The sun is a mass of incandescent gas, a gigantic nuclear furnace.

And even when the temperature outside is in the 40s, you still may want to put on sun screen. This lesson I learned on Sunday, when a 4-hour bike ride left me with a little color on my cheeks and nose. I prefer to think of it as a healthy glow. It's starting to fade now.

A fellow Death Valley rider and I drove an hour north to Mercer, Pennsylvania, home of a beautiful courthouse (pictured left), and also Amish people (not pictured -- that would be rude). Together we rode 60 miles over rolling country roads, sometimes going for 20 minutes without seeing a car. I found that I can outsprint a trotting horse and buggy. At one point, we passed a farm where huddled together in the yard, apparently in serious conversation, were several llamas, goats, and at least one potbellied pig. It was like something out of "Charlotte's Web." After we passed, the animals probably made snarky remarks about our goofy cycling clothes.

Only three more weeks of training before the taper in the last week. I'm really looking forward to that -- working on my tapering skills, that is. I've always been a master at tapering, inasmuch as it consists of doing very little on purpose, but there's always room for improvement.