Round 3 Naples Florida

The next event was in my old habitat, Collier County Florida. The Saturday race was a road race and time trial in Ave Maria. We arrived late Friday night and it was really quiet. We walked around a bit and saw the town center complete with spaceship shaped church in the town center. I would have taken a picture but it kinda freaked me out! The nect morning I warmed up and lined up for the race. This was a pretty fast and curvy race and it definitely claimed a few victims...right at the end there was abig crash and I luckily positioned myself not directly behind it and got away with another 5th place. Not bad! I lined up for the TT next. It was a triathlete vs. Roadie challengeand the road racers prevailed! I, on the other hand finished 7th. Oh well had fun. Sunday morning we were Iin downtown Naples for the Criterium. The weather was Chamber of Commerse weather and the racing was awesome! The course was really nice and passed 1 street over from one of my past residences. Pretty cool. I got off to a great start and the race was pretty safe and ended up with me helping my big friend from Naples Cyclery to the podium with me finishing 4th. I'll take it! All in all a good weekend and still leading points! Next up is The Race of the West and Winter Garden Criterium....some very hectic and exiting racing there! This event is held in a downtown environment that is mostly cobbles! It is spring after all so cobbles it is...the roadrace is held in Cleremont withthe biggest hills in Florida. Stay tuned!

Chapter 2 - More of the nicer side of Florida

After a great race in the Dade City/San Antonio area, it was with great anticipation (and a fixed bike) that we embarked on our second journey. We loaded up the RV with dogs, bikes food and ourselves and headed out on the trip. We made a quick stop at Starbucks on 136th Street off I595 on our way west and north. There is a Trek store next to it so I popped in to get some nutrition stuff when the guy behind the counter said "wow someone just hit that RV parked out front!". I turned around to see the people parked near us chasing them down. It turns out this lady didn't see it and backed right into it. Doh! The cop later said "you didn't see it? its the size of a building!" She fought all the way until she got the ticket. I am just glad she had insurance. With that drama over with (she just broke the fiberglass bumper and dented the body...) we continued on. We arrived at the GPS location for the race in the middle of orange groves in or near Auburndale/Lake Alfred. It was very spooky standing in an orange grove with no one around like that. The smell was unbelievable! Orange blossoms have a very sweet pungent orangy smell and it filled the air. When we woke I was able to open the RV window and pick an orange. Just wonderful surroundings! It was pretty cool out so I bundled up and walked the dogs. My race started pretty early and I met a few friends for the start. The course was pretty hilly and the start/finish was on a big hill with a headwind hammering straight at you as you climb. I was having a great race, probably spending too much time at the front pulling when I rotated back to the rear of the group. Up ahead I saw a big attack and was way to far back to respond. Our pace quickened and I saw one of the guys from Naples Cyclery that I raced along side of in the previous race trying to get back into the draft. He is a big guy with a lot of speed so I let him in and was glad I did! He pulled me up to the front of the group before the big hills started! As we approached the finish I positioned myself perfectly on the front. I could see the banners and people lining the finish ahead up the hill. I couldn't resist. I thought I could jump and hold everyone off so I went hard. I ran out of steam about 50 meters from the line and got passed like I was standing next to I95! I finished 11th. Next was my 1st Time Trial.

I had been looking forward to trying out my new TT bike (a Trek Speed Concept) and this was it! I had the pointy helmet and an aero jersey so I was prepared...still need a skin suit and disc wheel but that will come when I actually have something to spend! I lined up and got released. The experience of speed on a TT bike is awesome! The sound of the air going through my alien like helmet and the speed on my display was awesome! I caught a car and passed it like it was standing still! I also caught a few competitors as we are sent on 30 second intervals. I went a bit easy on the way out as I knew there was that ominous huge finish hill at the end (we are sent out, turn around and come back from the start/finish where on the road race we race in a big loop). I made my turn and came back. I really hit it n the hill and soon realized I should have gone faster on the way out as I still had some energy when I crossed the finish. I should have been puking and dying. Oh well I will try harder next time...but this effort was good enough for second! Excellent! I got more hardware!

The next day was a Criterium in downtown Winter Haven. We stayed at a Walmart parking lot as they allow RV's to stay (very handy) and arrived nice and early. Criteriums are always fast and dangerous but really intense and fun as they are in front of local businesses and usually held on downtown city streets. This one was no different with The Bean and Grape Cafe set right on one of the corners in front of the action! My race was pretty uneventful other than someone catching a pedal on the ground and spinning out in front of me. I finished 5th and got ready to head home. My sister Sandi texted me saying she was in town as well! What are the odds LOL! We went and visited my sister and her Boyfriend Jeff at a friend of theirs house in Winter Haven, 5 minutes away. The weekend was a success and I ws now leading the points championship. My next race is in Naples Florida, Where I lived for almost 10 years. Stay tuned! Evan

