Didn't make it down

In case anyone was wondering. I'm gonna have to get Scott's route down there one of these days...

but

I came across this song and had to jot some thoughts that came from it.

It's not what you take when you leave this world behind you...

It's what you leave behind you when you go.

That sums up Sheldon Brown. He left us with as much if not more than anyone has left cycling.

Yeah. It is a line from Randy Travis's Three Wooden Crosses song.

I like the occasional country music song. It ain't all DJ Tiesto, The Pogues, and Gordon Bok with Rush, Black Sabbath and Wagner tossed in liberally.

As you go through life. Keep that in mind.

It really comes down to what you leave behind when you go. What have you done. What have you done to make a difference? Ask yourself, what have you left behind if you were to go tomorrow. Is it enough. Is it ever enough. At what point can you say what you are doing benefits others more than you?

Yogurt boy is a good example. Cronoman too. These are folks who could be doing things very differently, to very different ends. But they both have and continue to make amazing and very different sacrifices. By any measure they both have already done more than most could dream of doing for others.

I'm going to quote a far more eloquent man than I to express what I am trying to say. People like Yogurt Boy (aka feltslave aka cxracer aka Matt Simpson) and Cronoman (aka Nicest guy in the peloton aka USMC veteran Eric Maro) are the folks this friend is talking about:

Special people surround us all. They don’t need to be entertainment, or internet celebrities to be stars. Enjoy their company. Don’t be shy. Thank them for making your life better, more fun, or interesting.

Well said Bruce. Thanks!

I will close much the same way I have once before:

Now pass me a virtual bottle of the Water of Life. Time to toast a few rounds to those who've fallen, those who've inspired us, those who gave us our country!

Sláinte
and
Heddwch
G