The Hell of the Marianas

It is not often that I get an offer to race my bike in a warm, sunny place in December, but recently just such an offer came my way.  In a few weeks time, I will fly to Guam and Saipan for the 4th edition of the annual Hell of the Marianas race.  This is made possible by my athlete Joseph Husslein, whose fantastic fund-raising ride across America I wrote a bit about earlier:

http://www.aeolusendurance.com/blog/index.cfm/2010/10/10/Support-Josephs-LittleBigRide-Across-America.

By the way, there is still time to give and, this Friday, the Beacon Foundation will match any donations made to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Guam dollar-for-dollar, DOUBLING the value of your pledge.

The preparation for HOM has meant a bit of sacrifice.  This sacrifice has come in the form of

1. Missing out on cyclocross
2. Doing long, tough intervals in November in the rain
3. Not indulging in my usual feast of autumn sweet treats
4. Going to bed early, and...
5. Not going Salsa dancing every weekend

Okay, the last one is not such a big sacrifice.  However, while my friends are hanging around doing coffee rides, I'm training.  I'm not complaining, though.  It's an excellent race in a beautiful place and the field improves each year.  I'll post updates here whenever I get near a computer.