The Start Into My Amateur Bicycle Racing Career

Chapter 1: My first races... At the end of last year I was pretty frustrated with my auto racing career. I did get on a few TV shows and did some great interviews but still no sponsors. I has been toying with the idea of focusing on cycling more to get into better shape so I just went for it. A bunch of the guys on my weekend morning group rides (Mike's Ride in Fort Lauderdale) wanted to do a Criterium in Cooper City FL at Brian Piccolo Park. A criterium is a short track race, usually .5-1 mile in length over a time period. Usually 45 minutes plus 3 laps or so. It was January and the weather was great so we were on! We rode out to the track and lined up with what seemed like hundreds of people to race...kinda nerve wracking! Not to mention the Cat 3 race before ours had a pretty big crash at the finish...one guy walked away with a destroyed bike and his lycra was almost completely ripped off his body! We started the race and circulated at a fast pace riding super close to each other minding the pedals in the corners and watching the wheels to be sure no one touched...I ended up finishing mid pack....pretty uneventful. But I did it...my first official road bike race I had raced BMX bikes and mountain bikes but now road bikes! That set the tone for me choosing a race series and a goal. After some research I found the Bill Bone Floridacycling.com road race series. This series goes all over the state doing Road Races, Criteriums and Time Trials. Looked like fun and they had some cool year end prizes up for grabs to the series winners. Now I started racing road bikes in a class called Category 5 (Cat 5=beginners-first year racers to Cat 1=Pro-experts). There are a few choices as to where to start racing as there are also Masters classes(Age dependent 35+ cat 4 and 5, 35+ Cat1-3, 50+ and 60+ not to mention all the youth classes). I decided Cat 5 was for me as I am a true beginner and there were some pretty fast people in there as I am an old guy compared to many of my fellow racers. I am happy I did. My first race was in San Antonio and Dade City Florida (west coast north of Tampa near Zephyrhills). This race is called The Race for Humanity as it benefits East Pasco Habitat for Humanity. David and I loaded up the dogs, bikes and food into the RV and headed north not knowing what to expect....I love an adventure! I had my bike serviced and a new chain installed to try and be sure there would be no mechanical issues. Ha! Never work on your race vessel right before a race...test it and make sure everything is operational before lining up... We arrived at the campground to find someone in our spot so we just took another one. It was a strange place...like staying in someone's yard. Anyways we drove to the site of the road race in San Antonio and got settled into a parking spot and watched the people roll in. It was a beautiful experience watching the timing and scoring people show up and what seemed like instantly put up a finish line that seemed to rival a Pro Tour event finish! (Thanks Topview Sports!) and to see all the beautiful people arrive with their beautiful bikes as everyone seems to have pride in their bikes and bodies. I went out to warm up and found my chain skipping in the lower gears. With no time to really fix it or even diagnose it I lined up for the start. They gave us a short speech about the yellow line rule (do not cross it!), the wheel truck (for spare wheels in case of flats) and how long the race is as well as the be nice speech. We were off! It was surreal going up and down the hills of the area (a very hilly and beautiful part of Florida!) at speeds approaching 50 MPH millimeters from each other! I soon realized if I downshifted too far for the up hill sections my chain would jump and try and fall off. The race was (2) 17 mile laps. At the end of the first lap I decided to have a go at breaking away (silly newbie!). Me and another rider took off at 35 MPH down the front straight into turn 1 and got down the road pretty good. The problem was the whole pack chased and were not far behind. The pace motorcycle came by and said there was someone more than a minute up the road (he broke away earlier)! We just got back into the pack. As the pace increased towards the end of the second and final lap I found it harder and harder to keep my chain from jumping so I had to keep it in a big gear...not good for the hills. I was able to stay in the lead group up until the last few hills when I started cramping out...I watched the pack go over the last crest just ahead of me and there was nothing I could do but watch. Pretty disappointing considering how strong I felt up to that point. Oh well there is always tomorrow! I finished 25th or so... The next day was a bit chilly but sunny and nice. The Criterium was in downtown Dade City. The streets were closed around the town center and we were the show! I had no idea road racing took place in places with events like this! Fun to watch and accessible to everyone! There were cake shops and coffee shops to sit in and watch the live racing action just feet away! We lined up and were off. The race went down a side street that was paved with bricks and consisted of a bunch of 90 degree corners and curbs. This race would turn into a blood sport! There were a few wipe outs then a really big one right in front of me! I was able to sneak by on the curb and get around it but there were quite a few people laying on the pavement. In this case if you go down in a wreck you can get to the starting line and get a free lap to get back into the race, which many did. Here is a link to a really cool video by Steve Mace (the eventual winner): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5F-YwtzLL8 The wreck happens at 6:23 and if you look clos you see me pop over the curb and continue... #514. I was stuck in 1 gear as my attempts to fix the bike failed (my chain actually fell off at one point and I was able to get it back on and catch up) and I was working as hard as I could in the closing laps. One guy, an avid mountain biker, made a break for it (he was bloodied up from the wreck) and we all tried to catch him on the closing laps. He was able to get away for good and won it! I came around the corner for the final stretch (200 meters or so) in 2nd place. I sprinted as hard as I could but got passed by a bloodied up 16 year old junior racer (he was very fast) in the final sprint. I got my first podium!

What a great way to start my racing series! This set me up for the second race...The Chain of Lakes Cycling Classic! This race would be a road race, criterium and a time trial. Stay tuned...

Back again!

Hey all! It has been a long time since I have posted on here and I am starting it all up again. My year has been pretty eventful and I will try and provide some good stories about my dive into road racing bicycles from and old guys/amateurs perspective. I am very competitive and hate to lose anything so going into a young mans sport as an old guy ha been pretty tough! When I was living in NC I got into mountain biking. I got pretty fast playing with some of the Cross Country racers and soon learned that they train on road bikes. Moving back to Fort Lauderdale where it is flat and a bit further away from the trails than I like, I got a cheap Raleigh Capri road bike from the '80's. I enjoyed it and got a Trek Madone 4.5 and did The Smart Ride 8 (Florida Aids ride). From there I started training and did the Smart Ride 9 last year. January of this year I decided to start racing and training more. Strava (strava.com) is a crazy website that you can race yourself or your friends on when they are not there. I got into that and did my first race in January. I will get into the races, series, training and the Georgia GP stage race I just competed in in future posts. I had a bit of fun racing cars last month at VIR and being on a TV show called My Big Redneck Vacation. All that and more if you can stand it :-) Evan

