Randomonium

 NOTE: Okay folks, if you haven't been around long enough here to know what a "Randomonium" post is, then here is the deal. I ramble, rant, and randomly moan about all things cycling in one, incohesive, bizarre post. "Randomonium", okay?

From KCCI television's Facebook page.

Criminal Activities Interrupt Gravel Event:

Or: "Why I Am Glad I Don't Do THAT Anymore!"

On Sunday the Tour of Central Iowa was rudely interrupted by a bizarre incident involving a homicide suspect from the Omaha, Nebraska area and which had the event director's scurrying to ferry riders around the cordoned off area their course went through.

Apparently the suspect was identified and was being approached to be apprehended when he bolted and stole an investigating officer's vehicle. This led to a 45 minute chase which ended when police used "stop strips" to bring the vehicle the suspect was driving to a halt. The suspect then fled on foot and barricaded himself inside St. Paul's Luthren Church in Winterset's North end. There was no one inside at this time, thankfully, but the suspect. 

This is usually "big city" stuff and not something a smaller city like Winterset would normally have going on. So, it wouldn't be out of the question to say that this was quite the shock to the Iowa gravel community this weekend.

From race director, Sarah Cooper's Facebook page.

The events caused there to be an emergency ferry operation on the part of the volunteers and race directing staff for the Tour of Central Iowa which was going on out of Cumming, Iowa, a small village just North of there. 

Riders were stopped, picked up, and driven to a point South of the city where they could return to gravelly good times. 

Comments: I have had some interesting run-ins over the years in differing situations, but this one takes the cake. I've never had anything like this happen, and I wouldn't really want to either! 

But that said, I am sure that the staff of the Tour of Central Iowa did a great job dealing with the cards that were dealt them. In the end, the suspect was apprehended, no one was shot or killed, and the event went on to its conclusion. All good things, but wow! That may have pegged my stress meter to a point I wouldn't have gotten over, so my heart goes out to those involved and I hope that this is nothing more than a great story to tell in the future. 

But yeah- that probably would have seriously called into doubt whether or not the fun and rewarding bits of promoting gravel events was worth it. Just another reason for everyone to make an effort to thank those willing to stick their necks out for us gravel grinders so we can go do races and rides like the Tour of Central Iowa. 

Grousing About Number Plates:

The SBT GRVL event happened over the weekend and there was a whole bunch of newsy bits that came out of that event which you may or may not have seen/heard. I am not going to touch upon any of that, rather, I am focusing on a tiny detail which I noted over the last week that has to do with this event, number plates, and gravel cycling as it is interpreted by Pro cyclists. 

In the week or two leading into this event in Steamboat, Colorado, I noted that the race organization posted a YouTube video concerning how you should attach your number plate at the SBT GRVL so they could score you properly and get you identified afterward in imagery taken at the event. Fair enough, I thought, and it shouldn't be any big deal, as long as everyone is required to do this. "Everyone" includes Pro riders, by the way. 

I touched on this in last week's "FN&V", but here I need to also talk a little about how the Pro riders don't really like gravel events. Not "traditional" ones at any rate. See, I saw a Tweet from a Pro woman rider who was grousing about number plates and how clunky they were and all. I thought to myself, "Then don't ride the event- or just deal with it." Again- it was a requirement for every rider. So, yeah- you may not like it, but is it worth grousing about? (On second thought, this was on Twitter, so, yeah....)

But Pro riders want events run in their tradition- with pinned on numbers, closed roads, separated Men and Women fields, and well, like any old school roadie event. But that's not "gravel grinding" folks. I know that the term "Spirit of Gravel" is generally preferred here, but since that is so misunderstood it doesn't have any meaning anymore, I choose to use the original "gravel grinding" term we used to start out with. Anyway- the entire number plate issue was just another small detail that shows me that Pro riders really are not into the gravel scene as it was intended to be.

Camp Ingawanis' North Side May of 2010

Will We Ride The North Side Again?

Years ago I was invited to check out Camp Ingawanis as a possible mountain bike area. It was, (and the North side still is) a Boy Scout camp and mountain biking there was strictly prohibited. Although that did not stop some nefarious trail poachers whom I knew of back in the day from tasting Ingawanis' forbidden fruits. 

I'd heard the stories of the big climbs, fast descents, and twisty-turny trails through pinewood needles. It sounded a world away from the river bottom trails in George Wyth State Park, and, as I would find out back in 2003, The "Scout Camp" was all I thought it was and more. 

That was when I was first out there and all that was out there were horseback riding trails. But there was a ton of potential and literally hundreds of acres of land. Mostly tree-covered too. I was stoked to have gotten the chance to check it out. 

By 2005 I was a paying member of the "Mountain Bike Auxiliary" under the auspices of the Winnebago Council, Boy Scouts of America. (I still have my 2005 license!) The trails were spectacular, and I rode regularly on the North side from that time until around 2012 or so when we were kind of shunted off over to the South Side trail system instead due to the ever increasing use of the North side by equestrians and equestrian events. 

Then the North side was shut off to mountain biking by 2014. It was a shame, and since that time, only the South Side trails are open to ride on a regular basis. Now the land the South Side trails are on belongs to Bremer County, but the North is still under the control of the Scouts. 

I spoke with someone recently that was part of putting on a trail running event on the North side and he reported that all the old trails are still there, albeit needing some TLC in some cases. That's great to hear, but he also whispered that there is a chance that bicycles may be welcomed back again. 

I sure hope that comes true!