First Bike Race!

Jalin,

You had your first "bike race" this year. You had to do one lap over a couple of city blocks in downtown Columbia. You did very well! (you won for your age) The really neat thing is that the local news agency came to collect some video clips of my race and saw you getting ready. The reporter came over and interviewed you about cycling. You gave really good responses, and then, you said THE COOLEST THING EVER. The reporter asked you, if when you grew up, did you want to be like Lance Armstrong. You simply shook your head "No", and replied, "I want to be like my daddy." Good answer my boy! Good answer. To be honest, that response brought tears to my eyes. It really means a lot that you feel that way...but of course you are only 6(at the time). As you get older, hopefully, I'll still rank up there in the top 3 somewhere! If not, then please let me know where I went wrong.

Devin, you were excited to see your brother finally race. You were there cheering him on. Your time will come very soon.

About cycling: Jalin, Devin, you guys know how much cycling means to me. There are times, it seems, that it almost consumes a lot of how I plan my day. To compete on an elite level, sometimes it has to be that way. I try very hard to keep things balanced though. It's tough. Having said that, I hope you guys don't ever feel pressured to ride the bike like I do. Right now, you love riding your bikes and you are very good at it--much better than most kids your age. I hope you do get involved with it, but I will never be that father that forces you to 'race' or do anything that you don't really want to get involved in. But for now, keep riding hard!