Those who have heard the tale of Svein Tuft have wondered, could it possibly be true?

How he dropped out of school in the 10th grade, lured by the freedom of the outdoors. How he evolved into a barrel-chested woodsman with Paul Bunyan biceps. [...]]]>

Canadian Rider Makes an Unorthodox Climb Toward Cycling’s Pinnacle – NYTimes.com

Those who have heard the tale of Svein Tuft have wondered, could it possibly be true?

How he dropped out of school in the 10th grade, lured by the freedom of the outdoors. How he evolved into a barrel-chested woodsman with Paul Bunyan biceps. How he ventured, at 18, from his home in Canada into the wilderness on a $40 thrift-shop bike hooked to a homemade trailer.

They have learned of the way he traveled sparingly, towing only his camping gear, a sack of potatoes and his 80-pound dog, Bear. The way he drank from streams and ate beside an open fire. Or hopped trains across Canada, resting as the land flickered by.

Now 31, Tuft is out to prove that all the raw travel and personal drive can translate into something beyond his survival. Recruited by one of the world’s top cycling teams, he is about to begin a more disciplined journey. It starts next weekend with the Tour of California, where he will race with the Garmin-Slipstream squad, and is likely to continue this summer at the Tour de France.

Read more …

In this age, when athletes have become personalities, it’s refreshing to read a profile of an athlete who is more concerned with being true to himself than trying to fit into a mold of what a professional athlete should be.

I have to admit, I’ve seen the name Svein Tuft before, on VeloNews.com and CyclingNews.com, but haven’t paid a whole lot of attention, especially the past couple of years when it seems that doping stories overwhelms everything else, and my own drive to ride my bikes has faded … but stories like this are inspirational; and I find myself more interested in getting out on my bikes and following the sport than I have in years.

sometimes there is nothing else except for the pen, the ink, the paper, me, and the muse

Or get modern. Sometimes there is nothing but me the monitor, the keyboard, the words, and sweet inspiration

looking at the blank paper looking at the blank screen

watching the words take shape something [...]]]>

addiction is like this

sometimes there is nothing else except for the pen, the ink,
the paper, me, and the muse

so do you

  — Father Luke (b. 1959), American poet. Reprinted with permission.
  — For more, see FatherLuke.com

Compassion becomes a bridge to the world outside. Trust and compassion for oneself bring inspiration to dance with life, to communicate with the energies of the world. Lacking this kind of inspiration and openness, the spiritual path becomes the samsaric path of desire. One remains trapped in the desire to improve [...]]]>

THE BRIDGE OF COMPASSION

Compassion becomes a bridge to the world outside. Trust and compassion for oneself bring inspiration to dance with life, to communicate with the energies of the world. Lacking this kind of inspiration and openness, the spiritual path becomes the samsaric path of desire. One remains trapped in the desire to improve oneself, the desire to achieve imagined goals … Compassion automatically invites you to relate with people, because you no longer regard people as a drain on your energy. They recharge your energy, because in the process of relating with them, you acknowledge your wealth, your richness. So if you have difficult tasks to perform, such as dealing with people or life situations, you do not feel you are running out of resources. Each time you are faced with a difficult task, it presents itself as a delightful opportunity to demonstrate your richness, your wealth. There is no feeling of poverty at all in this approach to life.

From “The Open Way,” in CUTTING THROUGH SPIRITUAL MATERIALISM, pages 98 to 99.

  — Chögyam Trungpa (1939 – 1987), Tibetan Buddhist teacher.

Spring Snow  

A spring snow coincides with plum blossoms. In a month, you will forget, then remember when nine ravens perched in the elm sway in wind.

I will remember when I brake to a stop, and a hubcap rolls [...]]]> Thursday’s early morning storm provides the inspiration for this week’s edition of Poetry Friday.

Spring Snow  

A spring snow coincides with plum blossoms.
In a month, you will forget, then remember
when nine ravens perched in the elm sway in wind.

I will remember when I brake to a stop,
and a hubcap rolls through the intersection.
An angry man grinds pepper onto his salad;

it is how you nail a tin amulet ear
into the lintel. If, in deep emotion, we are
possessed by the idea of possession,

we can never lose to recover what is ours.
Sounds of an abacus are amplified and condensed
to resemble sounds of hail on a tin roof,

but mind opens to the smell of lightning.
Bodies were vaporized to shadows by intense heat;
in memory people outline bodies on walls.

  — Arthur Sze (b. 1950)

From The Redshifting Web: Poems 1970-1998, published by Copper Canyon Press, 1998. Copyright © 1998.

My motivation levels are near-nil, and I find that right now I’m basically just on cruise control. I wake up, I go to [...]]]> I don’t know if it’s the changing weather (like it is for the Mistress), or if there is something else going on, but I just cannot get my head into the game.

