inflexibility in adjusting routes I was forced to ride three blocks along the parade path. I wasn’t happy about it but the people were nice and many even clapped. I should probably learn how to execute the royal wave (see photo, above).

North of Sussex I rode through another parade, the Miracle Homes Parade of Homes. A parade of homes is where a homebuilder has a bunch of model homes close together so prospective buyers can view them all in one visit.

If you live in the Milwaukee area you are sure to be aware of the Miracle Homes radio ads. The ads use the voice of the owner and the tag line at the end of every ad is, “Miracle Homes, a Christian based company”.

Isn’t this using religion for financial gain? And what does ‘Christian based’ mean anyway? That they sprinkle holy water on the building materials? That they pray that the house won’t fall over? That they hope that you think they are better than other builders because of some inside connection to Heaven?

I’ve always felt that most mainstream religions were (or should be) based on ethical systems that promote being good for the sake of being good, even when there is no reward.

If this really were a Christian based company they wouldn’t need to tell us about it, ad nauseum. Being true to your faith is in the way you live, not in how you say you live.

This isn’t the first (or last) time that some business venture used religion for financial gain. They’ve got an infallible partner (Jesus) who doesn’t take his cut. It’s nothing more than clever marketing designed to mislead, and when St. Peter comes a-callin’ I hope this little stunt is on the tally sheet.

Maybe we could turn this into a movie. We take the above scenario but inject a little mysticism and action. The angel Gabriel comes down with some hit men who look like 1930’s Chicago land gangsters in an attempt to teach these businesses a lesson. Here’s a snippet of the dialogue;

Setting: Tommy, the business owner (played by Burt Reynolds), is sitting behind a large desk in a high-rise office building. Gabriel (played by James Earl Jones) and the boys appear out of thin air in front of Tommy.

Tommy: Who the Hell are you? (Tommy stands quickly)
Gabriel: Are you Tommy?
Tommy: Who wants to know?
Gabriel: J.C.
Tommy: What’s he want? (Tommy’s face, although he’s trying hard to look unafraid, goes white)
Gabriel: You haven’t been giving your partner his due.
Tommy. Yea? And what’s his due? (Tommy’s hand slides slowly into his coat pocket as the hit men lean closer)
Gabriel: J.C. says ten percent. (Gabriel turns up the collar of his overcoat and straightens his shoulders)
Tommy: Ten percent! Are you kidding? What’s J.C. ever done for the business? (Tommy’s eyes dart between Gabriel and the boys)
Gabriel: Tommy, I think you’ve forgotten how all of this began. (Gabriel moves toward Tommy)
Tommy: Listen pal, I’ve got lots of problems here and I’m not interested in what J.C. wants.
Gabriel: Maybe you should be, Tommy.
Tommy: You tell J.C. that if he wants his ten percent he can bring his sorry behind down here and try to collect it himself.
Gabriel: If that’s the way you want it Tommy.

Tommy quickly pulls out his gun and starts firing but Gabriel and the boys dissolve away.

Thus begins Tommy’s internal struggle over right and wrong. Money and power vs. doing good. Car chases, beautiful women, exotic locales, bad guys, good guys, angels, devils and a priest. This movie would have it all.

In the end Tommy makes the difficult but right decision to donate his entire empire to Habitat for Humanity in hopes of paying his penance and getting into Heaven.

Stage 14 - Pike Lake

Today I rode with the Velocity Team on their Pike Lake route. It's advertised as "moderately hilly". 'Moderately hilly' is apparently used as a comparative term since I found the route very hilly.

The honey sweet scent of ripening corn was being pulled out of the fields by the hot July sun as we began our ride. By 8:00 am the temperature had passed 80 degrees, and was still climbing.

The heat didn't stop Tim D. and Nate from attacking on each hill.

The nice thing about following Nate up a hill is that he is so well groomed that he actually smells good. Smells good, like moderately hilly, is used comparatively. Most of us stink to high heaven. By not stinking, you smell good.

On the last few rides we've been trying to get Nate to tell us what cologne he uses but he just won't share his secret with with us. I think it's Paco Rabanne. Whatever it is I don't think that I'll press the issue. The word on the street is that Nate is a former Junior US Kickboxing champion. If he wants to pace us up a hill, fine. No sense in making him angry.

