For those who were there, the Lexington Avenue Arts and Fun Festival on Sept. 9 will live in memory for years to come.
LAAFF is always a great event, and a gathering place for Ashevilleís fabulous and freaky.

But this year, a very special event took place: Michael Mooneyís valiant ó if unsuccessful ó attempt to break a world record by riding a 43-1/2-foot-tall bicycle.

No, thatís not a misprint. Mooney, a local daredevil who sometimes bills himself as ìMedieval Knievel,î built a bicycle so tall a scaffolding had to be erected on the hillside above just so he could get on it.

Unfortunately, before he even mounted the bike, Mooney had an accident while riding a 12-foot bicycle. He fell to the ground when the bike ran into a piece of rebar, and shattered his knee.

Amazingly, he tried to ride the tall bike anyway. With a bandaged and broken knee, assisted by two friends, Mooney climbed the scaffolding and mounted the 43-1/2-foot bicycle, only to come falling down seconds later, when he couldnít get his shattered knee to move the pedals.

On one level, this is a story of tragedy; of a would-be heroís quixotic tempting of fate, and his consequent fall from grace.
But we see things differently.

Here at the Daily Planet, whose namesake was Clark Kentís employer, weíve always had a fondness for superheroes.

And while superheroes in movies always save the day, vanquish the villain and get the girl in the end, real-life heroes often fall.

The point is that they tried at all.

How many of us would even dream of building a bike taller than a four-story building? Much less actually build it? Or ride it with thousands of people watching, and with a shattered knee?

Mooney might not have broken the worldís record that day, but he proved himself to be a true hero.

Sometimes, trying is all it takes.