Oh Lance

I have been digesting this for a while. In reading Tyler Hamilton's (and Daniel Coyle) new book I was able to see how it pretty much went down from a competitors perspective. Yes it is only one opinion but there are many more behind to back up the evidence. He doped. Yes it is awful but that is the way the sport was structured pretty much from the beginning. Doping has been around as long as there was competition. Same as there has been cheating in motor racing as long as there has been rule books. The biggest problem was the corruption within the UCI and the people profiting greatly from it (doctors). Now Lance Armstrong needs to come clean. Not in a "poor me everyone was doing it" kinda way. If he plays his cards right he could profit greatly from this ordeal but he needs to not assume the general sporting public are a bunch of idiots. He needs to man up and just tell the truth so he can move on and we can too. I am sure the controlled interview on Oprah will be one of the most watched interviews in sporting history, I just hope we, as Americans, are not made to look like a bunch of morons by how it goes down. We tend to be the butt of many euro trash jokes anyways. We will see...

Better Late than Never!

It has been a while but I am back! I had a few trips and met some real interesting people...more on that in a future article...My website has changed from edarlingenterprises.com to edarlingracing.com. I don't know why but it is now owned by a Japanese weight loss company...I completed The Smart Ride 9 and had an amazing time yet again! The weather was stunning and it all went very smoothly. I met up with old friends and made some new ones. the Chic Optique team was ready to go and go we did! I was rider #36 this year and got to start way ahead of my last years #354 starting position. Now I know it is not a race but it seems that Fridays 100 miler (103.8 to be exact) is through the streets of Homestead and Florida City before getting to Card Sound Road (the road out to the keys from the mainland). I like to use the first day to give it my all and go for a personal best. I rolled out at a pretty good pace and got to the front with a few people in tow. I pedaled hard for about 10 miles and had one person hanging with me. His name was Mark. He said he had a few fast friends coming through the pack and figured they would catch us but they never did. This was his second Smart Ride (as it was mine as well) and he had a hard time last year and wanted to push and see how well his training program was. We pushed through Miami on to Card Sound Road carrying a 22.5 MPH average and were feeling pretty good. We stopped for lunch at 58 miles and topped up our supplies. The people voulenteering for this event were amazing! They provided food, water, gatorade, medical help, mental help and hugs all the way! We hit Key Largo in good time and were happily buzzing along when Mark started cramping. I was feeling the toll of the speed we were traveling at so we stopped at a few rest areas to eat bananas and rehydrate (and pee) before hitting the final few miles. Last year the first day was 100.1 miles and this year it was 103.8 (due to route change in Miami) and the last 3.7 miles took forever! We rolled in before noon averaging 21 MPH. It was a great ride and I was happy to share it with my new friend Mark! I got a shower then a massage and waited for people to start showing up. soon they were coming in and Dave came in 9th! Top 10 in his first organized ride. the rest of our team was in and we all celebrated in Hawks Cay resort...awesome place! The next moerning we left the resort for the 62 mile ride to Key West. Our team left at different times but eventually found each other on the road and we had a very pleasant ride into Key West stopping at all the rest stops and enjoying the ride and the company. On our team was Tom R, Rich N, Julie S, Fiona, Justine Y, Robyn, David M and myself. We got to Key West High School pretty much drama free (a few flats along the way) and enjoyed the food and hospitality of Key West. We rode to the pier and enjoyed the closing ceremonies...there wasnt a dry eye in the place! I want to thank all the voulenteers and donors that made it happen! We raised over $860,000! for AIDS HIV organizations and 100% of the money raised goes to the benefitting charities! Look forward to next year!! Evan

What Does the Future Hold?

It has been a strange year. I have been pushing myself on my bike training like a pro athlete for...myself? I have found riding and burying myself in all things bicycle seem to soothe my real world issues. I am working at a pretty cool shop that gives me some pretty good flexibility to race and play with my toys. I am doing The Smart Ride 9 this week (my second one) and could still use sponsors.... https://www.thesmartride.org/8/pledge/pages/36/ but the really big news is still coming...I just got back from meeting some really cool people...you will see me on their show early next year! I cannot say what show just yet but I am sure the ads will be pretty fun! When I am allowed I will let everyone know! I will write another post ride entry...wish me luck! Evan

Bike Racing Blues

I have spent the last few days and weeks reading and pondering about doping in bicycle racing. The use of banned substances is pretty obvious in many sports and I really think I have always just chosen not to see it. Look at some of the female olympians...have you ever seen arms like that on a mere mortal? that is definitely not natural. I have always wanted to be a pro bike racer but never had the influence, mentorship or drive to become one. I always thought it was for people that had real enthusiasm and the luck of friends that have the same working together or family pushing them. My family never pushed me to do anything but try and get good grades. I raced BMX bikes as a kid and raced MX for a very short time being told by my parents to stop playing these sports. Anyways, all the years of watching pro cycling and dreaming of being one would always be crashed by the idea that you had to do all kinds of drugs to be there. I am sure there was one guy that never did it and was fast as shit and others did drugs to beat him...then the real talent started doing it creating super humans that do things that are almost genetically impossible (see baseball) setting records that cannot be broken. It is sad that it has become like this. In auto racing it is simple. People always try and "bend the rules" but you do not build a human body in a shop. I always had the notion that if they just tested them and they passed, they win (as in motorsports) but through all this USADA investigation I am realizing the human damage is awful. Levi Leiphimer came out with an interview talking about his childhood dream to race in the TdF and how he had to cope with the realities of drug use in pro cycling was heartbreaking. I look back and am strangely happy I did not go down that road to try and be a pro in that sport. I hope we can figure out a way to keep the drugs out and reward clean racing. The really sad thing is that it trickles down to amateur sports and bike racing. The Cat 4-5 guys I will be racing soon may be doping and no one is even watching that. I guess it will be that much more satisfying if I win. My question is if someone does testosterone, cortizone and EPO while training to get better strength and comes off it to be clean, are they still really clean?

