Community Building in the Washington, DC area!!

SFP Editor: Why did you get involved in the 111-mile El Tour de Tucson? Dan Okenfuss: Because you asked me to! Seriously, a good friend of mine passed on the registration information and I thought it would be the biggest physical and financial challenge of my young life! I'm always up for a challenge. Dan Okenfuss, loyal and dedicated member of SFP, moved to northern California! After ten years in the Washington metro area, Dan moved to California to be closer to his then girlfriend and now wife Ericka. He is a resident of Sacramento - the California state capital - Dan works as a legislative aide for a member of the California State Assembly

SFP Editor: How long have you been biking, and how long have you been training for the ride?

Dan Okenfuss: My biking inspiration is my oldest brother. He got me hooked on the sport. I have been biking actively since I moved out to the DC area in 1993. Training has been going very well. Since June, I have biked over 500 miles on official and unofficial training rides in DC, Maryland and Virginia. I even biked with my brother in July somewhere in southern Missouri. Up until last week, I was training on my first bike - a KHS mountain bike (www.khsbicyles.com) that I modified over the years to make it lighter and faster. Now I have a Bike Friday (www.bikefriday.com) - a collapsible bike that has been custom-built for my stature. With its advanced frame and components, I can ride like the wind!

SFP Editor: What is the most challenging about training for a 111-mile one-day bike ride?

Dan Okenfuss: Time in the saddle! I am figuring that I will be riding my bike for close to ten hours on race day. That's ten hours on a seat the size of a banana! Therefore, my training rides increase in time and distance every week to literally prepare my ass for El Tour.

SFP Editor: Where is you favorite place to bike and why?

Dan Okenfuss: Believe it or not, my favorite place to bike is my route to work, which is about 9 miles between Arlington and Capitol Hill of D.C. My commute takes me past Arlington Cemetery, Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, the Mall, the Capitol and Union Station. Biking gives you time to soak in these wonderful sights - you can't do that riding Metro or driving.

SFP Editor: What is your ultimate biking goal?

Dan Okenfuss: To be the best cyclist in the world! (That means beating 3-time defending champion Lance Armstrong in the 2002 Tour de France.)

SFP Editor: What do you do when you are not biking?

Dan Okenfuss: I am probably at home in my kitchen cooking up that ultimate cycling training beverage from scratch. It is completely nourishing, 100% natural, and loaded in carbohydrates - it's called beer. I am following in the footsteps of my German ancestors in the brewing trade. But when I am not home-brewing, I am probably on a jet plane to some exotic vacation location.

SFP Editor: What advice can you give beginning bikers?

Dan Okenfuss: Start out with a basic hybrid bicycle. It gives you the flexibility to bike on-road or off-road without breaking your wallet. Get a feel for the area's many biking trails. Then when you have honed your technical skills, upgrade to a better mountain bike or road bike, depending on your interest.

SFP Editor: What do expect to be the most exciting part about your trip to the upcoming Tour de Tucson Ride?

Dan Okenfuss: Riding with a great bunch of friends from my Team In Training crew who I have bonded with over the past six months. Together, we have dedicated a lot of time and physical effort since July to fighting leukemia and lymphoma cancers.

[Team In Training is my cycling training program sponsored by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society