My motivation levels are near-nil, and I find that right now I’m basically just on cruise control. I wake up, I go to work, I come home, I eat too much, watch some TV, and go to bed. On weekends, I may give myself a respite by heading up one of the canyons, but the past couple of weeks, even that hasn’t really helped a whole lot.

I’m looking for inspiration from without, because I’m certainly not finding any from within.

I can’t write, at least not expressively … my pens and journals are just sitting there. I’m not feeling artistically inclined towards my cameras … I’m just carrying them around, but not pulling them out and using them.

My bikes are in the closet, or leaning against the counter in the dining room, tires flattening, chains drying, and even the last couple of days I’ve been skiing have been less than exceptional.

I’m deep in a funk, and I don’t know how to pull myself out right now; and I’m not sure how everyone else can put on such a happy face all the time. I listen to what other people tell me about what’s going on in their lives, much of which is often more difficult than what I’m having to deal with, and yet, they seem like they’re able to just deal with it and move on, while I find myself wallowing in in the muck that is my mind.

Definitely not doing the Big Ring thing these days. I dunno, Train, maybe I should give up the “Flahute” monicker and put away the Ferlinghetti and Kerouac, and start pulling out the Maya Angelou and Sylvia Plath.

After the last 20 years of Bush/Clinton/Bush politics, the last thing this country needs is another President who is as divisive as [...]]]> I’m sorry, but my dislike of Hillary is visceral. Oh … I’d vote for her come November if she is the candidate, but I’d rather have a less-experienced President whom is actually inspiring.

After the last 20 years of Bush/Clinton/Bush politics, the last thing this country needs is another President who is as divisive as Hillary would be.

I think that Barack Obama could actually bring the country back together, which to my mind is far more important than anything else; and if he chooses his Vice President and Cabinet wisely, he could be an incredible President on top, which would be a bonus!

Hopefully, this doesn’t make me a “Yes We Can” drone.

At least one of my friends disagrees, stating:

I would rather have experience rather than the empty shell of inspiration. Inspiration can’t lead a country. Divisive or not — the woman is intelligent and knows whose buttons to push and when. All of politics has to do with divisiveness.

I certainly respect that opinion, but I disagree … not about Hillary’s intelligence, because she is definitely an extremely smart woman; but in my mind, good politicians know how to navigate the divisiveness to build something approaching a consensus. They know how to compromise.

That’s the difference between people like GWB and Ronald Reagan … I was never a Reagan supporter — I am a good little Democrat, after all — but he had a way of appealing and reaching across the aisle … and that helped him accomplish his agenda.

Bill Clinton had this ability as well, which is how he managed to balance the budget and build a budget surplus, even with (for 6 of his 8 years) a hostile Republican majority Congress; a budget surplus which was completely squandered (and then some), by the current Republican administration (and the Republican majority Congress for the first 6 years of GWB’s presidency).

I don’t think Hillary would be able to accomplish the same thing, even with a friendly Democrat majority Congress.

But we’ll see. The best part about this year’s electoral process is that it is encouraging people to think and to get involved. People are excited about participating again … and that bodes well, no matter who is the candidate on either side, and no matter who is ultimately elected.

My opinion, anyway.

Britain’s vanished Tour de France champion reappears – as a woman

Known as “King of the Mountains”, cyclist Robert Millar was Britain’s best performer in the Tour de [...]]]> Not David Millar, who is currently wearing the polka dot jersey in this year’s Tour de France, but Robert Millar … Scotland’s original King of the Mountains.

Britain’s vanished Tour de France champion reappears – as a woman

Known as “King of the Mountains”, cyclist Robert Millar was Britain’s best performer in the Tour de France and an inspiration to a generation of fans.

He was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1984 and became an elder statesman of cycling once his racing days were over.

Then, four years ago, he simply disappeared – and even a year’s research for a newly published biography failed to track him down.

But as the latest Tour de France starts in London today, the Daily Mail can reveal that Millar, 48, will never be able to use the title “King of the Mountains” again.

For the powerful sporting hero who once failed a drugs test for having too much testosterone is now living as a woman under the name Philippa York in a Dorset village.

I remember reading several years back rumours along these lines, but there was never any confirmation; and then the always reclusive Millar seemingly disappeared 4 years ago. Now we know why.

Interestingly, Robert Millar is not the first transgendered pro cyclist … Michelle Dumaresq (born Michael Dumaresq) races as a women’s professional downhill mountain bike racer; a not entirely uncontroversial situation.

Update: Saturday, July 14, 2007

Pal R. points out that Portland’s Molly Cameron is not only transgender, but vegan, and a pretty kick-ass cyclocross racer, still racing in the masters (30+) men’s category.