The are alive with the sound of...gears!

Well I did it! The Bicycle Magazine Fall Classic Fondo 2012 is in the books. The weather report looked pretty rainy all the way up to the event so I got a few items at Sicklers Bicycle in Exeter PA to deal with the cooler temperatures. I have a practice loop that goes from Wyoming PA to Harveys Lake and back and hit it hard a few times (its about 40 miles) and was feeling ok about my fitness. If this is your first time reading my blog, I am pretty new to road cycling as I got a road bike (my current Trek Madone 4.5) last September and started training for The Smart Ride ( https://www.thesmartride.org/8/pledge/pages/36/ )and my recap ( http://evandarling.blogspot.com/2011/11/smart-ride-8-post-ride.html ) and got really hooked on cycling! I had a great Trek EX8 mountain bike that I had been riding when I was in NC a few years ago but never got into the sport with the intensity like I have now. In 1998 I went for the Florida State Championships racing BMX and led the points to the end (for me) when I broke my collarbone at Okeeheelee. I still went for it broken collarbone and all and it was tough for sure! I was doing that more for my partners nephew who I was introducing to a sport that helped me through my troubled youth. Anyways, We arrived at the Valley Preferred Cycling Center in Breinigsville PA on Saturday morning to get registered, pick up my packet and timing chip and make a run through Velofest...a huge swap meet! Like a kid in a candy store I ran through it looking for a rain jacket and a few other goodies and got my moneys worth! Ultegra cranks and brakes, a Selle SMP Evolution seat (for $25!!!), my jacket (cannondale) and a few other goodies. Ray at the Bicycling Magazine registration booth sent me in the right direction to get them installed (I do not have alot of bike tools yet) at South Mountain Cycles & Coffee Bar in Emmaus PA...they fix your bike and serve the best cappucino...nice! We went back to the park and did an easy few miles around the track and headed to Walmart for the evening...they allow campers in the parking lot and it is open 24 hours...I fixed my bike and fell asleep without eating dinner DOH! The next morning I tried stuffing my face a few hours before and packed my jacket with munchies to avoid the bonk. It was freezing! I lined up and had a nice warm send off into the hills of PA. Now this event had 3 timed climbs with prizes for the top 5. I did not expect to win anything and i didn't but I am ok with that. There were some pretty serious people there. I started with the lead group and we were cruising along great to the first climb. I hit it pretty good but not with everything because it was only 5 miles in! We were flowing through some of the most beautiful roads and countryside I ever saw. we rounded a corner around mile 17.7 and I tried to go into my small ring for a climb and the chain popped off! I got it on fast but the pack rode on...I tried to follow for the next 20 miles and rode with a few of the fast guys in pursuit. I went to grab a bite to eat out of my jersey and ended up off course. I went to turn around when I realized to look for the signs and another guy wizzed by. I went after him as he looked like he knew where he was going. When asked if he knew if it was the right way as we hit an epic descent, he didnt know where he was going either! At the bottom we called the powers that be and were waiting for some directions as we were pretty far off course when we found an intersection. we backtracked and found our way again! from there it was the best day of riding ever! we climbed more hills than I did in Colorado on my summer trip, one called Hill Road in particular was pretty tough! I believe the 3rd timed climb was at the top. I see my time but did not even remember the 2nd climb! It was pretty tough digging all the way up the hill so I just did my best. The hills kept coming and I kept climbing. what came next were the worst cramps I ever felt! I was using muscles that are not used for cycling to somehow spin the cranks...I talked myself into finishing it with pain that would come and go like waves. the countryside and need to finish kept me going. At one point towards the end they sent us down a really cool gravel road! I would usually shy away from this kind of road on my road bike but it handled really well and was quite fun to slide it around! When the finish came I had covered 99 miles. Epic! The ride around the Velodrome was fun as well! I am figuring out that it was just the climbs that counted so next year I will keep myself fresh for the climbs and not try so hard to make it a race! Well here are the results ( http://bit.ly/UMrLXp ) as I finished 30th out of 130 starters...not bad for a beginner...I also was the winner of the hotly contested 44 year old group (there were 4 of us)! A big thanks to Bicycling Magazine, Specialized Bicycles, Topeak, NOW Energy Bars, H2O Overdrive, Wild Planet, Mediterranian Snack Foods, Giordana and all the people out there making this happen! See you next year!! Evan

Something different

Well since my auto racing career is in the toilet until further notice I am trying something a bit different. As many of you know I have been playing with road bicycles for a year now and decided to do my first timed event. There are plenty of time trials and criterium races around here but I figured I would do something fun. On October 7th I will be in Reading PA for a Grand Fondo 90 mile ride. A grand fondo is an event that is all about cycling and attracts people from all over the country and world. It is a mass start timed ride with awards for the climbs and overall finishing position. I know I will not be very high up on the board as there will be plenty of pros and actual bike racers there but it will still be a blast to be a part of it and just finish! Cycling has become a very large part of my life as it has improved my health condition and made me feel and look better! Obligatory abs pictures coming soon! It has gotten me to the gym and to have healthier eating habits. I will update with results and maybe a few pictures when I am back...wish me luck! Evan

