July 29: Rock of Ages
The weather was cool, but Bond came in hot. I gauged his fashionably late departure to be approximately 25min, as this was the time interval required to change Pipe's flat tire. While the sea of green flowed through the roundabout on Parmenter, the air flowed out of Pipe's rear tire. I learned of her induction into the Flat Tire club from Speedy, who sheepishly acknowledged skirting the Drafter Rule "leave no rider unassisted" by telling me of the mechanical issue. I turned back to find Pipes and the contents of her bike bag spread out on the lawn for a flat tire picnic. Pipes was digging deep into the cerebral aspects of the task, carefully organizing a buffet line of tubes and CO2. The mechanical aspects of the task, however, were less forthcoming. 3 CO2 cartridges and 4 letter words were misfired and then we were off. Flying down Schneider on CO2 (burning slower than Octane, but still a respectable gas), I yelled "car back" as I heard the rev of an approaching engine. Imagine my surprise to be passed by Bond. Get your motor running, head out on the highway, looking for adventure and the yellow jersey comes his way. Bond started late but finished with maillot jaune.Tick Tock is usually up for a good fight for the podium, but after 500 miles of cycling in the moonscape of MI, he was happy to collect his overdue beer at Longtable.
Tick Tock vowed he was wearing his vintage velo Drafter jersey last Monday while cycling in MI, but has no digital proof. Team Drafter Moto photographer, Skipper, clearly needs a travel budget. I'm partial to keeping him local, however, shooting the landscape. In addition to his photography skills, which he attributes to a steady hand (I'm going to leave that one alone), Skipper is one of our more versatile riders. He's seen here in the lead out, Chase 2 group, and lantern rouge off the peloton, dutifully photographing riders throughout the tour de Spring Valley.
In the words of Dr. Seuss,'i will pick up the pace.you will see something new.two things. and i call themThing One and Thing Two.these Things will not bite you.they want to have fun.'then, out of the Draftcame Thing Two and Thing One!and they biked so fast.they said, 'how do you do?would you like to ride bikeswith Thing One and Thing Two?'In other warm-and-fuzzy news, Footer and C-Monster adopted furry siblings that will be promoted to team mascot. Fitting, since we are dog tired after Drafting on Monday nights.
If you want to meet one of the mascots, please join Footer for the Lake Ripley ride this Saturday followed by a cold beverage and dip in the lake and her cottage. All Drafters are welcome. BYOBB (bring your own bike and beer). Lake Ripley Sign Up Link
Next week we will ride Rock of Ages. Be prepared to suffer as the climbs will demand you pump the wattage into your quadage. Further suffering will incur as Def Leppard's Rock of Ages lyrics, "Gunter gliieben, glauchen globen" will be unmistakably replaced in the space between your ears by "Bitten, Buethin, Brereton, Bike Path (??)". I prefer to ride home on Woodland, but Bike Path is more consistent with Def Lepppard's alliteration (and makes Tick Tock happy). Rumor has it that former professional cyclist, friend of Footer and Skipper's, regular end of July Drafter by way of Italy, KickAssK will be rocking the ages on Monday. Bring your A game, or solid excuses.
PDF map to download: Rock of Ages 35Garmin Link: Rock of Ages Garmin LinkDraft responsibly,BrickO
July 22: Spring Valley with a Northern Twist (and hopefully no closures or pea gravel)
The full moon spawned a wild ride for 18 Drafters. We were a smooth blend of new and old: C Monster, Tobacco City Boy and Z Rex retrieved their circa 2014 Velo jerseys from storage while new additions Pipes and Thing 1 cut off the tags from their recently arrived 2019 Hincapie kits.
