Looking in the past

I was looking for old pictures today , so the stories about early years in cycling can continue. After all, this was the reason why i became in love with cycling for life . Pictures alone speak for themselves. I mentioned earlier , that Dr. Plamen Bujev was the heart of every event, and he sure is, no doubt about it. He took me under his wing from a little kid and i will never forget that.

Dr. Plamen Bujev was a classmate of my mom and dad – Yes , most people i cycle with, are twice older than me. Randonneuring is not racing, so endurance and strong mindset is all you need.Click here fo more info on Randonneuring . IF you want to learn more about it , here is a video of Paris-Brest-Paris. The oldest cycling event consisting of 860 miles that need to be covered under 90 hours- insane!

Dr. Bujev was actually the president of the tourist club in the city. The one to organize all the cycling events. Any time a cycling tour passes by our city and his house becomes a rest stop – feel free to take a shower, sleep and get fed. Lets not forget the good times on the dining table. He has so much passion for it, and i sure am fortunate to meet him. On one of my last trips back home i went to see him . He is a doctor at the Emergency Center in town. As soon as i called him i can tell he got excited. We soon met, and talk about how life is on both sides of the ocean. He then told me – come with me, and we went to the second floor of the hospital. Before you know it , he opened this room and showed me his new bike. That was 5 years since i last talked to him. He got a little older, but the life on 2 wheels was never going away from him. Great musician like many Bulgarians knowing the accordion. Any time we have a rest stop on a multi day cycling tours its party time 🙂 There was also a person that was playing a bagpipe, and another with a guitar – words cannot explain our daily adventures. All you want is to do it again, and again, and again ! I also found a picture from the same time period when we went to the city of Shumen as part of one of our bike tours. My aunt actually lived there . It’s such a pretty city with one of the most popular monuments it the country. Its named ” Monument to 1300 Years of Bulgaria” – the creators of the county. Simply amazing.

It sits on top of the city at elevation 1500 ft. And because of the name , there is 1300 steps that lead to it. I remember that we were soaking wet as the rain started on our way up. It was also very windy. But you know what, i am not going back down, as we were more than half way there. As we reach the top, we had time to enjoy the view and chat. Another great day was in the history. I already talked about the bike tour following the steps of Tanjio voivoda – Bulgarian fighter leading a group of fighters during the April Uprising. It seems i have more interesting photos from the same time.