Job Search and the selling of my dreams

Well the time is almost here...I put my heart and soul into this and thought the LGBT Community would have my back. Guess not. I am selling my motorcycle (2003 Suzuki SV 100 Standard) as I am in need of the funds for bills. It is the last thing I have that is worth anything. An old lady smashed my car the other day so that is worthless now. I am applying for jobs in the auto industry again. Don't make the same mistakes I did. If you are thinking of coming out in sports give it alot of thought. The LGBT community would love to see it and many young folks would benefit but do not expect companies or individuals to sponsor or financially support you. I thought I had a big sponsor interested (a Las Vegas Hotel) but they cheaped out saying they couldn't afford me LOL...I'm not THAT expensive! They want your media and to show that they are doing something but will give very little in return. We have a long way to go. I thought I had an entrepreneur Gay billionaire interested (he was quoted as saying he was going to give his fortune away) but decided to spend what little he does on tax write off investments and politics. It is really going to take a wealthy person to break into sports that does not need a sponsor...I am unfortunately out of resources. I sold everything and put it all on the line. Big mistake. Oh well lesson learned! We still need a presence in sports...especially red state sports but without support it will never happen. This is a huge demographic in itself (stacked on the 800 Billion dollar GLBT demographic) and I do not understand why someone wouldn't want this kind of exposure. I still have my website up for a while and will be hoping to delete this post and say I am sponsored for 2013...

Here is a link to my bike for sale if anyone is interested:

http://miami.craigslist.org/brw/mcy/3257083288.html

Are most Conservative (family values) Republicans Gay?

I am confused by this. Anyone with more than a 3rd grade education should be able to understand that being Gay is not a choice. Ask any REAL HETEROSEXUAL adult male if they like women. All the straight friends I have KNOW they like women and can say when the fascination started. For most it was being intrigued by a grade school teacher or a friends sister or hot neighbor lady. At that young age did those kids make a choice to want to see more? No. They liked what they saw and you cannot change that. LGBT kids that come of age are usually very embarrased that they are looking at the wrong sex and have major insecurities and self esteem issues. What young kid wants to be something everyone seems to recognize as really bad? I went through this and it was very tough. I tried to pretend and looked at the girls with my friends but always wanted to see more of the same sex. Are these people that think its a choice hiding something? If they are comfortable with thier sexuality they should understand. If they do understand and still want to discriminate and exclude the LGBT community they are 100% not the type of person I want representing my country. I accept everyone. Our military accepts everyone. Why is 1/2 of our government so hateful towards a group of Americans that number in the millions? The religious side of this arguement is rediculous as you show me one person that lives the Bible literally. Just by "hating the sinner" they are not folowing their own religions. Just by judging others they are not following their own religions. It is hypocritical. If it were a choice there would be way less that there are if any. I know I would have chosen to be straight if given the chance when I was a kid! Someone please tell me how we can educate our people and see who is truly a mean spirited person through hate and non-acceptance and who is just mis-informed?

March Already?

Well I am still at it! I guess I am in this until the end. I have been going back and forth to Wilmington NC putting a friends BMW race car back together so we can race it in April at Virginia International Raceway! I am also planning to race my road bike in Fort Lauderdale ( https://www.usacycling.org/events/getflyer.php?permit=2012-775 ) and this will be my first official race! I do not have high expectations just that I will have some fun doing something good for myself. The pack of people I ride with on weekends are incredibly fast and it is everything I can do not to get dropped by them...I'm sure I will be racing them and there will not be much mercy LOL! I promise to write a nice long winded post on the race for those interested.
On another note I have been talking to a few people about getting some media and I came across a great company from Australia that represents Nitro Circus...Maybe they will have me jump a minibike off the grand canyon or something! Maybe they want to have a gay guy on the show...I can be the token gay I guess LOL! I will keep you posted on that front as well.
I have also been talking to a few writers that may be interested in helping me structure my life story book as well. I have alot of written material and just do not know how to structure that much information in a book format. I want to give my readers a pleasurable experience, not a confusing one as I am a scatter brain.
As usual if anyone has any ideas please let me know!
Evan

The year is flying by!

I can't believe its almost March already! I am headed to NC again next week to fininsh the BMW I am working on for a friend...I cant wait to get it to VIR and test it out! I am going to bring my Mountain Bike with me as there are some great trails in the Wilmington NC area...Blue Clay Park and a new one Brunswick...will have to try that one out! I have been riding the road bike alot lately and decided to race in the Bill Bone Challenge (http://billboneproam.com/) road races, time trials and criteriums. Should be fun and alot easier to find sponsors...the events are local and way cheaper than racing cars.



On another note, I just watched the first show of the second season of Top Gear USA (the muscle car episode) and it was pretty good except for the gay remark...It is real annoying when you watch a show and someone disrespects and alienates an entire community to try and sound like a tough guy...Adam Ferrara jokes with Tanner that his "boyfriend picked out the car" referring to his Camaro implying the "gay" thing. I mean really? c'mon and man up and stop trying so hard! Its not that funny. Remember there are lots of people out here watching these shows and when you go hating and get negative you lose more than you gain.

Still trying for sponsors and hoping for the best.

Evan

Trying to get something going

I have noticed alot of international traffic on my website and blog...Lots of visits from Russia lately. Anyone there want to respond? I am still trying and will always try. I may be shutting down my website soon as it doesn't seem to make sense for me to keep it up if there is no interest in sponsorship. I will put the video on youtube and just get a cheap to maintain webpage. It is with great sadness that I shrink into the backround and get back to work and try and forget the last 5 years of struggling and begging. I do not know what I would have done differently or could ever do in the future to get people interested. There really is just no place for an out race car driver. I pretty much ended my career by trying to do this honestly and openly. I also should have listened to my conservative family and not tried this. It is embarrasing how little financial support has come from all of this. I love my fans and please keep the great emails and words of encouragement coming! I will always try and be my best (and get sponsors) but the GLBT financial world has spoken with no interest in getting someone out there in the straight world with an open message to our youth that you can do anything. I really thought it was an important message but I guess not. We live a stereotype. Sad.

