Trans Iowa V11 Report: Gathering Of The Tribe

Lonski's in Grinnell ended up becoming the post T.I.v11 gathering spot.

All afternoon we were being asked if folks were getting together afterward to hang out. We decided to send everyone to Lonski's which is a bar and grill in downtown Grinnell. I know MG asked me several times what the name of the place was and a couple of times he asked how to spell the name. At any rate, we were giving that info to several different folks, so it probably got passed around quite a bit from there.

We arrived at the Comfort Inn and Suites, where we deposited Greg Gleason and his bike, at around 6:30-ish in the afternoon. Then we headed downtown to Lonski's to see who- if anyone- was there. MG grabbed a primo parking place, but I had to go around the other side of the block to find one for my truck. MG was nowhere to be seen when I peeked inside the door of Lonski's, and I took a few steps in. My eyes weren't accustomed to the lighting there, so I did not recognize a line of tables in front of me that had several Trans Iowa riders seated at it. Suddenly Ari Andonopoulous raised his long arm and waved me over, at which time the rest of the revelers all gave a yelp to invite me to sit down.

The Lonski's staff was amazed all day long at how busy they were, and once they figured out that Trans Iowa was sending them all these folks, they went out of their way to thank me, not once, but twice! Thank you to all the Trans Iowa folks that supported this local business!  They really appreciated that, and I am happy to somehow bring a benefit to this community that has been so supportive of Trans Iowa since we moved the event there for V6.

It was a treasured moment to have had the time to spend with such excellent folks.

Mountain Bike Action's legendary former editor, Zapata Espinoza, used to make a big deal about mountain bikers being their own little "tribe", as if they were a cultural, ethnic phenomenon that deserved to be recognized by cycling snobs, (read "roadies") and the Sierra Club. Well, I don't know if gravel cyclists fit the criteria, but it seemed to me to be a gathering of the tribe that night right there in Lonski's. Whatever it was, you could feel the energy and the camaraderie was real. 

I stuck around until about 10:00pm when MG and I took our leave and we went outside. MG and I said our goodbyes, and then I drove the almost hour and a half trip home. There were no incidents and everything was smooth, since I was only awake a minimal amount of time compared to what I normally am when I drive back from a Trans Iowa. I pulled up in front of the house where the inside lights were on and Mrs. Guitar Ted was waiting for me. As I opened the door, I could smell the aroma of fresh, homemade chicken soup.

Trans Iowa v11 was over.

Tomorrow I will publish my post event thoughts and then I will return to "normal" G-Ted Productions postings afterward.