Last night I had dinner and drinks with a Cuban Missile.

Or rather the man who is collectively nicknamed "The Cuban Missile" by his peers on the professional cycling circuit for his amazing speed - Ivan Dominguez.

And yepp - that speed brought him first into the finish yesterday evening during the Downtown Twilight Criterium in Bend (part of the annual Cascade Cycling Classics race).

So how did this dinner come about, you ask?

Well. After watching the race from the sidelines, my friend Stephanie (a Cuban native) and I decided to try for some dinner - but of course all the restaurants were slammed with the post-race crowd. Knowing that local Mexican restaurant El Caporal is a big place and usually has some good turn-over and short waits, we headed down to it. On the way, we ran into the Toyota-United Pro cycling team, celebrating their win outside their tour bus. There must have been a sort of native-country-recognition between my Cuban friend and Ivan - because next thing I knew, we had a dinner date with a few pro cyclists.

And fun it was. We ate quesadillas and burritos, drank margaritas and Coronas, and shared stories about our home countries. I even got to use some of my rusty Spanish again. We figured out there was not a single American at our table - seeing that aside from my Swiss self and the two Cubans, Stefano Barberi was from Brazil, and Jose Garcia from Mexico.

Interestingly, every Cuban I've ever met has some crazy or sad story how he or she got out of the country. Ivan was no different. Born and raised in Havana, he choose to follow his dream and in 1998, during a trip to New York with the Cuban Cycling Team, he defected. And while his hard work and talent eventually paid off, he expressed how much he missed his family and friends in Cuba, and how much he wanted to go back - if only he could.

On the drive home that night, I pondered that I could never imagine *not* being able to have the freedom to go see my family and friends. Ivan's story made me realize how lucky I am. I've never had to risk my life or the lives of my loved ones to pursue my goals and realize my dreams...

It's those random encounters - those little karmic gifts in life - that make you appreciate what you have. And they can happen right here in Bend. How amazing is that?

Very nice story. Thanks for sharing.