The group did about 43 miles. Russ & Barry knew that I was looking for more miles and offered to stay on their bikes for another hour.

If you watch any of the Tour de France on TV you'll notice how Lance Armstrong is almost always surrounded by his teammates. They protect him from the wind, other riders, fans and any other obstacles that may come his way. I've often wondered how good it would feel to be protected like that.

Today I found out. During the extra miles that we put in either Russ or Barry would move in front of me to block the wind. The other rode right next to me. Then they would switch. What a treat! It felt as if I was being escorted down the road by the Secret Service. I didn't need to worry about which direction the wind was coming from, where the pot holes were, where to turn, what the cars were doing or anything at all. It was the easiest 21 miles I've ever ridden. Beautiful.

Today's goal was 68 miles and I rode 64. Because those miles came with almost 3,000 feet of climbing the legs were done for the day.

While Lance like's to say It's Not About the Bike, equipment is nevertheless important. So let's talk equipment.

A person's body touches a bike in three places; butt, hands, feet. Getting these three contact points just right is critical for comfort.

First, the butt. We're talking shorts and saddle. A good pair of shorts is not something you buy at the bike section of Walmart. You need to spend $50.00 or more if you want comfort. I use Pearl Izumi Ultrasensor shorts that I can find on sale at Nashbar.

I purchased a new saddle last Fall and it's been a revelation. I had no idea how comfortable a thin and tiny saddle could be. It's a Fizik Arione and if you bike a lot you'll want one.

Hands are next. I use Pro gloves and a S-Works carbon handlebar, both from Specialized. What I find nice about the handlebars is that the top section is flattened a bit, instead of being perfectly round. This gives your hands a few more ways to grip. Being able to change where and how your hands contact the bar helps reduce numbness.

Finally, the feet. I use shoes from Specialized and Keo pedals from Look. When looking for shoes you'll need proper fit first, and the stiffest possible sole second. Clipless pedals are a must. They keep your feet in place as well as allowing you to pull up on your pedal stroke. Pulling up uses a different muscle group than pushing down and can help with both speed and endurance.

Pedals are called 'clipless' because in the old days (prior to the early 90's) an actual metal clip surrounded the toe of the shoe, and with a leather strap your foot was held in place. Now, instead of sticking your toes into a clip, there is a cleat at the bottom of the shoe that snaps into the pedal to hold you in place. You'll hear riders talk about "clipping in". But they're really 'snapping in'. Click here to learn more.

Stage 13 - Fillmore

It's a heavy load. It's a trail of tears.

The miles are starting to take their toll on my body and my mind.

Here's a list of what hurts; legs, butt, shoulders, triceps, neck, upper back, mid-back, lower back, head. Other than that I'm feeling pretty good.

It now takes about 30 miles for my legs to loosen up and by then they're tired.

Today's route was similar to yesterday's other than I gave most of the towns a wide berth to add a few more miles. It was again hot and windy.

Because of Wisconsin's brutal winters, the road surfaces around these parts frequently crack and separate. Pot holes are not uncommon. The usual remedy is for the highway department to apply what is called 'chip and seal' to fill in the holes and gaps. This does not mean that the road surface is level however, and what it does mean to a cyclist is a bone-jarring ride. I'm surprised that I've got any teeth left.

All the roads that I biked today where like that, with one exception; Fillmore Road. Talk about presidential. The road was wide, perfectly smooth and completely empty except for yours truly.

The town of Fillmore however, was not so special. One church and two taverns. Typical Wisconsin.

Now if you're like me, you don't know much about our thirteenth President, Millard Fillmore. One thing that we can know, is that his childhood dreams probably did not include getting a rural road and a dumpy town in the middle of nowhere Wisconsin named after him. Such are the whims of history.

Here is one Fillmore fact with which to impress your friends; he became President when Zachary Taylor died from, of all things, indigestion (unless you are a conspiracy theorist in which case you'll believe that it was intentional arsenic poisoning).

I'm riding down the road in the middle of nowhere. A car drives by and I note the Wisconsin plate. "Hey!", I think, "Someone from Wisconsin!" It was the feeling you get when you've been on a long road trip and you're in Kansas or Pennsylvania and you see a Wisconsin plate and you get excited because it's a little bit of home.

The euphoria passes when I realize that I'm only 30 miles from home. There's a sign post ahead. Next stop, the Twilight Zone.

