Well, there isn't much news other than we have been lucky to have a few warm days here and there. We recently rode in the 10th Annual Elvis Ride - a ride started by Doug Mote to remember Elvis Presley each year around his birthday. This year it was held January 11th. John, Matt & myself decided we would ride the 26 miles from John's father's home to the ride start. The ride was just over 50 miles. Year to year the ride can be either an easy roll through the rural countryside of Greenville, Georgia or a race. In the past, the Auburn cycling team - The AU Flyer's would end their training camp week with the Elvis Ride. They would ride team tactics and send their strongest off in the last 10 to 15 miles to have the first finishers. This year the Flyer's didn't show up. So, John and Matt decided to test the field with an attack at 10 miles into the ride. They were joined by a small group. They kept the pace high and rode at full race intensity throughout. John & Matt really laid the hammer down with around 5 to go. This did the trick. John tested himself and Matt to see what was in the tank and was able to gap Matt a little before the finish. We also met a young man who had expressed interest in racing with the team - Tucker Solts. Tucker is just 16 and done one race in his life. He was able to stay with the lead group until the final attack. He will be a strong young racer and we are happy to have him join our group.
This was a good ride for us. The weather was gray, the temps were around 39 - 40 degrees and it was a good indicator that the training was going well. I rode with a former CBR racer - Darren Sorrells. Darren has been off the bike a while so we took it easy and didn't contest the ride with the hammer crowd.
Keep the rubber side down!
