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This is what I found in my email box this morning: "You started your blog on fire, but it looks lik (sic) you burnt out."

I can't imagine that anyone actually cared one way or the other if there was a daily post to this thing or not, but if I have 10 minutes to peck something out on the keyboard, I'll normally do so. But there will be one week each month where I'm writing and reviewing lots of stuff anyway as we get the next edition of the paper together. On those weeks, I don't feel like writing anything, including the stuff I'm supposed to write.

But, yeah, I'd agree that there is some burn out there. I feel pretty crispy overall. I raced myself out for the season (planned), I'm working doubletime trying to get the newspaper kicked up a level, we're getting ready for Interbike, there are still two little ones here who are getting louder, faster, and more adventerous, and then there is Kid #1 who really needs a driver's license to get him to all the places he needs to go. Only seven more years. And there are my mtn bike clients who are getting their Fall seasons started, and I've got a handful of roadie clients who are getting anxious with a big stage race and State Championships coming up.

TXBRA should be pretty busy right now, but it isn't. I'll chalk that up to burn out for Prez Rob and myself. When you consider how much time and effort and babysitting Rob has put into TexasBicycleRacing and then TXBRA and into doing his part to make babies in the last few years, it is a wonder the boy can ride a bike at all. I'm comfortably nervous about TXBRA's future, but I'm mostly excited to see that Rob is going to spend more time on Enak, Inc.

And since TXBRA should be pretty busy right now, but isn't, that causes a little bit of stress. I know I shouldn't worry about it, as I'm sure there will be racing next year no matter what happens in the next 6-7 weeks. But the job ain't done until the job is done, and it is starting to feel like that term paper we had in those writing classes of our freshman year of college. We know there is something that needs to be done, and we know the deadline, but...

GSTz is still moving forward, though I've gotten out of the detail bidness of most of that stuff. Funny, just as everyone is ready to hang up the wheels for a couple weeks is when most of the work has to be done to set up for the next season. Just when I'm ready to imagine three days without lycra, I'm having to lay groundwork for the next training camp. That said, I think I'm only going to head up the O.L.D. School camp and leave the rest of the camps to the collective 'zingers to sort out.

Now that I've just written out all of the things I'm supposed to be working on, I think I'll go surf NML and the Racer's Forum on txbra.org. My favorite cigarette break lately, however, is http://www.addictinggames.com/miniputt.html. But we don't play for low score. We play by time. Try to beat 2:23 for a round of 18 holes. I think I can knock a few more seconds off of that, but it the best I've done so far.

So much to do...

"Williams, onesome. Please report to the first teebox."

OK, make that 2:18. Now 2:15. I'm on fire.

Darn, That's The End

"Darn, that's the end." It is one of those things that has stuck with me since childhood. The kid at the end of one of the Schoolhouse Rock segements saying it was the end, but unhappy about it. That is the way I feel about the T'Nighter.

We're all tired. It has been a long season, and most of us don't need much excuse to skip a training ride. But the Tuesday Nighter isn't just a race. I could get sappy and talk about the institution that it has become over the last 20 years, but really, it is just an excuse for me to get my ass kicked by crOzzy, then go have a beer with him afterwards.

Tonight was the last T'Nighter for 2004, and at that, it was rained out, so the official race didn't even happen. We did have an impromtu bandit race with no rules, registration and such, but it was sort of anti-climatic since all the big players weren't there. But we did have a good group of teammates there to represent anyway, and I think it is fitting that we won the thing, even if it wasn't an official race. Way to run it, Rory!

Though Eller would never say it, and I imagine he wouldn't even think it, things definitely went into another gear when he came on board. Sure, we were a strong team before, but adding Eller to our mix impacted us on several levels. Yes, even our bar tab went up.

Besides being one of the bad asses of the Texas racing circuit, he also promotes one of the most famous racing series, The Tuesday Nighter. Of course, it wouldn't be Eller's style to actually PROMOTE the thing. No, he just makes sure someone is sitting at the table to take entry fees. The rest is sort of auto-pilot. But he's our Eller, and dammit, I wouldn't want it any other way.

Even if he did call the season finale because it might rain. Fag.

I'm glad we lined it up anyway, because it takes me a foqqing hour to drive out to the course. Li'l Scott rode co-pilot, and on the way, we kept each other company talking about how much we really didn't feel like racing. I'm telling you, the motivational talk and positivisms were about as frequent as my wins this year.

