After months of agonizing deliberation - have you ever been with John when he's trying to make a decision? - John found and purchased a bike! Yep, we're leaving the world of marathons behind and going into cycling ... yikes! The new member is an Eddy Merckx Leader 2005 and has all the bells and whistles needed for true cycling - including a trainer so that he can sit on the bike stationary and clip in (he even has shoes) and clip out without moving. I honestly don't know enough about it to properly explain it, but cyclists "clip in" to their pedals with special shoes so that their feet don't slip off the pedals during a race. It's good that he can practice this procedure because you can imagine the trauma of having your feet stuck to the pedals when you're crashing.
It also comes with a hard case so we can now travel with it. John's favorite (albeit momentarily) asset is that it's in the colors of Rabbobank which is Rassmussen's le Tour de France team. We'll be getting hooks so that it can hang from the ceiling in the playroom... you can imagine how stressed out John is with little fingers and furry woodland friends living in this house.
So, more to come on the cycling world. A world I never thought I'd live in. I finally figure out strategy for running and now, racing - although I have decided after four years of faithful tour watching - it's a true gentleman's sport. Perhaps one of the last in the world. Seriously, watch these guys... they are actually kind and nice to each other.
Team Stone
And their leader
Monkey See, Monkey Do 
Posing with their "wheels"