VIVA LE TOUR!

The Tour Divide that is, www.tourdivide.org the toughesst bike race EVER! Started last Friday in Banff, Canada & ends whenever in Antelope Wells, NM for those lucky enough to finish, this event is MY Super Bowl of the year, got to admit, I could care less for football unless my son is playing it & this stuff is just to damn good NOT to follow along, I especially like listening to the podcasts & following the spots.

I've always rooted for Dave Nice who is a fixie ridin' freak & is doing it on his own this year south to north, so for the north to south race I'm cheering for Joe Meiser, Jill Homer & Jay & Tracey Petervary (pictured with the tandem above) it's hard to believe how grueling this race must be on the mind, body & spirit, I'm definitely an armchair Tour Divide fan because I'm pretty sure the odds of me ever trying something of this magnitude are slim to none, best of luck to all the divide racers wherever you may be tonight!

Different spokes for different folks!

 There's so many forms of cycling, mtb, road, joy-riding around town with the kids, competitive racing, fitness, touring, etc. but last Thursday night I run into some folks who were on the road, on bikes, living for Christ with no real destination in mind. There were 3 men & 3 women & I'm not up on all the different religions but by the way they were dressed I'm guessing Quakers, long skirts, smocks down to the knees, long pants, bonnets, wool caps, beards on the men, waist length hair on the women, all wearing sandals & everything they owned was packed on their bikes as that was home for them.

 I escorted them south of town to some ponds at 10:00 at night to find a secluded campsite & you would have thought I'd given them a suite at a Holiday Inn for night, very grateful. The next morning at 6:30 they were gone & this note was scratched in the road "Thank You & God Bless" I did however catch up to them in one of our parks cooking breakfast & waiting on some more of their own to catch up from the east, it was there that I gave them some homeade cookies that Jessie had made the night before & again, very grateful.

 It's really had me thinking since running into them the level of commitment it must take to live this style of life, one guy said this has been his life since 1983.  What a challenge it must be living that way every day, not knowing what the weather will be, who or what you'll meet up with, where your next meal will come from, WOW, I thought finishing the Dakota 5-o was a challenge, I wonder how long I could last at this lifestyle! 

New backyard pastime

 In the form of a slackline I rigged up for Lane, he had it nailed in a half hour, now we need to go longer & higher but those things aren't cheap, may just buy the webbing, caribiners & whatever it takes to rig up our own 75 footer. Any advice?

She's a poser...

 ...just like her son! This is Cheyenne the pint-sized pointer AND, Tate's mother.  Got to see her the other day on a day trip to Curtis, she's a chip off the old block just like Tate.

The good 'ol days!

 They don't build them like this anymore. I saved these 2 old sweet rides from the scrap iron wrath this week, I don't think the blue one will live to roll again as it's got a cracked frame, instead it will live it's life out in one of Jessie's flower beds as a yard ornament, we just want to find an old basket to put on it to put a pot of flowers in.

 

This classic may get a full restoration though as it fits Jessie well & I think it will make a sweet grocery-getter for her. I'd like to find out about sandblasting it, re-painting or even powder coating it, re-chrome the chrome, maybe some wooden fenders & wicker baskets hanging off the rear rack & a Brooks leather saddle & grips, HMMMM...wonder if it will have to be pink?

Shock therapy...

 ...and it didn't work! I believe it's off to the Shockspital for this REBA.

 meanwhile it's back to being 29, single & rigid! 

A day well spent!

 

 What better way to spend a day than hammering some trails at Potter's pasture with like-minded friends, not a large group for the annual spring gathering but the trails were in great shape & just a little sprinkle towards the end of the ride. The guys who spend every weekend there have got the place in fine shape for riding & camping as well as new signage going up, a fellow from Aspen, CO was even riding there this am, what the...!

My son Lane on the left & Dennis "Deadhead" in the middle proved they're a couple of singlespeed, billy goat climbin' freaks. New guy Jesse on the right may become a "regular" after today, good to have another new face at the pasture!