Freewheel’n – Summer, 2005

Freewheel’n – Summer, 2005

 

Here we are in the heat of summer.  As this is being written, Lance has a hold on the Tour de France and is likely to win.  And what a race this has been.  After 16 stages, Lance is in the lead by 2:46 over Ivan Basso and Mickael Rasmussen by 3:09 who are in second and third place respectively.  Then comes Jan Ullrich who is behind by 5:58.  The race in the Pyrenees was spectacular with Lance in control.  Perhaps Stage 15 that was won by long time racing teammate George Hincapie turned out to be the race within the race.  When I think back to my early days of cycling, there was hardly an American in the Tour.  Team 7-11 then came along…eventually, Greg LaMond became the first American winner…now Lance with his unbelievable seventh victory in a row!!!!  What an amazing turnaround for the stars and stripes, what a remarkable recognition for our sport!!!  Congratulations Lance!!!!  Yes, he is retiring from racing, but suspect he will not be leaving the sport.  Perhaps the best quote of the race came from Sheryl Crow about Lance, “He shaves his legs better than I do.”  Thank you Sheryl for sharing that insight with all of us!!  If you want to relive some of the excitement, you can go to http://www.olntv.com and http://www.bicycling.com and see some terrific video and read about the individual stages.  For you Sheryl Crow fans…well you can go to http://www.sherylcrow.com.  There are photos of her climbing the Alpe d'HuezAlpe d'Huez.

 

You can be a part of the Bristol-Myers Squibb Tour of Hope! Register for the October 8 DC Fundraising Ride and help raise funds for cancer research. Greet the Tour of Hope Team at the Ellipse for the emotional Finale as Lance Armstrong leads the riders on the final stage of their amazing cross-country journey.  This year, riders can register for either a 50-mile ride beginning in rural Maryland or a 10-mile ride starting in Glen Echo, MD 

 

We now head into August…that means the Bridgeton Zoo Tour.  This is our only ride that has a real destination!  Some do not know there is a zoo in Bridgeton situated in a lovely park.  You can stop and wander around and see the animals before the trip back.  RePete plans to be there, both helping and riding.  If you have never done this ride…you’re missing a gem.  If you have the time, then volunteer to help.  Either way, do not pass this up.

 

Then in September is the ever-popular Jersey Devil.  This is the premier event for the club and is an exciting tour that wraps-up the tours for the year.  Regrettably, RePete will again be teaching on Saturdays during the Fall semester and will not be able to attend.  But that should not stop anyone from joining the fun this tour provides.

 

Between these two rides, will be RePete’s own Piney Hallow Tour…the ride of the headless cyclist!  Legend is that a group of cyclist disappeared after being chased by this figure!!!!  See the ride section for further details.

 

Finally, please remember about the club’s message board located on their web site.  Once again you can find current and past releases of Freewheel’n that simply allow you to click to links mentioned in my releases.  No more typing those long never-ending URL’s!  You can also post your own message…a great way to share news and thoughts between newsletters or to follow-up on anything.

 

Safe Cycling,

RePete

www.oocities.org/repete_bike

repeten@verizon.net