Blue saddle

I'll be leaving Boise on Sunday night to head back to Utah. This time I'm not going for job interviews but to do a really small, really long charity ride. My brother's company, comprised mostly of rabid BYU fans (more on this later), decided they needed to take coach Bronco Mendenhall's challenge to be "fully invested" in BYU football.

As avid cyclists, they decided they would show their dedication by riding their bikes to an away game, in 2007 a 450 mile journey to UNLV. They figured that such a publicity stunt could help a good cause, so they used it to support Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Utah. The Blue Saddle/Garner Jensen Insurance charity bike ride was born.

This year's trip will be to Logan for the Utah State game. But riding from Provo to Logan wasn't challenging enough, so the route will go from Provo to Evanston to Bear Lake to Lava Hot Springs to Logan. About 360 miles total.

Since I don't have the old 9 to 5 cramping my style, I'm going to join them. It should be a fun time. I'll also put in a plug to help out Big Brothers/Big Sisters. It's a great cause that helps some wonderful kids who haven't been dealt the best hand. If you can spare a few bucks, please send something their way, or even go volunteer.

I'm looking forward to the trip, as I don't think I've ever ridden four high-mileage days back to back. Moreover, these guys are a fun crowd to hang out with. Case in point, Garn, the owner of the agency, attended the University of Utah in the early 80's, when Jim McMahon was the quarterback at BYU. As I recall the story, during the BYU/Utah game, Garn and his buddies, along with most of the other Utah fans, were heckling McMahon whenever he was nearby. McMahon's response as he walked off the field was to give them the bird. Garn thought it was hilarious and immediately switched his allegiance. He is now a longtime season ticket holder and Cougar Club member at BYU. Not to be confused with this Cougar Club, of which Garn is too old to be a member.