I also just think I failed with my celebrity contacting skills. I tried paying publicists thousands of dollars to just make contact with Lady Gaga, Elton John, John Travolta and anyone else that may have interest in my mission but they all failed or just didnt put in the effort. If anyone knows how to contact a celebrity let me know!

I am getting ready for my first USA Cycling race next month to get a category rating (everyone starts at Cat 5) and begin my amateur bicycle racing journey. I have raced BMX bicycles for years, Mountain bikes and now road bikes. This is a great hobby getting me into the best shape of my life. I will try and blog about my progress even though it is much more boring than blogging about racing cars on the Pro level.

Thanks everyone for being there!
Evan

2012 Yay. Aren't we supposed to die now?

Well it is now 2012 and we are all supposed to die this year. We will see. I am sitting at my computer contemplating everything I had tried to do over the past 5 years and feel perplexed in that I have done so much but got nothing really accomplished. I have met many great people on my journey and many have tried to help. Unfortunately I have learned through my endeavor that my many fans would love to see me compete but the people that can make that happen have no interest. Gay people in sports are not new and I don't claim to be the only. I am the only one that tried to do it while being honest with myself, my fans while staying active in my sport. I wanted to help people come to terms with their sexuality and have someone that is a sports figure that happens to be gay and out. I also wanted to bring light to GLBTQ teen suicide prevention. I had contacted people of wealth, who claim they are trying to give their fortunes away to good causes. Not. I tried major corporations that have forward thinking mission statements and ones that cater to a younger demographic. Not. Evidently having someone out and trying to help our community is not a good enough cause. I had a few calls with secretarys and associates but it seems to be always the same answers. Not interested. My question is why would someone trying to help a community get no support but when someone tries to tear the fabric of a community millions rally to destroy? I chalk it up to our communitys damaged upbringing. I hope future generations get past this before too much damage is done. Many of my generation have grown up being told how bad we were as people for being the way we are. Some of us lost much of our youth and innosense trying to come to terms with our sexuality with no role models or proper education on certain subjects (GLBT/sexual/HIV etc) so we had to fend for ourselves. Over the years we build up defenses that are hard to get past and it affects our relationships with family and our outlook on society in general. A church has a support structure that helps each member be a part of something. If you help your church you will always have friends and some kind of security. Our community lacks this in a big way. we cant usually look across a room and feel like there are others like us. Being gay can be very isolating. Why would anyone try and come out and help when no one is helping me? This seems to be common not just in sports but in life in general. Hollywood is homophobic. Wall Street is homophobic. I don't even have to mention politics as many of our closeted Republicans have already proven with horrible damage. It is going to take people from all walks of life to accept and understand that our "lifestyle" is not a choice. Until people start helping people feel confident in society this will never happen on the scale most of us dream about. At least not in our lifetime. I tried to make a difference and am paying for it. If your contemplating coming out and you are a sports or public figure, think long and hard about it. You will not get financial help so if you are in sports you will need alot of personal wealth behind you. I have 2 proposals out there and I am hoping for the best with them and that these companies can come with me on a journey to help our community move forward in our endeavor to be looked upon as people, humans like everyone else. If ANY of my readers wanted to help me now is the time. If you know anyone that would want to help or any corporation wanting to market the GLBT community with the added benefit of marketing to tens of millions of sports fans, let me know. I also have a paypal button on my website.

Thanks for listening!
Evan

The Smart Ride 8 Post Ride

Wow the Smart Ride 8 is now in the books with record setting numbers! All records were broken for this one! We raised over $675K for Aids/HIV and had a huge presence in the Florida Keys doing so! This was so much more emotional than I could have ever imagined! It was also one of the most well organized events I have ever had the honor of participating in! From beginning to end there was encouragement and camaraderie that cannot be described. I rode with Team Chic Optique and would like to thank Karen and Julie for being who they are and doing the things they do for the community! I am overwhelmed with emotion just writing about this event!