But we got there and Rory taunted us into suiting up. We did. And we rode a whole warm up lap of .75 miles to get ready for the "race." Long story short...wait, the race was all of 45 minutes, so it wasn't really a long story...anybecause, a bunch of nothing tried to get away, and then Rory, Max, and leo finally made the timing and combination work. I jacked with the chase, and that was that.

TEO took off with two to go, which forced a Plano Red to chase (we're Plano Blue for the uninitiated), which forced the field to chase, which essentially led us out to about 700m. That's where Gacki and new 'zinger Les led it out. Li'l Scott rolled in for fourth, I took fifth, and Brooks covered sixth.

Then we went out to 'Dinks for dinner and drinks. OK, only TEO and I drank the blue ritas, but we can't help it if we were out with some pansies. I tried to call Eller and JD, but they screen my calls, so we had a mini party with just the few of us. The highlight was Teri talking about the Dirty Sanchez.

GS Tenzing has its faults, but commaderie isn't one of them. I enjoy hanging out with one or all of those kids in Blue and White. Though I think I only have one more race in me this year, I'm already looking forward to the Herro Rides, camps, skiing, and then January, when we start at it all over again.

Big hug for everyone. Even the guys without any pants.

Putting the SUV in SUV

The motivation was lacking, so I left for Chappell Hill about 7 hours later than planned. Turns out that Mama and the kids were going to sit this one out, so I flew solo on the trip. Honestly, I wasn't much in the mood for racing after enjoying that lazy Saturday morning, and I was motivated to see if I could have an even lazier Sunday morning. But I volunteered to bring the TXBRA trailer (scaffolding, camera, tents, tables, etc for the finishes of Texas Cup races) down south to the race...when you make a committment, you stick to it. And since that big ol' trailer is sitting in the pasture, which is in plain view through the window at my desk, I'm finally forced to say, "OK, I'M GOING" as if the trailer was taunting me.

Because I'm in full "lazy" mode, I drove over to the barn to get a fresh supply of water bottles from the stash. When I opened the barn door, I was knocked back with a stench that I hope nobody ever has to experience. And mind you, we have two kids in diapers now, so I know stink.

I don't know how the possum got in the barn, but it certainly didn't know how to get out. The weird thing is that I took the lawnmower out of there just a couple days earlier, and I'm pretty sure I would have noticed a possum in that little barn then.

Anyway, I did everything I could to not touch the thing, but it had to get out of that barn. I found a rope and made use of a broken shovel handle to lift the carcass to tie a rope around the wasting meat. Then I pulled it out of the barn, gagging only twice. But I can drink grappa, so I may have more tummy constitution than others. Then I tied the rope to the bumper of Moby (our Expedition) and drug (dragged? whatever) the thing out to the pond. Please do not swim in our pond for awhile, OK?

Proceeded then to hook up the trailer and get ready for roll out. I went inside and scrubbed my hands and arms under the hottest water I've ever managed to touch, because I wanted to leave the wife and kids with a big hug, not possum juice.

After a tough goodbye with kid #2, I'm rolling down the road at almost 9pm going a whopping 55mph with that trailer. Oh, I could go faster, but the fact that we just had an axle repaired is making me more cautious than normal. It takes a long time to go 270 miles at 55 mph.

One benefit to traveling by myself is that I could listen to the Jimmy Buffet, the St. Thomas School Pipe and Drum Band, and Coldplay CD's just as loud as I could stand it. That helped the time go by.

Rolled into Chappell Hill at almost 2am, found a place to drop off the trailer, and then drove for a bit to find a place to make camp, as I was not going to get a motel for just a few hours of sleep.

Found a nice spot behind a run down general store-looking place. I cracked the windows, fluffed the pillow, and then spent the next hour killing mosquitos and sweating for no good reason.

When I started cramping in the night, I decided to roll up the windows, start the engine and turn on the AC. Ahhh...got downright chilly in there. Unfortunately, I was already cramping, so it continued even though I was drinking as much as possible. All I really succeeded in doing, however, was making myself have to get up and take a leak every 30-40 minutes. Which let in more mosquitos each time I opened the door.

I didn't sleep so well, and I was irritated laying there waiting to cramp, so I went looking for a breakfast spot. Drove into Brenham hoping for a "Mama's Cafe" type place, but I couldn't find one open. Then it hit me that I was in need of a dumper. You know what it is like when you really have to go, but you are in the car, and you can't seem to find a convenience store or gas station that is open.

Finally found one of those McDonald's/Gas Station places, and I ran into the bathroom like I stole something from my car only to find a line for the one stall. I had to go so badly that I was sweating, which was making me more stressed about the race.