I have been feeling a little beside myself the last few days. Really. Beside myself, as in, next to. It's as if I'm not quite 'in' my own skin. The sensation is one of watching myself do whatever it is that I'm doing, as I'm doing it. A bit detached.

I sure hope it's just fatigue or lack of sleep. In any event, it's weird.

I needed 54 miles today and I put in 60. I've now got 99 miles in the bank. We'll see what I have after tomorrow and Sunday, when I need a two day total of 132 miles.

Since I had my head down for most of the ride I didn't get a chance to observe anything beautiful today. The only good moment was unclipping from my bike at the end of the ride.

I did get a chance to clean the bike, finally. So as my head was down I did notice how pretty it is. I guess the fact that I haven't gotten to the point of hating the bike is somewhat positive.

Stage 12 - Cheeseville

Today's route was a new one. I went through a town called Cheeseville that I didn't even know existed. The town consisted of two taverns and St. Martin's church.

I know what you're thinking, "I didn't know that there was a St. Martin". Neither did I. But I do know that there is a lovely island in the Dutch Antilles with a similar name, St. Maartin. Anyway, St. Martin is/was the patron saint against poverty and alcoholism. Funny then, that there was only one church, but two taverns. I suppose everyone in town is on welfare.

From there I headed east until I hit the Ozaukee Interurban Trail. I can highly recommend this trail if you live nearby. Today however, it appeared that the County had just mowed the four feet on either side of the paved trail and for some silly reason the person mowing aimed the blower inward. That left the trail full of grass, weeds, branches and the rest of mowing's flotsam and jetsam. At least I had the wind at my back as I bobbed and weaved my way to Port Washington and then home.

The sky looked ominous and during the ride I watched as the puffy fair weather cumulus clouds exploded into impressive cumulonimbus storm clouds. There must have been an inversion of the cap along the dry-line though, because the upper level mesocyclone winds clearly lost steam as the potential energy of the storm dissipated.

OK, that last line was a bunch of crap. But it was an impressive line from the movie Twister that I've always wanted to use.

It was sunny, hot and windy when I ventured out and I felt pretty slimy as I had slathered Snorkel Bob sunscreen over the exposed parts and Udderly Smooth saddle sore ointment over the naughty parts.

I'm hopeful that I've got the saddle sores under control. Or at least stopped them from getting worse. I wash the crotch with an antibacterial soap and then apply antifungal cream three times a day. I don't mean to offend your sensibilities but there's no way to make this situation pretty. I wonder if this is how Lance discovered that he had testicular cancer? There really isn't any other reason to spend this much time down there.

How's this for a beautiful moment? I'm taking a leak by the side of the road when a car I hadn't noticed passes by. It's an unmarked sheriff's car and about 100 yards down the road he turns around. Sensing that I'm about to get busted for public urination I hop on the bike, race to the corner, make a sharp right behind the treeline, hop off the bike, shoulder the bike and run eight rows deep into the cornfield. The cop seemed confused as he drove by, probably impressed with what he surmised to be my impressive speed. Whew!

Miles needed today: 58. Miles ridden today: 56. I'm still ahead by almost 90 miles.

Stage 11 - Germantown

I don't think that I got a wink of sleep last night. I wish that my body would just accept what I'm doing to it and relax. My legs ached all night and they were stiff all morning.

I needed 54 miles today and just when I was about to give up my good Velocity friend, Barry called. I don't recall his exact words but, "are you ridin' or are you hidin'" sums up his sentiment.

I could't argue with 'The Boss' of the Wisconsin peloton so off we went northward in search of miles.

It was overcast and humid. A perfect recipe for dehydration. You're sweating profusely but you don't feel too hot because of the lack of sunshine. You forget to drink and then, Bam!, your head hurts.

Fortunately Barry and I kept an eye on each other and avoided disaster. By the way, don't patronize the BP filling station in Germantown. $1.49 for a bottle of Gatorade is the highest I've seen, by $0.30. Additionally, BP is about to rape the good people of Kazakhstan by forcing one-sided oil contracts on the Kazak government. Fargin sneaky bastages.

Riding with Barry is always a treat, but it's never an easy ride. As much as he can hurt you with his pace he makes up for it with his cycling wisdom. He's been riding and racing for 25 years and has learned a thing or two along the way. Like crinkling up your race number before pinning it on your jersy. It won't flap in the wind as much.

