Hi Brynda.
     I was just reading your email about your glyco thoughts after your 19 months of involvement. It's a bit disheartening at times to try to spill your brains and soul about something so good. I find myself talking it up and people react as though I 'm just another salesman.
They ask my opinion. Someone else may be there and this person makes jokes and becomes a diversion. I feel like saying "please hold your _____ until I finish trying to help this person who has an interest and a need. Please be the source of entertainment after I'm through with this serious business."
     People feel okay. They have no problems so why add an expense?
     It's a bit disheartening to not be believed that this is not your everyday "add a nutrient to the pile" situation.
     When I was speaking to one friend and said that I was riding better and my health was better, my friend made the point that I've always been "in shape". While it's true that I've always tried to exercise and eat correctly I haven't been in great health.
     When I entered the Marine Corps I had a cavity that was too small to fill I was told. It was never filled.
     I had malaria in Nam. When I returned and was "out" I had the same symptoms of malaria. I went to the VA. a day after serious symptoms of malaria. Blood samples were taken and nothing found. Well that was how malaria was in Nam. The bacteria level had to be "on the rise" before the blood samples would accurately show.
     I believe this cavity I had was detrimental to me for decades. I had the tooth removed after decades of dentists trying to save it. After years of terrible inflammation and headaches I felt better after the tooth was removed and the area healed.
     I've done a lot of stuff sick and in pain. I rode my "Assaults on Mt. Mitchell. I ran a business, I built a house. I rode different events. My results would be up and down. I would feel terrible and not know why.
     My inflammation started creeping back early this year.
     I still have arthritis. I still have nerve damage from being hit by cars, playing football, falling down a waterfall in Nam, falling off a truck, abusing my body in other ways as I was sure I wouldn't/couldn't live "this long".
     I haven't just been "riding a bike". If there are 2 people on a bike ride there is generally a race. If you go up hills you'd like to stay in the vicinity of the other rider (s) or in front. We're doing this for some results. Some may say I and thousands of others take it too seriously.
     This is the off season for a lot of active people. It's winter. Some riders will peak when the spring season races begin. Some of us try to do the same stuff all year and especially on warm days in winter.
     We have a ride on Thanksgiving. It's cordial for the most part.
     We have a ride on New Years Day. It starts out cordial. It gets fast at times. This is between single pace lines and double pace lines keeping the average well into the twenties. It's nice when there are a dozen and more in a pace line. There's usually more rest. Sometimes though, the pace keeps getting faster and faster. You start at the back and it's a struggle to get to the front and you pull a bit or peel straight off. You can relax seconds before you have to catch the tail end coming by you and it gets faster and faster. Instead of it being a great way for everyone to save energy it becomes a race to the front of the pace line. Even with large double pace lines you could implode.
     There will be a pace line where everyone is somewhat expected to take their turn at the front.
     I know that on any of these cordial rides or all out combative rides, the pace will quicken. Some guys will pick the pace up. The pace gets faster and harder all the time. One has to be alert. You have to watch the rear wheel in front of you. One lapse and you could tag that wheel in front of you and break all kinds of stuff on you and your bike. The rider behind and many others can crash with you.
     You have to think about your cadence. You can't just push any big gear and expect to stay with the faster guys. You have to select the correct gear to stay with these animals. If your gear is too big you're blowing up with your legs. If your cadence is too fast your lungs will go too quickly. You have to live a "monk's life" before the ride and you have to fuel yourself with the right energy food and often while riding. When the pace quickens sometimes it isn't possible to eat. Somehow you have to keep "stoking the fire" with food.
     At times the pace will be toward 30 mph on flat ground with a head wind. Gaps between you and your "draft" will open up. You put more power into the mix to keep the wheel (stay near the bike in front). When the pace gets hard enough there are no thoughts at all. You could blow a vein somewhere. You could have the "big one, I'm coming to see you Elizabeth", heart attack.
     I'm amazed that with all the heart problems in my family I haven't had the "big one".
     I've certainly missed my chances.
     There have been many rides that make me wonder why I haven't exploded. Poof.
The headlines should read,
     "He was trying to keep up with these riders who were far superior and his entire chest popped. Veins in his head exploded. Then his bowels and kidneys went. His hair, even his eyelids, stood straight out as though he were electrocuted."
     Yesterday was one of those rides at times. There were guys who were on another level. At times I was in the elite group of 5, 6, 7, or so. At times I was one of the last 5 riders or so before being dropped. Before crumbling.
     For some of these elite riders it's a war of sorts. They do more than just the right things to slay their opponents. They have the absolute best training and equipment. They have the time and discipline.
     At 58 I tend to want to ride to a coffee shop. I don't want to "train for war". Somehow I'm drawn to these "club" events with riders who will beat you up. But these intense rides are what the "organized rides like "Mitchell" are like. So it's good to put yourself through some of these for best results later. You don't want to surprise your body too much.
     So to make a long story longer, these are very hard rides that I often do. They're different from going out and riding a hundred miles alone or with a friend who may be slower than you are. So, I'm riding well for my age. I'm riding well for someone who could be my grandchild.
     Yesterday I had these maladies of lungs wanting to explode and whatever. I also had pain from a disc running across my lower back and down my leg. I had nerves pinched off from bone spurs in my neck and pain running down my arms. I only drank one bottle of energy drink, a can of coke, and a little energy gel blocks for sustenance.
     The ride was 84 miles. It felt like 85 miles (humor-very little)
     It was way too hard and fast for so little food.
     So It's difficult to convince  folks that you're riding better than you have in years. It's difficult to convince folks that you feel better than you have in 30 years. There are so many nutrients to "believe in". This is just another? Hardly.
     I feel healthier mentally and physically. Instead of headaches, inflammation, and mixed results I have consistency.
     I feel really lucky to run this clean machine that's been through so much. I feel fortunate to know what attributes to its wellness. There have been too many illnesses with this body.
     Ambrotose isn't "just another health food".
     I believe that unveiling the negatives about our food, our medical profession, and our compromised government can help Americans make better decisions and elect less selfish idiots to run our country. Oh yeah, they are educated idiots.
     So until I see you again or the "big one, I'm coming to see you Elizabeth" heart attack,
     Happy New Year,
     Michael

PS: For everyone- This is no sales pitch- I make no money from ambrotose and I do not sell it .