Benitosan:Sorry to let everyone down guys,
but I believe that I am quitting this tour
very soon, I ABSOLUTELY abhor the South and
I’d rather quit the tour having finished 1st almost
every single day of the tour, then ride another day in this SHIThole.

The South is a big fucking diaper & I feel sorry fir anyone that had to live here,
I will never ever come back here again, the weather, the mentality, the standard of living,
it’s NO wonder people transplant themselves to the Bay Area… this place is DEPRESSING beyond

HOLY SHIT!!!

I can’t give up now, or else I’ll never be able to show my Arrospoks in SF!!!
Thanks for the kind words, affirmations, and support… obviously, had a really REALLY BAD time in the South, still in Mississippi, in a town called Batesville right now… Had a good, easy 60mile ride today… checking into the hotel right now, drinking a Coors Light tallcan @ 1045am… gonna do some laundry, nap, eat some eggs & toast, then relax & regroup my mind for the next leg of the tour… coming up: Arkansas & Oklahoma, I have faith that Little Rock & Oklahoma City will treat me right… need to find a bike shop & get my bike tuned up… need to find a Target or Goodwill & buy some new/used NOT damp/dirty/sticky clothing… I WILL devote torY to getting my mind & body back on track!!! Thanks for all of the encouragement, I am relying on my friends on this forum to get me through the TOUGH times, UGLY weather, UNVOMFORTABLE conditions, and PAINFUL miles of this tour… I WILL look forward to reading MORE support from you guys!!! I need it!!! It’s been almost 3weeks now & nearing 1500miles, I am tired, homesick, and frustrated, but I WILL keep going if only to make my friends back home proud of me, THANKS AGAIN… Will check back later for those important words of advice & influence!!!

ps. I STILL hate/can’t wait to get out of the South, if I NEVER see another Confederate flag, mullet, pickup truck, or armadillo & mosquito, I will be a happy man! Bring on the desert, the dry heat may actually be nice! :thumbup:

-Bennett

Benitosan:Sorry to let everyone down guys,
but I believe that I am quitting this tour
very soon, I ABSOLUTELY abhor the South and
I’d rather quit the tour having finished 1st almost
every single day of the tour, then ride another day in this SHIThole.

The South is a big fucking diaper & I feel sorry fir anyone that had to live here,
I will never ever come back here again, the weather, the mentality, the standard of living,
it’s NO wonder people transplant themselves to the Bay Area… this place is DEPRESSING beyond

Benitosan:Thanks for the words & support all!

For the time being… I’M BACK IN THE GAME

-had a good ride today, and the humidity went down
-still in shithole Mississippi for the time being, but at a A/C hotel at least
-100mile ride to Clarendon, Arkansas tomorrow, ouch!
-mentally recovered today with food, shower, nap, laundry, and shopping therapy
-going to sleep now, proud & appreciative of all the love of SJF… you guys are my family
-the Tour has given me a mock “World Champion Striped” ring to show how I’ve finished almost every stage in first place, I can’t give up the ring right now, it feels so comfortable on my finger!!!

Benitosan:I’m in Little Rock, Arkansas right now, ANOTHER 105mile ride today, whew!

-SO HAPPY to be out of the boonies & in a major city again :clap:
-SO HAPPY to see Starbucks & traffic instead of Walmarts & cows :tongue:
-still feeling strong, still wearing the ring, though my ass is still all blown up
-they treated us to Benihana’s for dinner, that’s not real Japanese food, but I’ll take it :thumbup:
-went to a bikeshop in downtown Little Rock, some employee was trying to educate ME about “fixies” haha :confused:
-the route was HELLA confusing & long today, sorry if I misdialed a few of you, using an iPhone while riding down an Interstate no-handed while reading a map, eating a Clifbar, and drinking Monster Lo-carb just ain’t that easy!
-I love you and miss you all!!! Just about at the 1/2way point of the tour… next comes Oklahoma, then 2 STRAIGHT WEEKS through ginormous Texas, then 2grueling weeks crossing the Mojave desert thru New Mexico, Arizona, and Southern California… I just may finish this damn thing… Survived the humidity, Mosquitos, and depression of the South, now I’m heading West!!! See you in LA, somebody bring me some TCC!!! :hungry:

Photos: Annamarie C

Donald

Fonseca Films

Other common places stolen bikes of all kinds turn up in the Bay Area are in San Francisco near Market and 6th, under the 4th and 7th st. freeway entrances, and at the Ashby Flea Market at Ashby BART in Berkeley (weekends 7am-7pm). Please keep an eye out and help Shelley get her bike back.

For immediate release:

Contact:
Nicola Cranmer, General Manager
Email: ncranmer@aol.com
Tel: 415.246.8791

NATIONAL TEAM RIDER SHELLEY OLDS’ BIKE IS STOLEN TWO DAYS BEFORE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS IN PREPARATION FOR WORLD CUP
September 30, 2008 – Grave misfortune has struck within the PROMAN Women’s Professional Cycling Team and UCI Professional Track Team. Shelley Olds determined this morning that her bike was stolen from her car in Gilroy, California, Her car was parked in a driveway near the Eagle Creek Golf Course.

“I love that bike,” explained Olds, shaking her head in disbelief. “You work hard to get yourself set up on a bike, then you get used to it and grow to appreciate everything about it. It wouldn’t be quite the tragedy it is if not for Track National Championships just two days away. I don’t know yet what I’ll do. We hope to recover the bicycle and I am offering a reward”

Bike Specs:
BMC Trackmaster 47cm Carbon frame, Cane Creek 50mm Carbon wheels, white Ritchey Syncros stem, 38cm FSA Bars, Dura ace 165mm cranks, gold Izumi Chain

“This is especially painful since one of the most important races of Shelley’s career is just two days away,” explained Nicola Cranmer, General Manager of PROMAN Women’s Professional Cycling Team. “But it’s also a terrible misfortune because BMC had the frame flown in from Switzerland especially for Track Nationals and the UCI World Cups and all of our sponsors have been so generous in their support of our team, and our staff has worked so hard to get all of Shelley’s equipment dialed in and has maintained it so that it has worked flawlessly over the past two years.”

If you have any information on the whereabouts of Shelley’s bike, please contact Cranmer at the above phone number or email. The team is happy to support efforts by the police to pursue perpetrators, but will also gladly recover the bike, no questions asked. A reward is offered.