Today is August 20th, 2006. One year from today, thousands of cyclists will ride out of Paris, headed for the city of Brest. Then they’ll turn around and go back to Paris. I intend to be with them.

I’m Lisa Rosen. I figured I should start writing today; I want to document my experience, and I think doing so publicly will keep me honest. I love to ride my bike, but it’s easy to slack off, knowing that I’m the only person who will know.

So. My year of training begins today, on an inauspicious note: my bike’s in the shop. I ride a Serotta Peleton that I’ve had for about 4 years now; I love it dearly, but it was in desperate need of a tune-up, so I missed two great group rides this weekend. Instead I stayed home, boiling water. Our town has been under a boil water alert (a bit of an e. coli problem) for the last 48 hours. It ended early this evening, and my children celebrated by brushing their teeth much more willingly (well, somewhat more willingly, anyway) than usual.

So that’s what I’m up to. In the next few days, I’ll explain all about Paris-Brest-Paris (fondly known as PBP), my checkered past as a long-distance cyclist, and what I do when I’m not pedalling.

Come along for the ride!