Bush joins athletes for bike ride

BEIJING (Reuters) – President George W. Bush took a break
from talks with Chinese leaders on Sunday, trading his business
suit for a wind-breaker and shorts to take a bike ride with
aspiring Olympic athletes in Beijing.

Bush, who had earlier thanked President Hu Jintao for the
good weather laid on for his visit, took advantage of the warm,
sunny conditions to indulge in his favorite sport of mountain
biking at an athletic training center in Beijing.

Joining him were six Chinese athletes, three men and three
women sporting orange and yellow lycra suits.

The group posed for pictures with Bush before the ride and
the athletes presented him with a beige sweater emblazoned
“Beijing 2008,” the Olympic Games they hope to qualify for.

“How do you say, take it easy on the old man?” Bush joked
as he got on his bike.

“C’mon, let’s go,” said Bush, who had brought his mountain
bike from Washington aboard Air Force One.

As he sped with the pack down a dusty path, a reporter
asked him if it reminded him of his rides at his Crawford,
Texas ranch.

“Better than Crawford,” Bush replied.