BVC-CHATAs August 10 arrives, again

[BILL GARRETT]

I really like to ride my bicycle.  It reminds me how alive I am.  I celebrate the fitness that it has allowed me to enjoy.  I learned some time ago that any day can be a good day out on the bike.  I look forward to those opportunities when I am able to join those whose share my two wheeled passions.  I have learned much of myself, and met many friends, because of my bicycle and the many morning, or all day, rides.  I am proud to respond to those inquires with "Yes, I am a cyclist!"  

But I feel my breathing come up short and my heart beats heavily as I pass Wayne's marker on that lonely piece of highway 30.  As I ride by, I have sprinted ahead of my comrades and I raise my bottle, as a salute to a dear friend, and a prayer for all who shared his life, and in praise of the man that I knew.   

As you head out on your bicycle, or in your car, this weekend, think back to that Sunday morning in early August four years ago when we lost Wayne, think of how fortunate we were to have had Wayne among us, and know that Wayne got up another hill, ahead of us, again.

Bill