The GTDRI Stories: Introduction

That time my ride and I were part of a cycling themed meme.

This will be the series that details the 14 years of the "Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitational". The ride started in 2006 and the last one happened in 2019, with a cancelled GTDRI in 2020 for obvious reasons. 

This will be much like the last series run on the blog here on Sundays over the last three tears, The "Trans Iowa Stories", which was done to tell everything I hadn't already shared about the event over the years. That wasn't much, and so some of that was actually a rehashing of old materials, but it was what it was. 

In the case of the GTDRI, there is a lot more to say. Many of the earliest GTDRI's had no reports, really, and there are anecdotes and facts that might surprise a few of you folks who read this blog. Many of you out there probably took part in one or two of these rides. So, you might already know what to expect here. 

Part of that untold story is how this ride began, and what the heck is up with the name of it. You'll find out how the ride got going "publicly" in 2006, and to that end, I found, and I do not know how this happened, but I found an original manuscript I wrote right after the first one happened which shed some light on how the ride got announced. It also serves as a bit of a report, and there are things there I would not have remembered had I not wrote them down back in 2006.

In this series you will learn the significance of this image.

And there are a lot of images to share which have never been published before. Some others will get shared that have been. These will help illustrate the ride's evolution throughout the years.

And what I also hope to show is how gravel riding has evolved along with this ride's run. Back in '06, there was nothing 'gravel specific' at all! Everything was bodged and cobbled from mountain, road, and touring segments of cycling. 

And - of course - there were cue sheets! 

So, sit back every Sunday, grab a cup of coffee, or juice, or whatever, relax and enjoy the wacky, whimsical, historical, and sometimes fairy tale stories of a ride with a curious name. I'll post every Sunday, just like I did with the previous series. I doubt that this will take three years, but who knows..... 

See ya next Sunday for "The GRDRI Stories" where we will find out "Where Did This Ride Come From?".