He also suggested that I use Tri-Flow as my chain lubricant. I'll give it a try.

We did 61 miles and averaged just under 20 mph. My heart rate averaged 145. I rode over 100 miles in the last 20 hours and my legs are feeling the effects. I'll double my stretching routine and maybe even whip out The Stick.

Looking at Barry's behind was the beautiful moment of the day. Whoa! Before you bi-curious readers get too excited, let me explain. I was hurting today and Barry knew it. In the headwind sections he pulled to the front to allow me to draft. Since Barry is such a smooth rider you can get your front wheel within an inch of his rear wheel and not worry about him making any sudden moves that could cause a crash. Tucked in this close reduces your effort up to 20%. Being this close also means that your field of view is filled with the behind of the person in front.

Being able to reduce your effort on the bike by 20% is definitely the most beautiful thing when you are suffering.

I also passed my good friend Annie on the road. I was a mile from home and only had the energy to exchange a wave and blow her a kiss. Bonus.

Stage 10 - Dousman

The weather forcast was for rain all day and wouldn't you know it, in a quirk of fate the meteorologists were right.

A work related commitment required me to be in Sheboygan and Manitowoc today. The Velocity group ride was in the evening but I still needed an additional 15 miles.

Rain jacket; $20.00. Clear lenses for riding in the rain; $15.00. The look on my lovely wife Peggy's face when she realized that I was about to go for a ride in the morning rain; priceless. "You've got a problem", was all that she could say.

The rain cleared up just in time for the Velocity group ride. 9 guys showed up for a 'conversation pace' ride. About 25 miles into the 45 mile ride the conversing stopped and the hammering began. At least the miles go by quickly.

I felt pretty good given the speed (21 mph) and heart rate (150 bpm). Although I think that I'm developing some saddle sores. This could become a major roadblock if they get worse.

I'll begin by washing with anti-bacterial soap and then applying some anti-fungal cream. I'm also going to try using some Udderly Smooth cream that I got at a race. It's supposed to be great for saddle sores.

Beautiful moment? Nothing beats riding at 30 mph in a Velocity paceline.

Rest Day #1

Thank goodness for rest days.

I actually slept well last night and felt good throughout the day. Maybe my body is finally adjusting.

It was a beautiful evening and I didn't want my legs to get stiff so I went for an easy 30 mile ride.

I changed my chain lubricant to White Lightning which claims to be the "Best selling" chain lubricant as well as having "No build up". I can't comment on the sales angle but the no build up line is a bunch of crap. I only get two rides and then I need to reapply the stuff. The cogs, the chain and the chainring all have a significant amount of wax build up after just one week and three applications. I guess I'll try something else.

The sun was setting, the sky was clear, the air was warm and then one of the top ten things to experience on a bike occurred. A tractor pulling a hay wagon pulled out in front of me about a quarter of a mile ahead. He was going about 25 mph so I raced up to the rear of the wagon and sat in the draft.

Bits of hay were drifting off of the wagon and the smell was wonderfully sweet. I know this sounds corny (note the country pun) but sitting in the draft of a tractor cruising down a country road on a summer evening is really fun. If you've done this you know what a treat it can be. If you haven't, I suggest that you spend some time in farmland and keep on the lookout for tractors.

Stage 9 - Switzerland

Today's ride was a pretty one. I rode a bit west and then headed north. I passed along Big Cedar Lake, Little Switzerland ski area, Kettle Moraine State Forest and Sunburst ski area.

Noting the two ski areas that I rode by you can guess, and you'd be right, that it was a hilly ride.

I actually feel better on the bike than I do off of it. After a few miles to get the legs loose I'm finding that I get into a zone. 130 bpm and 18-19 mph. I don't think, I don't feel, I just ride.

Someone once said that the aim of cycling is to reach a state of enlightenment whereby you and your velocipede become one. This is quite possibly a bunch of crap, but it works for me.

I did have a bad moment when half of my Powerbar fell from my hand. I was almost in tears over the lost food. I really need to figure out how to get some sleep.

While I'm feeling pretty good on the bike, off the bike I'm too tired to be useful, but too wired to take a nap.

Today's Tour de France stage was the second one in a row won by a rider on a Colnago bicycle. Colnago is known for making hand crafted, detail oriented and very expensive bikes. There's also a lot of hype.