I arrived in Miami on Thursday, getting a ride from one of my friends to the Morningstar Renewal Center. Upon arrival there was a great ceremony, check in and dinner. I was full of emotion walking along the timeline of Aids in America thinking of all the friends I have lost and my own battles with running and hiding from HIV. 25 years ago I had to come to terms with it and it has been a very difficult road. We had a great speech and candle light moment before heading back to the hotel for the evening. Originally I was going to be a part of the safety crew and ride my Suzuki but I decided I needed to get healthy and I really enjoy cycling. I had alot of friends in this event and I feel privileged to even be there! I bought a nice Trek at the end of July from Lauderdale Cyclery (lauderdalecyclery.com) and started training with some really fast guys here in FTL. I know this event was NOT a race but I wanted to do this for myself and everyone I knew that was affected by this terrible illness. It was sort of a personal thing for me. We rolled out at 6:45 into the streets of Miami and it was a nice mellow pace. I decided to pick up the pace and see what I could do and challenge myself. I ended up at the first checkpoint with a few fast guys from Orlando and decided we were going to go for it! We rode together helping each other and pushing ourselves. What a surreal feeling! I did not know these people and we were sharing pain and suffering together...never felt so good. Many people do not understand that the speed pain and suffering are all part of the experience and ask why we do this. You have to experience it to understand! Slowly I got waved on by my comrades as they stopped at different checkpoints. I only wanted to stop once for the lunch stop and by that time I was alone. I got down Card Sound Road (what a gorgeous road on a bike!) and rolled into the lunch stop and was told I was the first in there! I grabbed a banana, Gatorade and thanked everyone for being there and rolled out. There was a guy passing the lunch stop behind me as I rolled out and thought here we go! We turned left on to US1 and headed for Hawks Cay. I was happy to see a tail wind of sorts (kind of a cross/tail wind) and put down some power cruising at 25-27 MPH. I looked back after 10 miles and saw I was alone. I did not give up I just kept at it as hard as I thought I could. The pains and worry of a flat were always there and I just rode through it. I couldn't believe I was doing this! For sure there has to be others ahead...
I was 8 miles from the finish when I looked back again. There he was. Maybe 100 yards back was a guy with aero bars and speed to match! I thought about it and said to myself "I didn't go 92 miles suffering to get passed at the end!" Now I know this was not a competitive event but this was about personal goals and feeling good. I am sure he saw me and felt motivated to catch me as well! Good friendly competition is healthy as long as it is looked at for what it is...having a great time doing something great! I jumped up to 28-30 MPH until I saw 100.0 miles on my speedo. I looked back and I was alone again! At that point it was just about the numbers. As I turned left into Hawks Cay I saw everyone cheering me on and I absolutely cannot describe the wave of emotion that came over me. As I rolled up to the line everyone was very excited to tell me I was the first across the line! I couldn't control my emotion and started to cry like a baby! All the effort, pain, suffering, cramps and self motivational speeches I was rehearsing did not prepare me for the feelings I felt. I was victorious in just finishing this leg and here I was 4 hours and 39 minutes later at my destination. I did it! It was a great personal victory! I remembered all my lost friends and pictured them looking down at me from above and felt them helping me along the way! I did this for all of them and all the others that I had never met that have been taken by this great tragedy. I felt so not alone at that moment my heart almost exploded. Then I saw all the people here doing the same thing for those they love and have loved. Lots of tears to follow! I got a great massage (Dean Allen-ahairstudio.com) and rested for a while when more people started arriving. I stayed over at the line and cheered as people had the same emotions flowing over them and shared in this great wave of love and honor for those that have passed and those that rode for them.
The evening continued on and we had a great dinner by Rosie's and others and shared in our daily experience. A few people did not like the idea that I was proud of finishing first but to me we all finished first! I am a competitive individual and to say the others that came in on my heels were not would be a big huge lie! We had a blast! I was joking with a few of the other competitive cyclists that if you put wheels, helmets and numbers on anyone, competitive spirit lives! The beauty of this is it is what you make of it. If you want a challenge, go for it! whether its you r first big ride or your 100th. Hawks Cay was a great experience and the rooms provided were 5 star! Comfort way beyond my dreams!
The next morning was the push into Key West. I woke feeling great and was ready. They let us go and I moved forward quickly. I rolled up to a group of people moving very fast and decided to stay with them for a while. I am glad I did! I started to think of the camaraderie and sharing nature of what we were doing. I could have not stopped with them at the rest stop as it was a 65 mile ride today and not 100. Most of my non-stop training rides were 50-65 miles so this would have been easy to just keep going. I felt a great bond as we rolled into the stop and decided to enjoy the ride more today. My personal accomplishment of doing so well in the Century ride satisfied my competitive spirit and personal goals. We rolled out and pushed each other for the next 40 or so miles. The 7 mile bridge was a magical experience as we traded the front with each other! I found out as we were riding my comrades were all from Fort Lauderdale! How cool! There was a girl riding a Tri bike (Triathlete/time trial type bicycle) and she was really fast! One of the guys in our group lost all feeling in his foot and we as a group all stopped until he felt better. No one was getting dropped here! We soldiered on averaging more than 25 MPH when 5 miles from the end I got a flat. I felt horrible that I was holding everyone up but we all stopped and I was helped with my flat by someone way faster than me changing it! as we were stopped a lone girl on another aerodynamic bike came flying through. Instead of trying to just catch her we all cheered her on! That's what it is about! We got going and other than a minor tip over on my part right at the end we made great time rolling into the finish. The guy that was right behind me the previous day got the personal best award rolling in first and the girl that passed us was close behind. What really made it great is we all crossed in at the same time and shared in this moment. We did it! 165 miles! WOO HOO!!! We had a great lunch and rolled out at 2pm for a parade down Duval street and the surrounding area finishing on the pier. We had a great ceremony and the finish was spectacular. We all bowed our heads and cried for the riderless bicycle walked to the podium at the end representing all those lost.

What an emotional event. I can't wait until next year!!!!

The Smart Ride 8

Well now that the 13 Hour race has come and gone I am working towards my goals for The Smart Ride! If anyone knows someone with a place in Key West I could use a place to crash Saturday night as hotels are expensive! I have almost reached my goal but need a few more people to step up and donate. On the link below you can make a donation for me from $1 to $1000. Every little bit helps! Here is the link...

https://thesmartride.org/8/pledge/index.php?participantID=354&step=step3

I hope the weather is better than it was in Virginia! I have developed a head cold from the trip and I really hope it goes away so I can start training again!

13 Hour 2011

Race Update for the 13 Hour Virginia International Raceway Charge of the Headlight Brigade!

Thanks everyone for the kind words of encouragement on here Facebook and Twitter! It was a long drive too and from the race so I am a bit tired writing this. I have a large coffee next to me so I am sure I can get through it!

