Friday News And Views

At Last Year's Renegade Gent's Race

Renegade Gents Race: 

Tomorrow I am going on a little gravel road ride called the Renegade Gent's Race down Ankeny way. This one is a bit different than your average gravel gig.

The event is a "team" event. Each team consists of five individuals, (females are welcomed), and teams start together, sign on at a checkpoint together, and finish together for an overall time. Teams a staggered by "perceived ability" so that weaker/slower teams set off first and faster/stronger teams go off last.

Sounds pretty intense, and it can be, but for most teams, they are out to have a challenging but fun ride. The course is approximately 65 miles with a mid-point stop for checking in. Last year I was invited to join a team on which I only knew one guy, the Captain, Steve Fuller. I got to know the rest of the guys on the ride, and it was a lot of fun.

This year could be epic with forecast thunderstorms here and there and Southwest winds at 14-26 mph. Bring it on! We'll see what happens.

Commute By Bicycle:

 Gas prices are on the rise, and in many places it has topped out over 4 bucks per gallon. Bicycles are on the brains of many folks.  Check out this awesome piece done on the subject by a New York T.V. station which features my friend, Trans Iowa Veteran, Ari who is a mechanic there in Syracuse.



I love it when Ari says, "It doesn't even matter to me." when asked what he thinks about high gas prices. Priceless! You can check out Ari and the activities of the Slender Fungus Cycling group here.

Okay, that's it for today. Have a great Easter weekend. I'll have a Renegade Gents Race report up later in the weekend, most likely.