I was lucky enough to find a used Colnago frame in great condition last Fall. When I first got it I was disappointed because I was expecting a major upgrade from my Specialized frame. But the more I rode it the more I came to appreciate it's qualities; smooth ride, exceptional handling, good power transfer and tracks like it's on rails. And because I no longer think about it, I know it works.

All of this riding has created another challenge; laundry. Riding at least once a day and often times twice means that all of my cycling clothes are pretty much always dirty. I need some honesty from anyone out there who rides a lot. Do you really wash your bike clothes after every ride? I know that it's recommended and I know that a person can risk getting saddle sores. Do you just ring them out in the sink or do you throw them in the washing machine?

Again, those lazy Tour riders let others take care of this challenge.

I needed 53 miles and I rode 60.

The best moment came early on as I was riding along Big Cedar Lake. There was apparently a regatta going on and the flotilla of sailboats would have been the beautiful moment of the day if not for one thing (three, actually). On a raft were three pretty girls in bikinis sunning themselves and enjoying a beverage. As I rode by one of them yelled, "Stop for a beer!" How does a guy not stop? Because you're a committed cyclist! Put your nose into the wind, put pressure on the pedals and hammer!

Stage 8 - Oconomowoc

Today's requirement was 72 miles.

I headed west and did a loop through the Holy Hill area, continued west into Dodge County and then headed southwest to Oconomowoc. Reversed it on the way home.

The Holy Hill area is the highest point in SE Wisconsin and a good place to go to get some climbing in. While I'm not looking for any extra work I thought it approriate that I do a bit of climbing as the boys at the Tour de France are climbing today.

I was unaware that "healings" and "miracles" are a common occurrence at Holy Hill. But if you click HERE you can learn more. Apparently even lameness can be eradicated. If so, this blog is not long for the world.

Entering Oconomowoc I was in need of fluid replacement. I passed a major intersection but there was no filling station. Five miles of riding around town and I still couldn't find one. Note to you entrepeneurs; build filling stations in Oconomowoc, it's a gold mine.

So I ended up doing one of the biking things that I dislike; going into Piggly Wiggly in my bike gear, hair sticking up all over, shoe cleats clicking like high heels and smelling ripe. Lots of frowns from fellow customers. I think that I may have scared a couple of toddlers too.

The Gatorade and water cost the same at the Pig, $1.19. Which means that Gatorade is cheaper at a filling station that at a grocery store. I'll never get this free enterprise thing figured out.

By the way, I hate Gatorade. It's sickly sweet, sticky and makes me have to pee. I mix it 50/50 with water to make it tolerable. Can anyone out there recommend any sports drink other than Gatorade that I can pick up at stores or filling stations?

I like to ride into the wind on the outbound half and enjoy the tailwind on the way home. While the wind in Wisconsin is essentially a prevailing westerly, Lake Michigan has a mind of it's own and can muck things up. That was the case today, into the wind outbound, into the wind homeward. Argh!

I ended up doing 75 miles which is the longest that I've ever ridden on my own. The last 20 miles was more a psychological battle than a physical one. Even though I felt OK on the bike my mind was thinking about my thighs exploding, my heart exploding and my head exploding.

I averaged 19 mph and my heart rate averaged 132 bpm. I need to slow down if I expect to last for the entire three weeks.

I'm still not sleeping well and my weight is unchanged.

Today's moment of beauty happened on an empty country road. A gold finch was flying next to me and then tucked in under my arm. It must have enjoyed the draft because it flew between my arm and chest for about ten seconds. It was pretty cool having such a pretty bird flying so close by.

Stage 7 - West Bend X2

I feel terrible today. I've got no energy and I'm doubting whether I can see this thing through.

I did 30 miles this morning and 32 this evening. I needed 71 so I was a little short, although I still have about 40 miles in the bank.

It now takes my legs about 15 miles to warm up (used to be about 5 miles).

I'm not hungry but I try to eat. My sleep is restless at best.

None of these are good signs and I hope it is just a short period of time while my body is adjusting to the added workload.

My pee is still clear so at least I'm drinking enough.

The fatigue and general malaise makes it tough to keep my bike in shape. My rear derailleur needs adjusting, a bottle cage is making some noise, the front wheel needs adjusting and the entire bike is filthy. I just don't have the energy to go out in the garage and work on my bike.

