it's official - i'm sort of a sell out?

i’m excited to announce (to both of my readers – hi mom!) that i’m officially part of the Atlanta Pro Bikes 2008 roster (website is not '08 ready). the team has been around since 1995 and i’ve personally been dusted by a couple of the guys in the recent past. don’t let the name fool you… this is no “pro” deal by any means but there are some perks. with a list of sponsors including Sweetwater, Highland Bakery, Maxxis, Willy’s, The Highlander, etc… i hope to get a burrito and maybe a beer out of the season. in fact, i’ve already learned that anytime i stop by the shop on North Highland Ave i’m greeted with a PBR (and occasionally the chance to dance the polka). combine the PBRs with the experience of being on a team with some really strong riders and to say i’m excited is probably an understatement. i’m still planning on hitting it on the mountain bike and will continue to ride at the track this year. some of the team has started with the first couple road races of ’08 with some very impressive results. while i had not intended on doing road this year i may have to jump into a couple races just to see what it’s like.

since this blog is in the spirit of being green to all of this cycling stuff… i have to let you know that the thought of riding with a team and having a logo covered ‘kit’ never occurred to me a couple years ago. Example… i raced in a 24 hour road race,FM.24.06, a couple years ago on a fully fixed gear all jeans and t-shirt team. my only road bike for a couple years was my fixie beater that was intended for commuting and the occasional alleycat or bar ride. we, DREADNOK, finished in fourth place (out of 37) and were the only team in the top six riding all fixed gear and not on a ‘squid’ team. DREADNOK came back this past September for FM.24.07. we had ridden enough to learn about the relief of chamois and half of us rode geared bikes. we finished second (out of 59) behind the same AVX team that won the previous year. I knew the transition had started… by transition, i don’t mean that i’m moving away from the fixie and the in town cycling culture, but i have begun the leap into trying all facets of riding/racing and putting in the effort to do so while wearing the funny clothes that make everything much more comfortable. i'm getting a little old to be racing down Peachtree St at midnight on a Friday for $5 - not to say that i won't be doing that on occasion. hey, at least i don’t shave my legs – yet. we’ll see what this year brings.

i’m looking forward to the APB ‘camp’. i’ve actually only met five of the riders so far so it will be great to put faces with the e-mail chatter. we’ll all be in Pisgah for a long weekend, March 21-23.

**keep an eye out… another perk – by getting into an APB kit, i’ve just reduced my chances of being hit by a car by at least some. that is the brightest green I’ve ever seen.