Today was a special day for Patti's Paladins. According to the online tally, we just passed the halfway point toward our 2006 fundraising goal. That's a big deal because our goal this year is $20,000 --- pretty doggone ambitious!

Personally, this year I have been working much harder on my fundraising than ever before. So far my hard work has been rewarded, but we ride in 26 days so I need to get cracking.

Lots of people say to me "good luck with your race." The Pedal to the Point is not a race at all, but it would be rude to correct them so I don't.

But in the big picture, maybe they are right. Maybe it is a race. In many ways the fundraising aspect feels like I am racing against the clock to achieve an incredible level of performance. Now we are entering the home stretch and I've got to pour it on or I won't make it.

I think this week will be a good time for my snail-mail letter writing campaign.

- Mike Substelny