Lance and the rest of those Tour riders don't have this problem. They get new bikes and world class mechanics to keep them in peak condition. Wussies.

I saw my good friend Annie out on the road today. She's an avid cyclist and likes to get out when she can. We passed while I was on the return leg of my evening ride. Being almost done for the day and seeing her smiling face was indeed a thing of beauty.

Stage 6 - Newburg

I went for a 20 mile ride at lunch. After work I joined my Velocity mates Russ, John G. and Darren for a nice 52 miler. Total of 72 miles. I needed 62 today so I banked yet another 10. Who would have thought I'd be up 54 miles already.

I've been thinking a lot about hydration and nutrition during my long rides.

Two 24 ounce bottles of liquid will get me about 30 miles, so if I go longer I need to stop at a filling station or grocery store to reload. I start with one 24 oz bottle of Powerade (for the electrolytes) and one 24 oz bottle of Cytomax Energy drink (for the carbs).

I check the color of my pee before the ride, during the ride and after. Here are the Department of Homeland Security color codes for pee;

Gin Clear - You are drinking adequate fluids and you should be saluted
Lemonade Yellow - You are slightly behind in intake, push the drinks
Dark Yellow - You have not taken on enough fluids, you are becoming dehydrated
Orange - You are dehydrated. Stop what you're doing and drink 48 oz of water
Red - That's not pee, it's blood. Seek immediate medical attention

I'd like to learn how to pee while on the bike. I see the Tour riders do this and it seems to be a time saver. Can anyone send me some hints or tips regarding this? The one time I tried it I pee'd all over my shoes and my bike.

As for food I usually take along a PowerBar Triple Threat Bar and some Clif Shot energy gels. The Triple Threat Bar is really a reduced fat Snickers bar. They add some protein powder, reduce the chocolate and charge a bit more, but it's still a Snickers.

As such, they are delicious and they're easy to eat while riding.

The gels are supposed to provide a quick burst of energy. They do seem to work. The trick is to figure out when to take them before you need them.

Since I've been feeling fatigued I'm guessing that I'm not eating enough, either on or off the bike. My weight is still the same (164 lbs.) which surprises me.

I'll try to be more thoughtful regarding my energy level and what I'm eating to see if I can correlate anything.

For beauty, there is not much about biking that is better than finding a winding, tree-lined country road that you can cruise with your friends. We found lots of roads like that tonight and I can't remember when I had such a pleasurable ride. Thanks fellas.

We did average almost 20 mph and my heart rate averaged 145, both a little higher than I'd like.

Stage 5 - Belgium

Today's route took me from Cedarburg, WI to Grafton, Port Washington, Belgium, Fredonia and finally to the shore of Lake Michigan at Cedar Grove.

The weather was lovely; 72 degrees with a stiff breeze off of Lake Michigan.

I've been fortunate with the weather so far. I expected heat and it's been mild.

I rode 62 miles while only needing 57. I've now got 46 extra miles in the bank and I'm sure that I'm going to need them.

My legs are tired and I'm having a difficult time getting a good night's sleep. I feel OK, I just can't sleep well. Maybe I'm low on minerals, maybe it's fatigue. If you have any ideas of what it might be, let me know.

My weight has not changed since this Tour thing started. It's probably too early for any physiological changes but I'll keep vigilant as fluid, food and nutrition are going to become more and more important as the three weeks progress.

Anyway, riding along Lake Michigan was spectacular today. The white caps where breaking through the diaphanous blue water along the shoreline and it looked like a real ocean. I could almost taste the salt.

For you history buffs, Fredonia, WI is the birthplace of Flag Day.

And for you finance guys, explain this to me; I stopped in at a Citgo filling station for water and Gatorade. Both came in 20 oz. bottles. The filtered water was $1.19, the filtered water with salt & sugar (Gatorade) was $0.99. Unless the water that was displaced by the salt & sugar costs more than the salt & sugar, I don't get it. I guess this highlights the perils of free enterprise.

Stage 4 - Hammerfest

First, my rant;

Lance Armstrong's coach, Chris Carmichael, bugs me. Being Lance's coach (or at least one of them) is a pretty impressive credential. However, every time I see the guy on OLN's coverage of the Tour he's hawking his books or his coaching service.

