there's been some news and some odds and ends.  seemed like an appropriate time to write some of them up.  this past weekend was a cause for celebration as two of the unions's most stalwart members saw their children (nils and ryleigh) start riding without training wheels.  congratulations to them.  the fruit of the union is truly taking it to the streets.  please drive appropriately now that you know.  my own son, regrettably, has decided to keep his training wheels on.  regrettable because it's not that he needs them, but that he perceives them as some sort of weapon with which to ram other cyclists.  principally me.  maybe hockey would be a better outlet for him.  in addition, alec rottier was spreading the message on the rock creek ride.  his stylish che t-shirt put the lycra clad to shame.  i only wish i had remembered to bring the little laminated manifestos to hand out.

the weekend news was not all good however.  aric line notified us late friday night that he would miss the saturday rock creek ride.  he had some abdominal discomfort and was going to get it checked out.  saturday afternoon, he was being prepped for surgery to remove his appendix.  for those unfamiliar, here's a schematic:

and just to give you extra value for your blog dollar, here's a dramatic re-enactment of what it must have looked like while the doctors were fishing around inside him to get that thing out.  pretty icky, but then that's why they get paid the big dollars.

the bad news receded quickly.  aric came through fine and actually appeared to be healing at a phenomenal rate.  brother alec completed his first full day of comuting on tuesday and notified us that aric was back on the bike and commuting in to work.  i was dumbfounded and needed to re-read the message several times, but there was no mistake.  but wait, it gets better.  aric emails me thursday morning and tells me he will be at the herndon ride.  amazing.  the guy was out cold being operated on the previous saturday and by thursday, he is hammering off the front of the thursday ride.  that was no mean feat and I have the power meter data to back that claim up.  it was hilarious.  I ended up watching as he soloed away with doctor craig.  i was too amazed to talk any smack, but i guess that just gives me a chance to save it up for next time.

now my real suspicion is that they didn't just pull out his appendix.  my guess is that aric opted for the removal of a number of other extraneous organs (heck, who needs two of those things??!!) and a bunch of connective tissue.  we've all been on aric about his weight.  i secretly suspect that there may have been some pre-op payoff to help yield a better power to weight ratio.  we'll put a crack team on that and report back soon.

a number of us will be at columbia this weekend.  regrettably, the new uniforms have not yet arrived.  we will probably debut them at poolesville and bunny hop.  if anyone else has news to share, post it in the comments.

- - posted by scott

Usted mejor lo mira. bastante pronto, la revolución girará la rueda social