A Great Weekend

Yes it was, a great weekend of riding that is. Before I begin telling you about that, let me get the work and school arena of my life out of the way. Work is going well, business has slowed down, as just about everything in our countries current sad state of affairs has. We're still managing to pay the bills, so that'll have to do for now. It could be worse, right? School is fairly uneventful this semester. I like English 202, but I'm getting anxious for spring to arrive so I'm able to get started in the Library Technology program. Now on to the good stuff...Thursday morning I receive an email from the team that the plan for the weekend is to attend the infamous Swamis ride on Saturday. For those of you who don't know this ride, it's touted as the hardest group ride in San Diego. Every so often a pro shows up to mix it up with the local boys, this Saturday delivered. First off, I've always been scared, that's right, scared of attending this ride for fear that I wouldn't hang very long and ulitmately end up riding solo and humilated for many, many miles. I really need to get over that and realize that although I'll never be able to hang with the big boys of the sport, my fitness is good, and there's always someone slower:) Anyway, so there I am, sitting in front of B&L Bikes in Solana Beach, with a teammate, anxious, nervous, but not afraid. Up rolls Neil Shirley and Cody Stevenson from Jittery Joes. As if on cue, the groans begin, kiddingly, but also with a hint of, "Oh shit, today's gonna hurt". At 8:15am sharp the ride gets underway and I immediately notice another teammate up ahead and proceed to ride up to him. Now I find myself right at the front of the pack while we cruise down PCH, and the whole time I'm thinking, "Should we Cat 4's be leading THIS group, on THIS ride?" Oh well, enjoy leading it while you can. About four miles down the road we spot three riders looking back at us, waiting to jump in. As we approach they do just that. The guy who jumps in in front of me is decked out in a full Astana kit, complete with Trek bike and all. He looks vaguley familiar, but I'm unable to see him from behind. My first thought is this is just some poser Astana wanna-be joining in the Swamis ride, sucker! Just about then this guy turns to look back at the group and Holy Shit, it's Chris Horner! Very cool. I'm riding Chris Horner's wheel. A smile comes across my face, and I chuckle to myself thinking, what other sport has this much accessibility to the top athletes who compete in it? I mean really. When I played golf, there was never a chance I'd just radomly run in to Tiger Woods and have the opportunity to play a few holes with him. But there I was, just one day earlier flippin eggs and slingin hash in a hot little kitchen, and the next day drafting behind Chris Horner!!! The ride, epic, the experience, as they say, priceless. A great memory. Today, another beat down delievered to me by my Swamis training partner, who will now be known as "Warner Whiskas". More on that later:) Until next time.....