I arrived in Greensboro NC on Tuesday around 12 noon at the SRI Racing headquarters. The crew were diligently working on the #66 ITR BMW getting it ready for the event. I jumped in and gave a hand getting the car set up and ready for the event. I put my Trevor Project stickers on the car and had it embroidered on my drivers suit and was very excited to be displaying this very worthy charity! Wednesday we did a bit more and were pretty well ready to go. We loaded up Wed night and headed to the track for the Thursday test day.
I had brought my bicycle up from Florida as I am training for The Smart Ride mid November. When I woke up on Thursday morning I got my spandex on and stepped out of the trailer to find 30 something degree weather! It was also very dark but I got a great ride in around the VIR race facility. Nothing like the NC/Virginia countryside! The crew got to the track as did my co-drivers and we got ready for the test day. I was first in the car and the set up seemed pretty good in the dry weather but we had a fuel leak and the fumes were getting to me. We had to come in and fix it so I only got 2-3 hot laps in the car between coming in and going out trying to fix it. Other than the brakes giving us a few problems the car was great. The other drivers tested the car through the day as we had one session each and everything went really well. It turned out to be a great day but there were clouds looming on the horizon…
The next morning we woke up to cooler temperatures and a cloudy and misty day. It seemed to just get worse as the day progressed. We put a compromise setup on the car (making it handle better in the rain as there is less grip which makes it not as fast when its dry) as it was looking like a downpour during qualifying and the first half of the race. We had some glitches with the brakes locking and were trying to figure that out right up to qualifying time. We heard cars out there so I suited up and jumped right in. It was pouring but the SRI Racing BMW had the measure of it. I got in 8 good laps then the brakes started to lock on me going into T1 and off I went! I got the car slowed pretty good before hitting the tire wall drivers side first. I was able to get away from the wall but got stuck in the wet grass. How embarrassing! Sri came on the radio and told me we were 4.5 seconds ahead of 2nd place in qualifying! Good thing the car wasn’t really damaged other than minor cosmetics after pushing a few dents out! The alignment was still good and the car felt great for the remainder of the evening. We came in 10th overall and 1st in class by a big margin! I love the rain! Now we just need to get the brakes to stop locking…
Race day!! We woke up to miserable rainy and cold conditions Saturday morning and got the car prepped for a rain start. The weather showed big green blobs of rain and more on the way so on went the Hoosier rain tires. The crew got the car to the grid in a timely manner and the rain slowed. As soon as I got out on track for the start it stopped and my windshield fogged up from the lack of airflow. Ugh! I didn’t get the best start but tried to hold my position. The second place ITR car got by me (he was on intermediate tires…the right call) and I tried my best to keep the rains cool but it just kept drying out. Eventually they got so hot and slick I went off turn one again! This time I got the car slowed enough and spun around so I didn’t slam the wall…maybe just a touch but I only lost 10 seconds getting it out of the mud…I came in 27 seconds behind the now 1st place ITR car and early for my stint as we were losing too much time with the rain tires on in the dry. We refueled and put the dry tires on and tried to get the rear anti sway bar reattached but it was a bugger and cost us a few minutes on track. Dan Parker was the next one in and he has proven to be a very quick racer and was able to keep on track and did a great job in the seat setting the fast lap for our team. Catsby was in next and cranked out many good laps until the front ball joint let go stopping us just out of the pits. We were able to get the car towed back, ball joint replaced and back out on track in 22 minutes! Unfortunately it put us back to 5th. The drama continues!
Endurance racing is fun and unpredictable because you have so many variables. Lots of different drivers, crews and lots of time on the track and anything can happen. As we were getting towed back in 2 of our close competitors were in the pits fixing their cars! We went out on the same lap and it was race on! Now we were in a heated battle for 3rd. Craig Lippe was next in and did a stellar job trading lap times and positions with the #99 BMW Z3 ITR car. He had the longest stint in the car at 2 hours and 40 minutes! He was easy on the tires and brakes driving the car into the darkness. We had to stop early for dry tires and our mechanical gremlin put our pit strategy off. If my stint went on a bit longer and we didn’t have the ball joint failure…..anyways, it was Sri’s turn at it and he pulled his stint without incident but the extra pit stop put us back to 5th. It was now my turn to try and reel in our competitors!
I got into the car not knowing what to expect as the brakes were iffy for all the drivers and we had to brake in a straight line (no turning in on the brakes as they would just lock and flat spot the tires) so we had a bit of a compromise in our lap times. The car was surprisingly good considering the problems we had! The tires had a few minor flat spots causing some weird vibrations but it seemed to handle fine. I got out quick and we got word that we had a 90 second penalty for a minor (less than 12 inch) fuel spill! Noooooooooo! Oh well I came in and served my time and got out there to try and do something with our competition. Virginia International Raceway in the dark is a fun and different experience. The corners come at you quicker and you tend to turn in too early so it took me a few laps to acclimate myself to it. It was also the first time to really lap the car in the dry conditions. I caught all the ITR cars in our class and passed them. Then there was a call for oil in Hog Pen (the last corner on the track…a very fast right hander down a hill) I had just passed the Z3 and was trying to put some distance on him when I found the oil. It launched me off the outside where there was another car stuffed into the wall from said oil. I was able to get it back on without losing too much time but they threw a full course caution anyways so I was able to catch up. After the restart I was going back and forth with the #99 again and was ahead when going into turn 4 a Miata that we had passed on the straightaway before mad a bonehead maneuver and passed all of us stopping in my left rear door. I saw the lights coming and they were coming fast! I figured it was either the Prototype car that was vying for the win or the eventual winner in a very fast BMW M3 so I gave him room on the inside. It didn’t matter. He spun me 180 degrees and now I was facing oncoming traffic at night on a blind corner! I was able to restart and get the hell out of there! Luckily the car was undamaged. We all did our best and our 5th place finishing position was a hard pill to swallow after all that work! Our consolation was we still finished 18th overall out of 59 starters!

There is always next year! Thank you to The Trevor Project, SRI Racing, our crew and drivers! Hopefully we will get it next year!

Here we go!

Well the vinyl and embroidery are done all I have to do is drive 12 hours up there and do some prep work on the car for the Charge of the Headlight Brigade 13 Hour Race! Should be alot of fun and I will update afterwards with pictures and maybe some video...watch my twitter feed and facebook page for updates.