After pacing around the place, I finally got my turn. Took care of bidness, then went to fill the void with a McD's breakfast. I spent $2 on Hot Cakes, which got me thinking, "I'm racing pretty darn cheap this weekend!"

TXBRA covered my gas since I went to Wichita Falls to pick up the trailer. My entry fee was comped by the generous promoter (for working on the TXBRA board), and I "slept" in the car...

Made my way back to Chappell Hill, paid the $2 to park, got registered, pinned, and dressed. Rolled around for a mile and endured a cramping right calf. Great. Only 86 miles to go, assuming our race doesn't take a wrong turn somewhere.

I stuffed my pockets with water bottles and made way for the start with li'l Scott. His parents pulled up just as we were lining up, and we celebrated by getting them every bottle and container of water we had. In a matter of seconds, I went from the mindset of just riding until I ran out of water to, "Great, now I can't use 'we didn't have a feed' as an excuse for quitting."

At that point, I'd only spent $4 on the trip...

The Weekend, Coach-Style

Had a fairly light day on Friday as we originally planned to head down to Austin before making the trip to Chappell Hill. With so much travel on the schedule, I worked double time on Thursday to clear the way for some Finding Nemo time, otherwise known as travel. See, with a 2 yr old and a ten month old, 4+ hour drives, which we make most weekends, require back up support. Thank You, Lord, for bringing us the DVD player. Amen.

Anywhat, the kids have runny noses, and we were planning to see their brand new cousin in Austin. Runny noses and meeting brand new babies don't mix.

So I'm sitting at home answering some dumb ass TXBRA email and dealing with team drama and thanking myself for getting work done on Thursday to free up time for that bullshit.

After spending a few hours on that stuff, I was beginning to hate, so I went postal on the yard with the walk behind lawnmower. Would have used the riding lawnmower, but the engine and deck need replaced. And when you think about what all a riding lawnmower really is...

The yard looks good, but when I came in, there was still the dumb ass email and team drama...

So I kissed the horses, pet the kids, and fed the wife, which bought me an evening out at the track to watch my boy, Kevin, take 4th in the match sprints at Nationals held in Frisco. Kinda cool to see Nationals stuff and still get to sleep in your own bed. Bonus, Nathan (Kevin's Dad and all-around great guy) bought my dinner and a pitcher of margaritas. Ahhh.

Had a lazy Saturday morning for once. Played with the baby, read and practiced the potty with Kid #2, and I even tried to take a nap. Leftover Chinese food for lunch, and then went to Kid #1's first baseball game. They lost 14-0, but as Kid #1's Mom said, "He looks good in his uniform." Well, there is that, I guess.

While at the game, I burned up the cell phone talking about team stuff. I tell you what, I think I've put in over 40 hours so far on the topic of team bikes alone. And at that, I probably won't even get one myself, because I don't get to train so much to be good enough to warrant a team bike. 40 hours...

Got home from the game to an empty house. Too lazy to pack up my crap for the race tomorrow, so I'm punching the keyboard.

Phone rings. Client wants to know what he should eat before his mtn bike race tomorrow. He's racing Sport for the first time, and he's worried about bonking on that extra lap.

Lord, grant me the patience...

They Don't Call Me "Sweets"

Booorrrriiinngg.

Married, very happily. Three kids. Two jobs. Volunteer. I shave my legs.

I'm not a cool kid, but they let me sit at their table, and I truly believe that it isn't simply because I can get training tires at cost. Maybe I can't go out every night (well, actually, I could, because my wife would let me or at least likes it when I'm gone), or likely, I shouldn't go out every night, but I do get to go play with the cool kids once or twice a week. Once or twice week as long as I've been keeping up with the dishes, lawn, diaper changes and such.

I'd like to have a boat, but it ain't gonna happen since I don't make that kind of jack. Instead, we have a home. Not just a house, but a home. The kind of home where everyone feels welcome to stay the night. My truck is getting old, but it is paid for. Sorry about the sippy cups and cardboard books with missing pages in the back.

But like I said, booorrrriiinngg. I don't have pick up lines at the bars, and the kind of women that are attractive to me aren't the ones where you forget their names before you've kicked them out of the room. But, hey, I like a good show.

I don't drink much beer, either. That doesn't mean I'm unlikely to get lubricated; it just doesn't tend to happen with beer. I like those queer beers, like Zima, Hard Lemonade, Raspberry this, or Honey that. Wine is my choice, followed closely by the margarita, pina coloda, etc. Mostly margarita. But whatever. It gets me there, wherever that is.

Why read this blog? Not much reason to live vicariously through me. Heck, I bore me. Since I don't go to the bars much, and I'm not going to write on my own bathroom wall...