Fashioning neither vintage nor brand spankin' new Drafter kits, Cannibal opted for the Peter Sagan look. The green jersey wasn't the only striking similarity to the Tour de France sprinter phenom. It is hard to ignore (or stop staring, for that matter) Cannibal's tree stump legs. But, let's not focus on the superficial. Hell, some of us can't focus at all. Pipes arrived early only to realize she had left her water bottles on the kitchen counter. Back in the parking lot with minutes to spare until wheels-up (or wheels down? I don't know if the flight analogy works), the Drafters were amused as she unloading her bike, one sock on, one sock off. Preparations seemed to working in reverse, as the other sock came off and helmet dropped to the ground. And that's when I realized what else was amiss... the front wheel. This is a first for the Draft. Tough Girl has forgotten shoes, BrickO her sunglasses, but never a front wheel. The annual end of the season awards ceremony may have a new category. In fairness to Pipes, when she does focus, you best step aside and let the woman kick ass. See Humbled podcast below. You will truly be humbled.
Link to Humbled Podcast: Karen Kraft Rigsby
The Back Door to Church route threw us a curveball. Actually, not so much a curveball as freshly laid pea gravel on the Blue Mounds Trail. Similar to Stage 10 in the Tour, the group split, half deciding to take the long clockwise way around the Blue Mounds Tr loop and the other half taking the shorter counter-clockwise direction. Technical note: unlike the Tour, the longer way is always the correct route on Monday night. This caused a serious gap between the lead group (lead group being singular, Bond), chase group and those Drafters who were off the Peloton (namely Pipes and BrickO, due to aforementioned Unicycle debacle 20 min delay).
The ride was hot and dry and the support vehicles weren't able to navigate the pea gravel on Blue Mounds Tr, leaving the Drafters thirsty. Ask and you shall receive. The back door to Church provided water from the holy hose.
Duchess needed more than water from a hose to rectify his physiological situation. Sandlot had her medical kit, and rendered aid, once again. As I came across the dynamic duo in Cross Plaines, Duchess looking 3 shades of pale begging for an IV as Sandlot dutifully wiped his brow, the Paul McCartney song "Maybe I'm Amazed" came to me.Maybe I'm amazed at the wayYou pull me all the timeAnd maybe I'm afraid of the wayI draft youMaybe I'm amazed at the wayYou pulled me out of timeYou put me on the lineMaybe I'm amazed at the wayI really need youMaybe I'm a manMaybe I'm a bonking manWho's in the middle of somethingThat he doesn't really understandMaybe I'm a manMaybe you're the only womanWho could ever help meSandlot, won't you help me to understand?Maybe I'm a manMaybe I'm a dehydrated manWho's in the middle of somethingThat he doesn't really understandMaybe I'm a manAnd you're the only womanWho could ever help meSandlot, won't you help me to understand?Maybe I'm amazed at the wayYou're with me all the timeAnd maybe I'm afraid if I don’t get an IVMaybe I'm amazed at the wayYou help me ride alongYou right me when I'm wrongMaybe I'm amazed at the wayI really need youWhoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa,Yeah, yeahWhoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoaYeah, yeahAll is well that ends well. 18 Drafters made their way safely back to the Free House, in the hood of darkness, guided by an eerie and magical full moon. Songs were sung. Two, in particular. Happy Birthday was sung out of tune but with enthusiasm to celebrate Speedy (and MegaWatt, who aged up the day before). The full moon inspired Bond to break into Bonnie Tyler's iconic "Total Eclipse of the Heart".
Not to get too sappy, but I appreciate all of you. The Drafters are much more than a group of people who ride bikes together on Monday night. We are a family who celebrates the simple joy of turning the pedals, understands the overpowering drive to hammer to claim the town sign, waits for those who bonk or forget their front wheel, share in births, birthdays, graduations, deaths and everything trivial in between that is the essence of life. Thank you all for joining the Draft, for being the Draft.Let's see if I can buck the trend of proposing a route that includes road closure or pea gravel. No promises. We are going to do 38 mile route, Spring Valley with a Northern Twist. The Pine Rd short cut lops off 10 miles.
PDF map to download: Spring Valley with Northern Twist Cue SheetGarmin: Garmin link FH Spring Valley with a TwistDraft responsibly,BrickO