Let's take the Tour's first stage as an example. Coming down the starting ramp and applying pressure, Lance's right foot came out of the pedal. This caused Lance to lose momentum, spend extra effort getting his foot back into the pedal and spend lot's of effort getting back up to speed. Probably costing him five seconds.

Later during his ride, Lance impressively passed his main rival, Jan Ullrich, who had started a minute earlier. Lance came in second on the day's race and lost by 2 seconds.

During the analysis of the race, Chris Carmichael makes no mention of the equipment failure (Shimano pedals, Nike shoes) but talks about how he, as Lance's coach, noted that Lance's heartrate rose too high as he passed Ullrich. Carmichael says this was not what he told Lance to do and the extra heartbeats calculate to a loss of (surprise!) 2 seconds. Had Lance just listened to Carmichael he would have won the stage and probably gone on to wear the Yellow Jersey from start to finish.

What's the message? If you sign up for one of the Carmichael's programs you too can ride like Lance. Where was the real analysis of why Lance's foot came out of the pedal? That's what undoubtedly cost him the race.

Sure, you can spend lots of money on coaching, but unless you are a world class racer earning (or potentially earning) in excess of a million dollars a year you would probably be better served by reading everything about fitness and cycling at your local library, joining a cycling club and entering a few races. Your reading will provide everything a coaching service will with respect to science and information, and riding with a club will force you to train better.

Carmichaels' books can be pretty good, just be prepared to read about how, if only you would buy his other books, or better yet, hire his company for coaching, you too, could ride like Lance.

I don't mind a guy trying to make money, but if you're supposed to offer analysis, stop selling and analyze.

OK, I'm off the soapbox.

On Tuesdays and Saturdays there is a Velocity group ride. The Tuesday ride is usually about 40 miles. Today's Tour ride was a short team time trial and I only needed 21 miles. I did a warmup ride during lunch of 11 miles and the group ride added 39 for a total of 50. I banked some more miles today.

For some reason our group rides have developed (or degenerated) into 2 hour hammerfests. While this is great for vastly improving fitness and getting ready for races, it is indeed painful and difficult. If you don't like to drool, don't show up for the rides.

On the other hand, many races are now easy when compared to the group rides. Velocity riders have been known to hold conversations during races (until Barry yells at us to come up front and chase down the breakaways).

Riding on my own I rarely exceed 160 heart beats per minute (bpm). During group rides I've somehow exceeded my tested maximum heart rate of 196. And thanks to my Polar heart rate monitor I now know that my 'drool threshold' is 172 bpm. If you're drooling, you're working way too hard (see photo above).

Hey, maybe I can write a book just like Chris Carmichael did. Mine will be a complete fitness and cycling program developed around the amazing new scientific breakthrough know as "The Drool Threshold". Of course, for the full benfits of this new science you'll need to participate in one of my exclusive (and very expensive) "Drool Camps".

Lost Among the Barbies in West Bend

Family commitments in the early part of the day (4th of July Parade, BBQ), and in the evening (another BBQ, fireworks) left me only a few hours mid day for a ride.

I hoped that the morning rain would clear but it didn't so I set out for a 50-miler in a mix of light rain and drizzle.

As miserable as riding in the rain sounds, once you're all wet it just doesn't matter. As long as you don't get cold and you are careful cornering on the wet pavement you adjust your mindset to the conditions and off you go.

Today's route took me north. I entered the West Bend area from the northeast and immediately got lost. I seemed to ride in circles until I finally came out on the busiest intersection (Hwy 33 & Hwy 45). The traffic was heavy and the holiday drivers were all in a hurry.

After a nervous 10 minutes trying to get my bearings I managed to find a quiet southbound road and headed home.

I know that you are thinking that some pretty girls (Barbies) provided today's beauty, but it was actually the Austrailian Barbies (BBQ grills) that did. During my time lost in West Bend the wonderful smells of BBQ'd chicken, beef and brats drifted about and reminded me what a wonderful time Summer can be. Even if it's raining.

I needed 65 miles today but only rode 50. Since I banked a few the last two days I'm still slightly ahead.

Equipment note: I've been using Pedro's Extra Dry Chain Lube mostly because I got a free bottle somewhere. It collects dirt like crazy and is useless in the rain. I need to find a good chain lube. Any suggestions?

And I don't care if it's 'bio' safe or not. Only arrogant human beings would be so bold as to suggest that anything that they do would actually measurably affect this planet's environment.

