More rear view musings from 2008........
Honorable Mention: Before I move on into May, June, and July, I want to make a special mention on Trans Iowa V4. We had without a doubt the most epic of editions in 2008. The floods, the wind, the mudslide! Frost heaves, downed trees, and washed out roads. Re-routes on the fly, scrambling for information, and finally having to cut the event short. Wow! I hope we never have anything happen like it again, but it was pretty exciting! Thanks to David Pals, the volunteer group, and the racers who were very patient with us. That was a most memorable weekend!
May: After a crazy month which saw me all over the place with Twenty Nine Inches and Trans Iowa, I settled down into what I hoped would be a normal spring routine. I got my first Snappy Cap, made announcements concerning the Big Wheeled Ballyhoo, and 2008's Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitational, and then the wrench got thrown into the works....
Rain, and more rain started causing trails to become too wet to ride, and to top that all off, we had the Parkersburg Tornado. I don't know if I can properly convey what something like that can do to not just Parkersburg, but the whole region around it. I've been in an F-5 tornado before, so it really impacted me. I guess you'd have to have been here to "get it", but that was a devastating blow in a lot of ways. Still is really....
So with that and my fitness level really sucking towards the end of the month, I decided to pull the plug on the Dirty Kanza 200 race. I went and volunteered my time cleaning up in Parkersburg for a day instead, and felt much better for it.
June: This month started out by getting even worse. Wet weather plagued us here in the Upper Mid-West and flooding became the big story. Whole cities were inundated, lives were impacted forever, and a stupid little meaningless bicycle festival was one of the victims amongst the many other plans that were laid waste last June. The Big Wheeled Ballyhoo, which was to be held in Decorah, was cancelled. This precipitated some behind the scenes acrimony on the part of certain North East Iowans which I will not revisit, but suffice it to say, those feelings resulted in some written words which have totally impacted the Trans Iowa event and the Big Wheeled Ballyhoo. Not my idea, not what I would have done, but I am going to respect their wishes. Nuff said.....
Sol Sessions was a bright spot in all of this, and a much needed one at that. I got to ride Salsa Cycles Big Mama 4 inch travel full suspension 29"er for the first time. But most importantly, I got to be with a great friend at a down time in my life. Thanks Jason! That was a "pick me up" that was most definitely needed right then.
Then June ended on a brighter note when the weather started to finally straighten out and I began what would become a riding schedule that would last most of the rest of the year.
July: Well, the big deal of the month was the Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitational. The getting ready for it, the minimal preparations, and the actual event were all super enjoyable. It was made even better by the folks that showed up. Gnat on the prototype Fargo, aka "Black Electrical Tape", MG, MW, Jeff Bonsall, David Pals, and Michael Beck.
The month closed out with a great ride on the south side of Camp Ingawanis with Super Saul, MTBidwell, and Captain Bob. It was the first ride I'd done on that side of the Camp in about a year and a half, but it wouldn't be the last..........
Thanks again to all mentioned here, (yes...even the disgruntled folks (you know who you are!). The events of July 2008 made a big impact on my future, and I think things will be much, much better because of it. Look for another Rear View 2008 tomorrow........
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