May 1, 2005 (9pm)

It's dusk in downtown Athens, Georgia and the Gods began to threaten us with what was soon to come pouring from the sky.  As quickly as the skies began to open up with rain, a flood of spectators dressed like prom-goers invaded the tiny blue tent I had just declared safe haven.  I knew instantly their stay was unjustified so I was left with no choice but to corral them back out into the rain.  This territory was mine, and I had to mark it.  The moment I arrived Athens I knew this evening would be mayhem, rewarding only those who best understood the Darwinian principles of survival of the fittest.

I had to replace my usual willingness to befriend the spectators with my bully face in order to protect the only safe place I could find to prepare for what was to come.  The tiny blue tent was like my passageway to an underground world I could tell was quickly approaching.The streets were packed four deep with bar hopping, babe watching, belly baring college kids on the prowl spewing their intoxication onto the race course in buckets full of adrenaline.  No sunlight remained and the steady downpour began to compete with the screaming fans, firework finale, and sirens that made up the soundtrack of the evening.

When the race began I left my body and must have entered some place that didn't have a start or an end.  My best interpretation of the experience is at best a single stream of consciousness held together by the desire to survive.  To recreate the 60 minuets that made up our race seems as though it would require the ability to imagine what it feels like to ice skate upside-down on the ceiling of a Double Decker bus full of monkeys that happens to be traveling around the circumference of the moon.  (Keeping in mind that its dark on the moon, somebody thinks its the fourth of July, and instead of craters there are slippery manhole covers...)

The 20 foot by 20 foot TV screen on the backstretch helped the exuberant voice of announcer Dave and his hypnotized fans capture the action even better... crazed fans "that partied even harder just because it was pouring," always make an even just that much more epic.  A field of 75 women eliminated all but 12 at one point and I don't know how I managed to stay upright all the way to the finish.  Racing beside my QUARK teammates made the entire experience feel even more like an out of the body production.  It surely felt like a show that I’m sure only a bike messenger or one of those crazed and drunkard fans could truly comprehend.  By the end of the race, I felt as though I had become one with the rain, the raves, and the ruckus.  I wound up finishing in 3rd place and am look forward to the full 364 days of recovery until next years epic evening of mayhem.  Thank you for the energy Athens!!!!