I’ve had the bad crud that is going around - totally lost my voice. Thank you, unknown person on the airplane who coughed and sneezed all over the rest of us all during the flight. Yeah, I use Airborne and yeah, I line my nose with Neosporin, but I think I’m gonna buy one of those surgical masks and make a statement to my snuffling seatmate next time. I had laryngitis and couldn’t do my podcast, so then I got pissedoff-itis...

But I recovered enough to go to a planning meeting for the 2006 Sea Otter Classic Celebration of Cycling event yesterday. Now, the primo head honchos have been working on the planning this event since last May. Yes, you’re right - last year’s Sea Otter was in April. Planning and hard work for these huge cycling events is a year-long process. Now we’re beginning our meetings with reps from volunteer groups and all the SO coordinators and affiliated organizations to plan and coordinate the hundreds of details. Yesterday was a totally beautiful, sunny day at Laguna Seca - there couldn’t be a better location for this world-class event.

Mark your calendars for April 6-9, 2006. Go to the Sea Otter Classic website by clicking the Link button below to get all kinds of info. If you want to ride an event, you’d better register early - like NOW. Everything fills up real fast, including the campgrounds. About 60,000 folks will show up and they’ve got the same things in mind that you do....

So what goes on at the Sea Otter? Well, I’ll be telling you about it from time to time, and I’ll be blogging and podcasting while I’m there. But here’s a quick run-down, in case you’re new to the Otter Experience. You know the phrase, “like a three-ring circus” that is used to describe a ton of stuff happening at once? Well, kiddies, the Sea Otter is like a twenty-ring circus... There are competitive events, recreational events, family events, kid events, a marketplace/expo area, Podium Awards area and lots of free schwag from vendors. It’s all about cycling, and it’s a spectator, schmoozer, hotdog competitor, amateur/ pro racer happening.

Like What? OK, like these... Amateur Road Racing down in Fort Ord, Amateur Circuit Racing on the Laguna Seca track, and a hard-assed PRO Circuit Race on the Laguna Seca track. Like twenty laps for the women and thirty laps for the men - give or take a few laps.... Like MTB Endurance Events: MTB Cross Country, MTB Short Track, and an MTB Industry Cup Race, plus an MTB PRO/Elite Stage Race. Like MTB Gravity Events: Down Hill, Dual Slalom, Mountain Cross, an MTB PRO Gravity Omnium, and a SRAM Invitational Dirt Jump Contest.

Add in a Recreational Road Bike Tour with some PROs joining in, a Recreational Mountain Bike Tour, or you can ride bumps and ladders and teeter-totters in the MTB Ride Zone. You can watch BMX and Trail demos around the Sea Otter Village, hang out at the Sports Expo or buy really cool Sea Otter clothing.

Pretty cool stuff and if that doesn’t light up your eyes, then maybe you’re a cycling potato after all... I took the image of Dave Zabriskie at the 2000 Sea Otter Classic. He never even dreamed then that he’d be wearing the Yellow Jersey during the 2005 Tour de France.... Go, Z!!!