[OrRando] Introduction

[Lynne Fitzsimmons]

Long time no see, Ken.  Like climbing the Waldo Hills 3(?) years ago?

You'll find a significant TBB presence on OrRando rides.  Will you be there 
tomorrow?

Lynne F
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dread Pirate Kermit" <frogpirate at gmail.com>
To: <orrando at tire.patch.com>
Sent: Friday, March 07, 2008 2:58 PM
Subject: [OrRando] Introduction


> I've been lurking for a little bit and thought I'd toss out an intro.
> Some of you may know me from Cycle Oregon '04 and /or Race Across
> Oregon '05 (and '06-'07 as crew).
>
> Our website;I have not done much here in a long time.
> http://www.candyassllamas.com/
>
> I'm 48 and have always owned a bicycle but really only became a
> "cyclist" in 2004. I met the woman that became my wife in late '03,
> and cycling was her passion. Motor-cycling was (and still is, now with
> cycling added) mine. By January '04 we were all but living together
> and in February we signed up for Cycle Oregon. That year it was held
> in SW Oregon with the penultimate climb being Crater Lake. As it
> turned out it snowed that day and we (wisely) stayed in camp. However
> "Dead Indian Road" was a good test for a rider that had only been
> riding for 8 months!
>
> 2004 saw my first organized ride (Monster Cookie) my first Century
> (Reach the Beach) and of many other firsts in cycling for me! That
> year I read everything about cycling I could get my hands on,
> including a book called "Going the Distance" by multi-time RAAM
> finisher George Thomas . I told my wife that was crazy, but that
> George's shorter "Race Across Oregon" (RAO) looked doable. She told me
> I was crazy.
>
> In November of '04 I had to go somewhere for a business trip. When I
> got back Lisa had gotten an e-mail that there was a 4-day RAO training
> camp coming up in the spring. She thought it might be fun but we
> weren't sure we could do it. So being the innocents we were, we called
> George and asked his opinion. By the end of the phone call he had
> convinced us that we could not only do the training camp, but we
> should do the race as a two-person relay team! That's how we became
> the Candy Ass Llama's, the first two-person mixed team to race and
> finish the Race Across Oregon.
>
> In '06 & '07 we mostly helped other Ultra Racers. Lisa and I crewed
> for "You can call me Al" Smudz in the '06 & '07 RAO, leading to a DNF
> in '06 and overall 1st place in '07. We also crewed for Al at Sebring
> in '07 (2nd place). Lisa volunteered at RAAM HQ in '07, spending 2 1/2
> weeks in Boulder, CO answering phone calls and riding her bike in her
> off time. My big thing in '07 was a little motorcycle rally called the
> "Iron Butt Rally" in which I rode 10,300 miles in 11 days. Overall in
> '07 I rode just over 26,000 miles on my motorcycle (and maybe 150 on
> my bicycle!)
>
> This year we are back to cycling. Lisa has joined a RAAM soloist as a
> crew member and we are both signed up for Cycle Oregon. I am doing a
> small motorcycle rally - the Utah 1088, only 1088 miles in 24 hours -
> in June. Other than that we are just going to get out and ride some of
> our favorite organized rides and favorite unorganized routes. Next
> year we want to ride the HooDoo 500 route, probably as a supported
> week ride.
>
> I have a strong desire to do more long rides, like, oh say brevets.
> However my riding partner - the lovely Lisa - has no desire to do
> unsupported rides so I'm limited in how much I'll actually be able to.
> She and I want to do a coast-to-coast ride in the next 5-7 years and
> it will be supported (just ask her!) I am currently having a new bike
> built that will be more conducive to doing long rides, a Co-Motion
> Nor'wester that I will be setting up for supported touring, brevet's
> etc. I was hoping to meet everyone at Snoosville but alas I have a
> sister in need and brotherly duty calls.
>
> Here is a bad picture of me taken just before last years IBR:
>
> http://www.ironbuttrally.com/ibr/2007/html/46-1.html
>
> I hope that wasn't TOO long winded! Regards, Ken
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