Sodium In Your Face

A couple of weeks ago I put on a hydration presentation at a training camp for the guys of Southwest CycleSport in Austin. I never would have guessed how my presentation would have touched home with another presenter in attendance that night. It was truly amazing.

Keith Williams, president of Williams Cycling was there to talk about his new company and the wheels he's selling. He was also there in support of a new women's pro team which is tied in with Southwest Cyclesport, Team Healthcoach/TravelGirl.

After pointing out during my presentation that all sport drinks have fallen critically short on electrolyte replenishment, especially sodium (until e load(TM) came along), Keith announced to the group that lack of sodium is what started him into the wheel business. He used to race road bikes but suffered heart damage due to sodium depletion. Keith now wears a pacemaker and can never race again.

I am one who believes that everything happens for a reason. Maybe Keith's future lies in making some of the most innovative race wheels the world has ever seen! Maybe his story is one that should be told in tandem with what we have been educating people on about hydration and electrolyte replenishment. It certainly says volumes for what can happen. Take note, please. This can happen to anyone. We can prevent it with education and e load(TM). Peace!

How Austin Does Winter

Well it's not quite a winter wonderland but this is about as close as it gets here in Austin Texas! We actually did see some snow flakes coming down, big ones, almost the size of a fist. I thought for a moment that the sky had rabies or someone was flying overhead with a foam machine.

The last time we had anything like this was 2 years ago. The kids went wild then too, go figure. Not only did they get to experience something they've almost never seen before but they got to have MORE time off of school. As a matter of fact, when this happens in Austin the whole city shuts down. It's pathetic. Lucky for me, my commute to work is from the bedroom to the front office in our home. If I did have to leave for anything today I wouldn't be able to anyway because my car is incased in a half inch thick sheet of ice. Some parts were as thick as an inch!

Later today this is supposed to go away and then we'll have to wait another 2-5 years for this to happen again... thankfully!

Bitch-Kittie Buck-O-Rama

Fellow blogger, friend and e load(TM) fanatic Bitch Kittie needs some help in getting herself and her friend Sunshine down to Austin for the Muddy Buddy which takes place this coming May.

If you've never heard of the Muddy Buddy, let me explain. It's a duathlon (running and mountain biking) event where a team is made up of two people. There are obstacles to negotiate and you are supposed to get muddy. You must wear a helmet so that too much mud doesn't get in your hair and no one under 14 years of age is allowed, I guess because it's a "dirty" race. From the pictures on the website it appears as though hugging and smearing each other with mud is required. Hmmm, sound's like a great spectator sport to me!

Anyway, Bitch Kittie said that anyone throwing a few bucks at her to help out will get huge press and be featured on her official hot pink Verona Vagina/Bitch Kittie tshirts. I'm sure that she would be happy to provide dirty pictures of herself and Sunshine to any sponsors after the event. Email her at bkouttathebag@gmail.com if you're interested.

Mas O Manos Ultra Endurance MTB Race Announces Eload™ Heat Endurance Formula as Official Course Drink

Toronto, Ontario 1/5/07
Eload™ Heat Endurance Formula has been slated for the second year running as the official course drink for the Mas O Manos MTB Ultra-Endurance Race and Festival taking place in the desert of Terlingua Texas February 15th-17th, 2007.

Eload™ is the first sport drink medically designed to treat and prevent heat related illnesses including cramping, bonking, upset stomach, heat headaches, dizziness and hyponatremia which makes it the best choice for an ultra endurance event. Dr. Douglas Stoddard MD, the medical director for Medion and the e load™ formulator, says “this drink was specifically designed for use in the heat, taking into account every known issue re digesting, absorption and fueling in these conditions. We continue to enjoy a solid reputation in helping athletes succeed in the heat, and are very excited to be able to once again participate in the Mas O Manos Ultra Endurance MTB Race. Eload™ has also been used in the medical tents of the Hotter’n Hell Hundred this past year with astounding results.

The Mas O Manos Race, a 100km cramp fest with over 6,000 feet of climbing and $25,000 of cash and prizes has been announced by USA Cycling as the opening race for the MTB Ultra-Endurance Calendar.

E load™, EMEND™ and Zone Caps™ are distributed throughout the U.S. by Bike Mine.

Related links:
e load(TM)
Mas O Manos MTB Challenge
HeatDoc (Dr. Stoddard’s site)
BikeMine

Medion Corporation
4779 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
Canada M2N 5M5
1-888-606-7511

The B-List

My buddy Tim Jackson from Masi Bikes has created a meme in honor of his friend Mack who created a fantastic meme awhile back. Mack's meme started quite a stir, got a lot of attention and introduced people to some great new blogs they'd never heard of. It was built around the community of marketing blogs, but the idea is totally portable and applicable to any and all niches.

Here's how it works; I post my list of bike blogs that I like and read and then you cut and paste the list onto your blog and add the sites that you like and read. Then anybody who reads the list does the same and a great viral meme is born, creating lots of exposure to the blogs on the lists and giving people a new set of blogs to read that they might not have known anything about.

My list is short has been added to Tim's original of which none are any particular order. Here we go!:

Heat Doc
Masi Guy
Danielle Musto
CycleBetter
Bicycle Design
Bike Portland
Bitch Kitty's Scratching Post
Cornerstone Life
Crooked Cog Network (main page for a series of great reads)
Crooked Cog Podcast (I was the first interview, by the way...)
Cycle-Licious
Dave's Bike Blog
First And Last And Always
Go Clipless
Guitar Ted Productions
iheartbikes
Interbike Times
Ladyvelo (maybe this will get her to update her blog...)
Langkjoring
Missing Saddle
Panther City Blog
Professional Bicycle SupportBlue Squirrel (my best friend... so go easy on him...)
Skibbysez; Shut Up and Ride!
Smithers Minneapolis
Spinopsys
Super Rookie's World
Surly Blog
The Canari Blog (go comment and tell them to update the thing...)
The Life and Times at SockGuy
Tidbits and More
Ugly Bike
wherethehekismarkman