My friend Ron, whom I go to Austin with to do the Livestrong Challenges, runs the Le Tour De Femme in Cary NC. The tour is a female only cycling event in October that has a half-metric and full-metric century riding option. Its a cool event and I volunteered and ran one of the rest stops. If you’re a lady and around the triangle area Id highly recommend doing the event, if you’re a guy then you can always volunteer. This is his fundraiser for the Livestrong Challenge and its easy to see why on our team he’s completely crushing me in the fundraising department.

His first event was last year and for this year’s website he asked me to put together a video with photos that were taken at last years event. When we did the Ride for the Roses in 2005 I put together a DVD of my photos and he really dug it and wanted something similar to promote the Tour de Femme. I put one together and its now up on their website for viewing, head over and take a peek if you got time. Its really not that hard to make the movies because Microsoft’s Photo Story will do 90% of the work. Mainly it comes down to tweaking some of the transitions and matching the movie to the length of whatever soundtrack you choose to use.

http://www.letourdefemme.org/

So I had been putting it off for a while hoping to find a better armband than the Nike+ one to wear during my runs. While running the other day though my Ipod jostled out of my pocket and I looked down to see it hanging inches from the pavement by the headphone cord. There isn’t better motivation to go out and get an armband than seeing your $200 Ipod swinging over concrete. I broke down and picked up the Nike+ armband, against my instincts. Mainly I got it because it was quick and easy, also I only found one other model of armband that could accommodate the Ipod with the Nike+ sensor attached and it didnt have great reviews. My problem with the Nike+ band is that you cant see anything, its entirely enclosed and covered. While thats good to protect it from sweat it makes it impossible to navigate the Ipod and is frustrating as hell. Seems like Nike is yet again more worried about looking cool than being functional.

The easiest way to use the armband that I’ve found is to setup your workout to the point that all you have to do is press the center button to begin and then put it into the armband. When you’re ready to go press the center button. When you finish press the pause button and then when you’re able to pull the Ipod out and end the workout. Pretty inconvenient but I do recommend having an armband in general. Its really convenient and keeps the earphone cords from pulling out of your ears because they dont have to reach your pocket. Not to mention keeping your Ipod from falling out of your pocket.

Other than that the Livestrong Challenge training is picking up. Each week I add more miles to my runs. Im hoping that the weather will be warm enough in the next few weeks to get on my bike again. That way I can start alternating my runs with my biking to keep my workouts mixed up and fresh as well as getting ready for my rides. Being warm enough to run is far different than being warm enough to ride with only spring cycling gear. The wind of the ride is ten times colder and faster than what you get in a run.

If you’re planning on attending the Austin Livestrong Challenge this year then you’re probably wondering where to stay. Last year for the Livestrong Challenge my friend Ron and I stayed at the Courtyard by Marriott downtown location. Id recommend this hotel for anyone travelling to Austin this year. The hotel is located cross cornered to the convention center where the Livestrong Village was located last year, and should be again this year. So getting to the village is as simple as walking out of the lobby and taking a left.

The hotel has valet parking which can be an issue if you’re planning on driving a lot in Austin. The valets are generally pretty quick so you can get your car in and out. Also you’ll have to pay for parking in addition to the hotel room but if you try to drive and park in the downtown area you’ll appreciate the service. The point is moot though because other than getting to the Challenge there’s really no need to drive anywhere. Everything you could possibly want is downtown and within walking distance, including the Pasta Warehouse a few blocks away which is a great place to carb load the night before. I’ve eaten there prior to both of our previous Austin rides.

Here’s the link to the Marriott:

http://marriott.com/property/propertypage/AUSCD

I was looking at the Lance Armstrong Foundation store today and found that the 2006 Livestrong Challenge gear is on sale. Here’s the link: http://www.store-laf.org/lscgear.html. I got the jersey while in Austin last year for my ride and its a pretty cool jersey. A word of warning, all the jersey’s fit very tight so i’d recommend moving up a size if you get one. So if you wear a large Id get an X-Large. I guess its a matter of preference but I prefer not to ride feeling like im in a wetsuit, snug but not skin tight. Doesnt help that no matter how much i work i still keep a little bit of a gut. They also have hats, shirts, and shorts.

Getting some gear could help inspire you while you train for the 2007 Livestrong Challenge wearing some Livestrong Challenge gear. Could be a stretch to think that but its strange the things that get us going. It’s also a good conversation starter and could help with fundraising. While riding in the 24 Hours of Booty last year I wore my Ride for the Roses jersey and it started some conversations with people who were interested in where I got it.

This year the Lance Armstrong Foundation announced their incentives for the Livestrong Challenge participants at the same time as registration. This means no fun days of speculating on jersey levels and their amounts.

From the Livestrong Challenge 2007 Website:

LIVESTRONG Challenge Incentives

	$50	$100 (run only)	$250	$500	$1,000	$2,500	$5,000+
Run/Walk Entry with T-shirt	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Waterbottle		x	x	x	x	x	x
Ride Entry with T-shirt			x	x	x	x	x
Cap				x	x	x	x
Bag					x	x	x
Challenge Jersey / Dri-Fit T-shirt						x	x
Saturday Dinner Ticket (+ 1 guest ticket)							x

Ride for the Roses Incentives

	White Jersey	Green Jersey	Polka Dot Jersey	Yellow Jersey
	$10,000	$15,000	$20,000	$30,000
Transportation to Friday Night Dinner Only (participant only)	x
Friday Welcome Celebration & Dinner (participant only)	x
Lance Armstrong Signed Item	x
Sunday Ride or Run/Walk Entry	x	x	x	x
Ride for the Roses Jacket	x	x	x	x
Ride for the Roses Jersey or Dri-Fit T-shirt	x	x	x	x
Saturday Awards Dinner (+1 guest)	x	x	x	x
Participant Airfare		x	x	x
3 Night Hotel Stay (Oct. 12, 13 & 14)		x	x	x
Transportation to all Weekend Events		x	x	x
Friday Welcome Celebration & Dinner (+1 guest)		x	x	x
Autograph Session		x (1 item)	x (1 item)	x (2 items)
Special Hospitality Tent Entry (+1 guest)		x	x	x
Photograph at Autograph Session			x	x
Saturday Pre-Dinner Reception				x
Guest Airfare				x
Private Group Ride (participant only)				x

The first thing I noticed is that fundraising levels have been dropped from $500 to $250 in order to participate. I think that was a good move because Im sure it will attract more particpants who felt the $500 level was out of reach. If this change attracts two more participants and the one who would do $500 then they’ve increased their fundraising already.

The only other major change I see is that the White jersey level has increased from $7500 to $10000. While i still would love to get that jersey I dont mind the increase because it comes with more goodies associated with it such as the entry into the Ride For The Roses.