To wit: global warming scare.

The Earth has always cycled between periods or moderately warmer to periods of moderately cooler. Humans didn't even exist for most of the cycles.

Where did the audacity come from that somehow we puny humans could actually change the Earth's patterns? There's stuff going on deep inside this planet that no one even understands. How is it then, that a USA Today/CNN/NY Times scientist can assure us that using aerosol Right Guard will doom the Earth?

Who caused the last Ice Age? If human society was then like it is now I can assure you that the NY Times would be headlining how the cold weather was YOUR FAULT!

I suppose the 1980 Mt. St. Helens eruption is somehow related to the time in the late 60's when I tossed that pop can into the lake.

I'm not saying we should litter and care nothing about noxious emmisions, I'm just saying that there is very little real science to suggest that anything that human beings do will have any lasting effect on this planet. So stop worrying.

And don't send me any Greenpeace -type crap info or links. They want your (and my) money and the global warming hysteria is just the latest way for their types to play on our fears to increase contributions.

Happy Fourth of July!

Stage Two - Whitewater

Today saw the Velocity Cycling Team head to Whitewater, WI for a road race.

I'm not much of a climber on the bike. Hills of most any kind will find me getting dropped from the main group of riders (called the 'peloton'). As this race was billed as having "torturous" climbs I expected to be off the back of the peloton.

As it turned out, the hills weren't too bad and I was able to stay with the peloton and finished 22nd out the 59 starters. The Velocity Director, Russ, was the highest finisher on the team when he came in 12th.

I again rode a little in the evening and ended up with 57 for the day. I needed 56 so another 1 mile goes in the bank.

The children of Velocity riders Scott and Russ showed up at the race today and provided the beauty. Every time the peloton rode by, the kids could be heard screaming, "Go Velocity!" It really is great to hear those kids yelling encouragement as you're suffering on the bike.

Stage One - Cudahy

The 'Prologue', of Stage 1 of the Tour de France is usually a short individual time trial. I only need 6 miles today.

The Velocity Cycling Team went to Cudahy, WI to race in a criterium. This is one of those races where the riders go around a city block for 45 minutes and then sprint to the finish. The pace is fast and crashes are frequent.

Having had a crash myself a few days ago my goal was to get back in the saddle and get over my new found fear of fast cornering.

True to form, this race saw six crashes. The first of which my teammate Scott was involved in. Scott, being Scott, quickly replaced his trashed wheel, got back in the race and then angrily sprinted for the win. Impressive.

I finished in the middle of the pack and killed the demons.

I did some easy miles in the evening. Total distance ridden: 30 miles. I'm already putting miles in the bank.

Beautiful moment of the day is when Scott managed to get back to the pack and I was able to provide a bit of help by pulling him to the front. It feels good to have an influence on a race, no matter how small.

Ideas, Fears & Commitments

What to do with my fitness. I've got almost 3,000 miles in my legs this year and have done 9 cycling races. At 46 years old my conditioning just might be the best that it's ever been. But other than not being out-of-shape, so what?

Why not use the Tour de France as an opportunity to celebrate being alive?

It would be fun to take one of the tourist trips to France where you can cycle a section of the course each day and then watch the race go by while sipping fine French wine. Too late to do that this year.

How about riding the Tour distance each day? With a daily average distance of roughly 110 miles the time commitment is astounding, and I'm not sure it would be wise to subject my body (and mind) to those distances on a daily basis.

So here is my plan; ride 50% of the Tour mileage each day. Even 50% of the Tour distance is intimidating. It'll be 1116 miles in 21 stages, an average of 53 miles per day, every day. There are two 'rest days' so that helps.

I figure it's 50% of the distance but 100% of the effort. Here's what Tour riders get that I won't; teammates to draft behind, teammates to get food, water and clothing for me, a mechanic to take care of the bike, new bikes, wheels and parts as needed, chiropractors, doctors, podium girls and a masseuse. A chef to make customized meals, coaches to analyze my time on the bike and Cheryl Crow to sing me to sleep each night.

What I get is the support of my family, friends and Velocity teammates. And that should be enough.

In addition to talking about each days ride I hope to comment on equipment (what works and what doesn't), any brilliant ideas I might stumble upon and at least one thing of beauty I see during each day on the bike.

Should be an interesting journey.