It's a slow fade

This time I have a pretty good reason for being late. First, it was Thanksgiving and I led two very successful days of "Burn the Turkey" training rides on Thursday and Friday. Each day I had other obligations besides the rides that kept me from posting, mainly eating! Second, as the Friday ride was completed I was unaware my immune system was already in battle mode in what turned out to be a losing proposition. I woke up on Saturday morning with that dreaded feeling of a slight chill and some body ache. It was not from the previous three days of 8.5 hours of training, but from the most dreaded three letter word of winter - flu.

The remainder of the weekend was spent mostly wrapped up in covers and knocked out cold. I put down a whopping 14.5 hours of continuous sleep on Saturday night alone, not including naps before and after! This year has been the first once since I can remember when I haven't received a flu shot. Well, there you go. If there ever was a good time to have the flu it was now. I did not miss the Thanksgiving meal and dessert, and I did not have to miss showing up on campus. Sure, I missed a little training, but this time of year for me it's not as structured as it will become shortly. The sickness did put a dent into some things I had planned to accomplish, all of which centered around the business class I teach. I was able to get most of it done, but it was impossible for me to grade 58 research papers with my head in the clouds.

So there you have it, my excuse and I'm sticking to it. I was going to write about a bunch of cycling news, but I have changed my mind. Instead, I think I'll write about random thoughts that I have not shared. Wait, I guess some of this is cycling news.

As it stands now the NashvilleCyclist.com racing team is without a sponsor for 2009. The last couple of years we've had the financial support of Bike Pedlar, which helped tremendously in getting our squad off the ground. I feel it is important to say that I know some questioned if this relationship would work, but our sponsor followed through on all that he said he would do. Both parties are walking away with smiles on their faces, which is what I expected all along. We'll be forever grateful and thankful of Bike Pedlar's support in 2007-2008.

Despite Bike Pedlar not moving forward with us we are still adding talent and reloading for 2009! We've got a couple of extra strong Cat 3s joining us as well as developing a women's team. Next on the list in the near future is a juniors squad. Just hide and watch us!

This brings up a unique opportunity for our squad, which is to be a bike shop neutral team. I know when I started the team it raised some eyebrows because of the perceived bike shop neutrality the website had generated. I have always seen the racing team and website as two separate and distinct operations, but I can understand how others see it differently. Now that we're back to square one the team and I are all in agreement to go it alone, and I do not foresee us changing our mind. I will only seek out and entertain opportunities that allow that neutrality to thrive. Which, if I think about it much, is pretty exciting!

One sponsorship gem for the NashvilleCyclist.com team to be announced soon may catch you off guard. Think local and think coffee. Stay tuned for that news within the coming days!

Oh, and about the website. I recently spoke with a website builder who specializes in the cycling industry. NashvilleCyclist.com is in need of a fresh look and complete overhaul to meet current technology. There are too many benefits to list here, but suffice it to say I was pleased with the conversation and subsequent quotes. It will be a worthy investment that you and I both will enjoy, but first raise or earn the capital!

Have you heard about the new used bike shop opening up on 12 South? Check out Halcyon Bike Shop.

I cannot remember if I mentioned this before or not, but I was re-elected the Road Director of TBRA for 2009. We are still working on the schedule and have most of it complete, but there are a few local and regional events we're working around. The schedule should be posted soon, so stay tuned to TBRA.org for information.

I was reading an article the other day (see link below) about how our connectedness is really creating greater disconnect, and something called Second Life was given credit for helping to create the wedge even wider. I had never even heard of it, have you?

Along those lines, awhile back I thought to myself about our progression in communication and how it has only driven us farther apart. Follow me here as I try to recall my thoughts:
Face-to-face turns into.....
Sending handwritten letters turns into.....
Telephoning turns into.....
Television viewing turns into.....
Personal mobile video devices turns into.....
Mobile wireless telephones turns into.....
Internet emails turns into.....
Internet websites turns into.....
Internet instant messaging turns into.....
Mobile telephones with voice, video, email, instant messaging and website management.....
Turns into.....what?!?!

What is the next big thing? We have proven to ourselves we get bored pretty quickly with any technology that allegedly makes forward progress. Every step in that progression we walk farther away from one-on-one in person contact. What will our minds conjure up and make available next? What other form of communication can exist which will exceed our current abilities and time stamps?

Those Who Watched Internet Suicide Have Problems Too
Focus less on Dr. Keith's comments about the suicide issue (although they're important), but pay closer to attention to his last four paragraphs. My thoughts above were before reading this article, but affirmed what I have been thinking lately.

I would argue we are not connected, but rather more isolated than we have ever been in the history of the world. Could it be that all that's crumbling around us is nothing more than a reminder to go back to square one? It may not be a bailout of business after all, but rather a bailout of ourselves and all our lost souls.

I wonder.