Yesss... Garmin is working and life is good. Persistence pays off - I called Garmin tech support and talked with a guy named Byron, who was just super. We tweaked and dinked around and Voila! Suddenly, I was acquiring a satellite - no, two satellites - and more! Holy Navigation, Batman, I’m in business... I immediately sang a bit of Ode To Joy for dear, patient Byron Tech Supportman: Alleluiah, Alleluiah, Al-le-lui-ah! And thanked him profusely. He said he was blushing and we said farewell....

I just did a twenty minute interview for Paul Terry Walhus, who is putting together the big Tour de France celebration in Austin called Tour Watch 2005. It’s gonna be in Central Market in Austin, with two huge TV screens from Circuit City going from 8 am to 9 pm every day of the Tour, showing OLN’s coverage. There will be a ton of events and fun things going on every day - the LAF will have a booth there, and tons of people will be podcasting non-stop. The Discovery Channel folks are going to film part of the Tour Watch 2005 for one of their Lance specials. Read all about it on the link below...

My interview this morning will be podcast, and if the Tour Watch can get funding for me, I will do several live cell phone podcasts direct from the Tour, which will be part of the daily events at Central Market. If you’d like to chip in a few bucks to cover costs - click on my Donate button, and every little bit helps. Really! If everyone who reads this blog gives a few bucks, the expenses would be covered for the Tour podcasts. One of my faithful readers, Kevin, told me that he sees it kinda like a subscription, and sends some bucks now and then.

However, we now have another goal, and that is to let you all hear the podcasts, and I’m sure they will be up on the www.touroftexas.com website, as well as at the Austin event. Everybody can listen to a podcast on their computer - if you haven’t yet tried it, then get ready and go! Google podcast and find out all the info you need....

My Belgian connection tells me that the newspapers there are quoting Johan as saying that Lance will be training in a measured way, so that he will be in peak form at the right time. Also that Lance and Sheryl are flying to Nantes (oops, I messed that up in my original post) in a private plane - for training, and I am corrected from Belgium, that he may stay in Nantes until the Tour begins.. Or who knows, .... only Lance.