brian's blog

MSN Soapbox, a new site we've been working on in MSN Entertainment, officially went into public beta today. It'll compete with YouTube and other user-uploaded video sites. All bias aside, I think it's an impressive product, especially for a pre-v1 beta.

Here's my test of the embedded player. Our team made this vid one recent afternoon:

The MS 150 ride was the weekend before the last - and what a ride. I'm still sore and numb.

Again, thank you so much to everyone who sponsored me & donated to the cause. I've been stunned by the response. My original fundraising goal was $1000, and as of right now, my personal fundraising page registers $1125. But, once I count a few pledges that are still incoming, plus the Microsoft matches (not yet in the system), we will have raised over $2000 to fight MS, more than double my original goal!

The ride itself was difficult, but a blast. It rained heavily the night before the first ride, making the ground a little tricky, but other than that, the weather was great & sunny most of the weekend. We were up & at the rider village in time for the 6:50am Microsoft team photo, and then ate breakfast before moving over to the start line in time for the 8:00am start. Since Team Microsoft raised more than any other team for last year's MS 150, we had the privilege of being the first riders out of the gate this year. Once the ride started (with over a thousand riders!), each of us mostly broke up to go at our own paces.

The first day, we had a choice of doing either the 50 mile or the 75 mile routes. Heather and I made the call 25 miles into the ride to take a shot at the 75 mile distance. We knew it'd be tough - especially since a) it was such a hilly ride, and b) we probably needed a bit more training - but we wanted the challenge. The ride was fantastic (the views, especially on the Deception Pass bridge, were incredible), even if it was tough to fight sore muscles & painful knees. In the end, though, we managed to pull into the finish line with just 10 minutes left before the mandatory 5:00pm stop time, which was a great feeling when we realized we had done it.

The second day was even more challenging - we were very, very sore, and getting back on the saddle was as challenging mentally as it was physically. The first few miles were the worst. It felt as though we hadn't had a night of rest, and were continuing on in the same condition that we finished the ride the night before. But we were determined to do it again for the cause. We chose the 50 mile route and got through the ride with the help of the provided rest stops, plus a little painkiller help. And the cheering crowd at the finish line was incredible. It really made us forget about the pain.

Here's a photo of me taken on the ride. This is the only version I could snag for now until the prints I ordered are delivered. I had the option of ordering fridge magnets, plaques, and more with my likeness on them, but I settled for a standard 5x7 photo. How boring.

As I've mentioned in passing a few times, I've been training this summer to participate in the National Multiple Sclerosis Society's annual MS 150 bike ride. The ride takes place over this weekend in La Conner, WA to raise money to fight MS, a chronic disease of the central nervous system affecting the brain and spinal cord.

I'll be biking 150 miles over 2 days to raise money for this valuable cause. After training over the summer, I hope 75 miles each day is doable; I think the hardest part will be doing both days back to back.

My goal is to raise $1000, and I've been asking many people to sponsor me. I can't do it without everyone's help, and I've been very honored and thankful of all the donations I've had so far. (And it's nice to get off my lazy ass and do something for a great cause.)

As of right now, I still have some ways to go to reach my goal, and there's very little time left - I'll definitely be making a push tomorrow to try and gather some new donations (while trying, perhaps too hard, to not push people too much).

If you'd like to sponsor me, or track my fundraising progress, you can do so at a page I created on the MS Society's website. They take donations online via credit card (no fees, of course).

Alternatively, if you know of anyone that might want to pitch in and sponsor me, please pass this along.

Thank you!

Oh, and here I am trying to smile and look at the camera without falling off: