Dear Friends, Family, Teammates, Buddies, Pals, and all the people playing footsie under the bathroom stalls at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport,

For some this will come to no surprise and to others it may. As a few of you already know, I have decided to retire from professional cycling at the end of this 2007 season. It was one of the hardest decision I’ve had to make in my life, but it is one that comes with no regrets. For years I’ve passionately loved the sport of cycling and happily made many sacrifices in my life to accommodate the career and lifestyle it has afforded me. It wasn’t until late last year that I began to struggle with the demands and sacrifices it required to compete at the professional level. By June of 2007, I knew in my heart it was time to think about a new future.

By retiring from professional cycling, I have been blessed with the opportunity to pursue my other love of real estate. Since I was a little boy I have had a deep love for homes and the market they belong to. This explains the recent additions of the Keller Williams Southwest Realty and Velocity Group icons on the right sidebar of my home page. I’ve had thoughts of change for sometime now and have worked very hard to get myself into an equitable position to retire from professional cycling and transition into a new career that means just as much to me as cycling does.

I want to personally thank everyone who has been at my side during this wild ride that was first, my amateur cycling career, and last, my professional cycling career. It is because of many of you reading this that at 26 years old I have already lived one of my dreams. Because of that I am forever indebted.

Please stay tuned as I intend on sharing my thoughts and views of cycling and the new career ahead of me.

Austin King

P.S. I started shaving my legs in 8th grade while they were merely dusted in a light sprinkle of fuzz and randomly scattered speckles of prepubescent dark whiskery hairs… at the time, slightly reminiscent of my upper lip. After 13 years of leg shaving, I promise that these legs aint getting hairy anytime soon folks… Not on my watch. Don’t worry, I’m still one of you.

P.P.S. I intend on continuing to ride my bicycle for fitness, fun, friends, networking… all that kind of stuff.

P.P.P.S.. … Ah hell.. I’ll just have to write you folks more later. Stay tuned.

Categories: Daily Jibber Jabber.
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Got an e-mail and a picture from my teammate Willo.

He’s in Italy on vacation training with this dude…

Jose Rujano… The sub 60kg Venezuelan guy who tore up the climbs in the 2005 Giro.

My left leg weighs 60kg.

Ok, that’s a lie. 40kg.

Categories: Daily Jibber Jabber.
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Have a good one.

Categories: Daily Jibber Jabber.
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I saw the news that my main man and good friend Neil “Lavernen” Shirley had a career ride at the US National Championships in Greenville, South Carolina. Old Shirls came out with a 3rd place podium finish. Speachless…

My man Shirls is on the left, the other two you know.
Photo hijacked from CyclingNews Photo ©: Kurt Jambretz/www.actionimages.cc

You know… in order to properly wax, one must first light a candle…

I’ve been cycling for half my life. At 19 I began to ride full time. No work, no school, just bike. All my eggs were in one single basket. I admired and respected (still do) riders who I thought worked very very hard. Guys like Mike Creed, Gord Fraser, Chris Baldwin. In my eyes, they worked damn hard. The hardest of anyone I’d come across in the sport. So… I figured I should try and work harder than they did. Made sense right? Work harder than a few of cycling’s best and one day you’ll be right with them? Last season my paths crossed with Shirls, as we were now teammates with Jittery Joe’s. I can honestly say, that in nearly 14 years on a bike, I have NEVER met anyone who works as hard as Neil Shirley. As a matter of fact, if you room with him on the road, be prepared for an early to bed, early to rise schedule with a daily afternoon nap right after his training ride. He also watched the entire 7 seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer this season on the road. I’ll try and not hold that against him.

Anyways, congrats Shirls. You deserve a ride like that.

P.S. Will you send me your race jersey unwashed with numbers still pinned on it? I’m going to E-Bay it.

Categories: Daily Jibber Jabber.
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