I turned 35 today, so I thought I would review the last 365(+) days. Just a few months before my 34th birthday, I made the commitment to change my lifestyle to reflect the person I wanted to be. The major change was focused around my health and level of fitness. The loss of nearly 100 lbs and the accomplishment of riding 100 miles around Lake Tahoe has made this an epic year.

I was also part of small company that made a huge impact in the enterprise software market, which lead to an acquisition by SAP (second largest software company in the world.) I was able to work closely with key members and the executive team whom I now consider good friends—which made the success of Virsa that much more sweet. I owe a lot of my recent personal success to my friends at Virsa who supported me both out-loud and financially by sponsoring my big fat ride. I look forward to extending our success within SAP.

Thus far, 2006 is shaping up to be a good year to send my first ever “year in review” holiday card. You know the kind that usually our relatives create to promote little Billy’s amazing talents or an update on how Aunt Margee's bunion surgery went. Life is short and by stopping to document the challenges, failures and success on a regular basis makes it feel a little richer. Learning to recognize the moments that matter is probably the best lesson I have learned during my last trip around the sun.

Another Big Fat Ride!

To celebrate my birthday I have signed up for another big fat ride. It is called the Tour de Tucson. It is 109 miles around Tucson, Arizona in the middle of November. I will again train for this ride with Team In Training. It is a different style of ride from the Tahoe ride. It is longer but there is only is about half the climbing. It is a race this time—with real cyclist leading the pack out. Even though I have continued training hard—I am not in century riding shape. My legs are in shape but my butt has gone soft. I have been riding 20-30 mile loops on the weekend but the butt knows the difference… the butt always knows.

Social Justice

Thank God, the term social justice has nothing to do with me wearing lycra in public. During the last 12 months, social justice has become a constant motivator and passion for me. I was raised with a strong foundation for giving and making sure that we do more then just complain about the state of the world. When I was 13, my parents made it possible for me to work on an Indian reservation for a week during the summer in Nevada. When I was 16 they allowed me to help rebuild a school in China. My youth group took days out to serve the poor in soup kitchens and raise money for women’s shelters. I have countless events in my childhood when my parents enabled me to make a positive impact in my local community to in the lives of people around the world. This built a foundation for who I am today and why I spam my friends and family from time to time trying to raise money for a handful of nonprofit groups.

I would have never published the stories generated from flattening the learning curve around cycling if I did not think it would help raise funds—I was shocked of the impact it had on people and my personal outlook. Together we raised almost 8K to help find a cure for blood cancers and help families suffering from the financial impact caused by cancer. If you donated to LLS through my site—thank you. Thank you for the support that I felt every inch of every mile I pedaled around Tahoe. Unless you do something like an event through Team In Training—you will never know the power that is felt from knowing your friends and family are pushing for you. The only way I can describe it is by looking at odds making in Vegas. Vegas will give even the weakest football team and extra three points if it is a home game—solely based on the energy transfer from the fans. Your support meant more then I can express. Thank you.

Stay tuned on the blog for opportunities to join me on rides, walks and other fundraising opportunities.

Thanks for joining me on my big fat ride (around the sun)