Those of you who read my feed or drop into the blog on a regular basis know that I’ve only had a couple of updates this week. That wasn’t by design but life does get in the way. My wife had a surgery this week to correct a problem in both joints in her jaw. She was expected to be in the hospital for three days but it turned out to be only one. That was a good thing. Once home, though, she was still in a lot of pain and being there for her has to take priority over anything I do. Because of that I have found zero time to ride this week except for a ride on Tuesday. I also posted an article on what you should carry in your seat bag that I’ve been working on for a while and only needed some polishing before it was ready to publish. So, that’s about all that’s gone on in my life but there’s still plenty of other biking news. Here’s some of the highlights:

1. Lance Armstrong. Unless you are living under a rock you’ve probably heard about this. There’s been a lot of positive and negative feedback on his decision to return to professional cycling in 2009 and I find myself undecided. Part of me is very happy to see him return because I think the sport needs him. I want him back because he was the one of the first cyclists I remember following. Another part of me doesn’t want to see him ruin the perfect retirement he orchestrated after winning his 7th consecutive Tour de France. Too many other athletes have retired and then decided to make a comeback tour only to leave the sport disgraced or disappointed. I don’t want Lance to do that. I also see another side of his comeback as well. His efforts in the area of cancer awareness and fund raising are legendary and is the main point in his video over on his website. Lots of speculation has been made as to which team he will join. He says he won’t be racing for money, which is admirable, and may make it easier for teams to sign him. Which of the teams will want to make a spot for him though? Only time will tell. I hope it will be one of the American-based squads of Garmin-Chipotle or Team Columbia. I wonder if he’ll ride in a LiveStrong kit? I’d be interested in hearing my readers thoughts on Lance’s return.

2. Mark Cavendish. Can anyone match this guy in a sprint? I think not. Foregoing his native Tour of Britain, he’s been participating in the Tour of Missouri this past week and has won three stages so far. That puts his yearly wins at 15. The man is a monster in the final 1 Km. A big head-nod has to go out to his teammates though because they are the ones positioning him for all these sprint finishes. They maintain such a high pace in the last couple of kilometers that the other teams have a hard time keeping near the front. Mark is always a class-act after the race when he goes to each of his teammates and thanks them for the work they did. I think we’re seeing the birth of the sprinter to beat over the next several years. Maybe we should just call him Speed Racer.

3. 331 Miles LIVESTRONG Challenge. Jeff Contreras of 331 Miles is participating in the 2008 Austin LIVESTRONG Challenge and needs your help in raising money for cancer awareness. He has a fund raising goal of $1,000 and is already more than 25% there. Do what you can to help out. Every little bit helps. You can donate to Jeff’s fund raiser by clicking here.

4. Team Climb On! MS Bike Tour. Arlyn Asch, owner of Adventures On a Bike and member of Team Climb On!, is participating in the 2008 Bay to Bay MS 150 next month. Team Climb On raised over $22,000 last year and have raised over $13,000 so far this year. The riders are doing what they can to get in shape for the 150 mile ride but need your help in reaching their fund raising goals. Here’s the link to make a tax deductible donation: http://www.biketofinishms.com/arlynasch. What I want to know is how to get one of this awesome looking Team Climb On jerseys.

The first two items are big news in the bicycling world while the later two are just as important and deserve recognition as well. I’m hoping that next year I’ll be in shape enough to be able to ride in some of these fund raising/charity events as well. These guys set a good example for all of us.

The bicycle seat bag. It’s that small package of assurance that we keep tucked under our saddle. It sits under our rears, ignored and neglected until we need it. When we do need it we wonder if we restocked it the last time we used it. You’ll find quite a few articles around the Internet about the bike seat bag and what bicycle accessories need to be in it. These articles are always popular and get a lot of feedback because everyone has their own preference of what should be stowed in their seat bag. Just like everyone else, I have my preferences too. I think this article will be a benefit to anyone just starting in bicycling, or returning to the sport after a long layoff (just like me), or the enthusiast who has been riding everyday. Regardless of your experience, I think you’ll find the info below useful.

So, what needs to be in that seat bag? There’s quite a few things you can carry in your saddle bag but I think there’s a core list of essential items every cyclist needs. They are:

Have you noticed a trend up to this point? All five items above are directly related to fixing a flat while out on the road. The flat is probably the most common problem you can/will experience while bicycling so you need to be prepared for it. The list continues:

If putting together or going out to buy this long list of stuff has you worried don’t be. You can save some time and money by looking into some of the seat bag tire repair kits that are available. They contain everything you need to fix a flat in a seat bag, wallet, or cannister. All you need to do is add other items like money, identification, and a tool (maybe).

There you have it. The items above are what I feel are essential items you need to have in your seat bag. If you have them you’ll be prepared for your next ride and be able to make it home. I’m sure many of you will have your own opinions on what should be in your seat bag so I welcome your comments.

I really wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to get a ride in this morning. Tropical Storm Hannah prevented me from riding yesterday as it went by Florida heading for the Carolinas. The weather report called for a good day so I went to bed early expecting to ride. The alarm went off at 7:00 and I took a quick look outside. The sky was clear and there was no wind. Awesome. I was out the door by 7:20.

My fitness plan had me riding my bicycle for 30 miles today so I set out to ride the same route as last week. Unlike last Saturday, I made sure to let my wife know where I was riding and when I expected to be back. The route is below.

Overall the ride was very uneventful which was kind of nice. The sun had yet to crawl above the trees so most of the first half of the ride was in some cool shadows. It was awesome. As I neared the 10-mile point while crossing in front of the St Johns Towncenter (a big shopping area), I hear somebody yell my name. I look across the road and it’s Kevin from Ride 28. I yelled back and pulled over to see if he wanted to talk. I looked back and he kept going. Oh well. From there I did the loop around around UNF. Jaxgtr, I saw the turn you were talking about that can add some mileage on the campus. It’s the light at the campus police station. I’ll have to try that out sometime.

After finishing that loop I headed back through the Town Center and took a turn West that would take me down to my rest stop at Southpoint Community Church. While riding a long stretch on the way to the Church, I saw Kevin again heading in the opposite direction. I yelled and waived but he must not have heard me. It looked like he was concentrating on his ride and listening to his ipod. I should have called him yesterday and asked if he wanted to ride since it looks like he was riding the same route as me. Kevin, sorry about not calling. I’ll give you a call this week to see if we can meet up next Saturday.

I stopped at the Church for a quick break and took the opportunity to adjust my pedals (two of the adjustment screws had worked loose) and eat a little snack. I realized this morning that I didn’t have anymore Jelly Belly® Sport Beans or gels so I threw a little cheese and cracker snack in my bag on the way out the door. It was actually pretty tasty. I also took the opportunity to refill my water bottles. There’s a water hose on the backside of the Church but I discovered last week that you need a wrench to operate it. Luckily, I remembered to throw a miniature crescent wrench into my seat bag before leaving the house.

After getting my rest I set out again and road the ten miles back home. There were a couple of times during the ride that I felt good and decided to pick up the speed for a short interval. One was right before my rest break on a nice long flat stretch where I was able to get my speed up to 20.5 mph. The other was about halfway home on another flat piece of road where I was able to get my speed up to 20.7 mph. It felt good. Another thing I did today was ride the entire route in my big chain ring. I rarely ride using it but have decided to try and use it more often. No pain no gain.

That’s about it. It was a really great ride that left me feeling good. I saw a lot of folks this morning either running, walking, or riding. It’s always nice to see others while I’m out riding. All told, I rode 30.7 miles in 2 hours 8 minutes.