On Friday, the riders from Northern Virginia
covered 40 miles. The riders were impressed by the Valley’s scenic
beauty.Among the group was Nigel Morris, 48, of Alexandria, who
said he had not been on a bicycle for nearly a year.
Thursday’s ride was exhausting, Morris said, but he liked the
physical activity and the challenge.
Morris, a co-founder of Capital One Financial Corp., is retired but
an active investor and works with nonprofit groups.
The ride enabled him, he said, to get away from the stress that
comes with living in Northern Virginia.
"What we have found is that there are lots of places where you can
ride for long periods of time and not have to experience traffic," he
said.
Corporate attorney Mitchell Dolin, 51, of Washington, D.C., has had
a similar experience while riding.
He had always thought of the Shenandoah Valley region as a place
for hiking. "This is a first for biking," he said. "It’s great. I’ll
be back."
"I can’t imagine a better venue for biking," said Dolin, of
Covington & Burling of Washington, D.C.
The old farmhouses and the rivers and streams along the route have
impressed him. But he also found himself tested.
Dolin describes himself as a weekend warrior who sometimes bikes 20
miles.
"The hills make a great challenge," he said of the Valley’s
topography.
Environmental Issues
During the trip, Warner has taken a timeout from his latest
project.
Warner is working on a way, he said, to get consumers involved in
environmental issues. An announcement of the project could come in two
to three months, he said.
Warner supports alternative-energy sources such as ethanol, wind
and solar power, as well as research for cleaner-burning coal.
"If you are burning carbon-based fuels, particularly oil, that
creates greenhouse gases," he said.
Political Paths
Before riding off on the second day of the tour, Warner pondered
his political future.
"I’ve still got the bug," said Warner, a former presidential
hopeful.
Warner decided last year that he needed a break from politics and a
chance for a "real life."
Before Warner dropped out, political pundits buzzed about a
possible presidential race in 2008 between Warner and former U.S. Sen.
George Allen, a Republican. Allen’s presidential future dimmed after
losing his bid last year for re-election to the Senate.
With the political calendar pressing ahead, Warner is considering
his possibilities.
From the kitchen of the Stonewall Jackson Inn Bed & Breakfast in
Harrisonburg, Warner said his friends within the Washington, D.C.,
beltway are encouraging him to run for U.S. Senate next year.
U.S. Sen. John Warner, R-Va., is up for re-election. Mark Warner
unsuccessfully challenged the senator in 1996.
"Senator Warner is a good friend. I want to wait and see what his
decision [about seeking re-election] is first," the former governor
said.
Mark Warner, 52, was elected governor in 2001. Unable by law to
succeed himself, Warner left office with high job approval ratings in
public opinion polls.
His friends outside the beltway, he said, want him to run for
governor again.
"I like being an executive," he said Friday morning. "Governor of
Virginia is probably the best job in Virginia."
Warner does have an opening to return to Richmond. Gov. Tim Kaine,
who served as lieutenant governor when Warner was the chief executive,
finishes his term in early 2010.
Republicans hold the statewide offices of lieutenant governor and
attorney general, which historically are steppingstones to the
governor’s mansion.
"I’ve got to decide soon, very shortly," Warner said.
