That title reads true for many different reasons, but today it’s because he completed all five passes of the 2013 Death Ride. In case you’re wondering, it’s a 129 mile bike ride over five mountain passes with 15,000 feet of climbing. Yeah, definitely a stud.

He and our friend Mark (also a stud) have ridden it together for the last few years and this year was no exception. I headed up to Carson Pass to be the photographer and cheerleader extraordinaire.

Before I get to the pictures of the studs, here’s a little gem… no way on earth Mike would pull my slow butt up five mountain passes…

Ok, on to the serious pics. This is Mike on his way up the last pass. He looks like he’s smiling, but I think it’s actually a grimace. Although this could have been when I yelled “You look just like Lance Armstrong. On steroids.”

Here’s us when he was done:

And, finally, the two studs together:

We stopped on the way home for burgers at this little place across the street from Kirkwood… they were delicious! Now that we’re back home it’s time to catch up on the Tour!