Wednesday

The diagnosis on the thumb is torn ulnar ligament. Surgery Monday. Cast for 5-6 weeks. I knew that it was a problem when I couldn't turn the ignition to start the car.

More bad news at the TdF. Another rider tested positive, and another team pulled out. The leader remains a Dane who is being dogged by suspicion because of his below-radar activities before the Tour. The Disco boys tried to shake him today on the final mountain stage, and he beat them down and solidified his lead.

Lance is in Iowa for RAGBRAI this week, but he has floated the rumor that he may leave in the next couple of days and go to France for the end of the Tour. He certainly has generated a lot of pub for RAGBRAI. Lots of personal cancer stories in the DM Register each day. And the politicians are out in full force trying to grab their piece of the news. Pretty Boy Edwards rode some with LA yesterday.

Craig Wilson drug out a variation of the bottled water nonsense today. I could say that that was my material, but the topic has been lampooned by so many wags that it would be hard to claim that ownership.

In another case of, "It's a Small World", I learned this AM that one of the assistant managers at the Duck Creek SB's is the daughter of one of my Riley first cousins. She and I have been good "first name" friends for several months, and somehow she overheard my last name in a conversation with my pal Roy today.

Grandpa used to find those linkages with amazing regularity. He could go into a strange cafe in a little town anywhere in the US, start a conversation with a waitress, and find out that he knew her distant uncle. Maybe he passed that gene on to me.

So I'm off to the bike. Have a great evening.

Be careful out there.