jobob
05-01-2005, 09:19 AM
Amici Veloci’s Grand Day Out ! (hopefully the first of many)
Here are a few photos from the Top Hat ride yesterday - I sized them pretty small so they wouldn't take forever to load.
Some of us at the team check-in table. Our team name turned out to be first alphabetically, great choice that! We were assigned numbers 101-115, made us sort of feel like US Postal at the Tour.
http://tinypic.com/4t0taq
http://tinypic.com/4t0tfl
V & AG show off their tattoos, and in V.’s case, her amazing flexibility.
http://tinypic.com/4t0tvq
Here’s team Amici Veloci in all its glory, right before we set out. L to R: Snap, Bill, SadieKate, Rob, AG, aka_kim, V., Diane, Gerald, jobob, Jason, Petunia, Emily, Jennifer, and Cory.
http://tinypic.com/4t0utx
And we’re off !
http://tinypic.com/4t0ux3
The 50 and 75 mile routes coincided for the first about ~28 miles and then the routes split and converged again for the last 15 or so. We all started out together but the killer-fast studly riders in our group started out on a fairly brisk clip – which was fine for me since it was freezing cold (and I left my vest in the car, duh) so I sort of kept up to ward off the hypothermia. At the first rest stop I admitted there was no way I could keep up with them, and AG wasn’t too keen to keep up that pace either, so we waved everyone on ahead and told them we’d see them at the next stop.
I have hardly any photos during the ride itself, I was in survival mode for the most part… Soon after the first stop we encountered The Hill That Went On Freakin’ Forever – it was one of those perverse hills on a windy twisty road that continuously fakes you out, just when you think you may have reached the top you turn a bend and see, uh no, notsomuch, and since you can’t see the summit you have no idea how much farther it is. Bleah. So I geared way down and watched AG pull farther and farther ahead of me (uh, spazz, if you have a moment I’d love if you could do another one of those great morph shots of The Look, but with AG as Lance and me as Jan … she totally smoked me going uphill. Scratch that, she just totally smoked me, period :p ). And then, when we reached the top and had a fun but all-too-brief descent (at which time I managed to catch up with AG, I like decsending fast), we turned a sharp corner and started Going Up Again (“wtf??” I am muttering to self, “I am not liking this!!”). The scenery was lovely and I should have taken photos but you’ll just have to take my word for it. Near the top of this second hill the evil Winner Photo guy was stationed (why must they place themselves where you are most likely to look like crap?) but he made my day when he informed me that yes I was at the top and the next rest stop was at the bottom of the hill – he lied a little but it was enough to get a smile out of me (click!) so that’s all that mattered.
Maybe ½ mile before the second rest stop, on a slight uphill on a really crummy road, I passed by a woman standing on the side looking really forlorn while others were going past her, so I pulled up and asked her if she needed any help, and she told me her chain had fallen off. I helped her put the chain back on, showing her how easy it was when you had someone to hold up the bike. I think that gave me enough Karma Points to finish up the ride without incident, the bulk of the hillage being over for the 50 mile ride, no flats, and my knee didn’t act up at all.
I met up with the rest of the group at the second rest stop, and the Fast Gang was ready to head out by then so we said our farewells. AG and I were joined here by Rob, who was also doing the 50 mile ride and decided he’d rather go at a bit more leisurely pace. So the 3 of us set off. Alas, I had a really hard time keeping up with them, but they very kindly waited up for me a couple of times and between that and the fact that we were riding through very hi-traffic areas with lots of stoplights (yuck) enabled me to more-or-less keep up with them until maybe the last 10 miles where I lost them for good – which was fine, I have no problems riding on my own, I’d just as soon everyone went at the pace they are happiest with, and there were always people to chat with along the way.
I saw Rob again in the parking lot loading up his bike, and we headed off to the celebration area where we met up with AG and met her husband Adventure Boy. AG and AB very graciously drove off and bought some champagne and strawberrries for an after-ride celebration when the 75 milers returned. In the meantime, we were checking out the food situation and Rob suddenly lit up like a kid in a candy store – he located the Beer Booth ! ( Oh dear, yet another Bad Influence for jobob :D ). Well, needless to say Rob and I made a beeline and since I had my wallet on me, I treated – which meant of course he had to buy the next round later. :rolleyes:
During that time snapdragen showed up – and boy was I relieved ! I’ll to leave it to her to report on her adventure, but I mentioned we had all started out at a pretty fast pace and she and Bill were riding together for a bit. At the first rest stop Bill gave us a rough idea of how far back she was, and I figured I would meet up with her there and ride with her the rest of the way. When she didn’t show up when we expected, we were wondering if she had a mechanical problem or if maybe she skipped or missed the stop and went on to the second, and when we didn’t see her there I worried a bit. Then when I return to the lot, there was her car, without her bike, so I figured maybe she was still out on the course. I had forgotten to take my cell phone (it was in the pocket of the vest laying on the seat of my car, duh), and when I checked it when I returned there was a missed call from her (with no message, slap slap). Then my imagination started going wild – OMG what if she fell and was in the hospital with a fractured pelvis or something? – and I on the verge of receding into Mother Hen mode when she appeared.
We had a bit of a wait for the 75 milers to return so we all kicked back and sat out in the sunshine, listening to the tunes being played by a DJ from our local radio station KFOG, and just having a grand old time. The weather started turning funky after a while, overcast and chilly with a brisk wind and we were hoping the 75 milers weren’t having too difficult a time. Happily the weather didn’t degenerate much more, and the 75 milers returned triumphantly:
http://tinypic.com/4t0wpc
And we pulled out the champagne and the celebration continued :D
http://tinypic.com/4t0x0m
Here are a few photos from the Top Hat ride yesterday - I sized them pretty small so they wouldn't take forever to load.
Some of us at the team check-in table. Our team name turned out to be first alphabetically, great choice that! We were assigned numbers 101-115, made us sort of feel like US Postal at the Tour.
http://tinypic.com/4t0taq
http://tinypic.com/4t0tfl
V & AG show off their tattoos, and in V.’s case, her amazing flexibility.
http://tinypic.com/4t0tvq
Here’s team Amici Veloci in all its glory, right before we set out. L to R: Snap, Bill, SadieKate, Rob, AG, aka_kim, V., Diane, Gerald, jobob, Jason, Petunia, Emily, Jennifer, and Cory.
http://tinypic.com/4t0utx
And we’re off !
http://tinypic.com/4t0ux3
The 50 and 75 mile routes coincided for the first about ~28 miles and then the routes split and converged again for the last 15 or so. We all started out together but the killer-fast studly riders in our group started out on a fairly brisk clip – which was fine for me since it was freezing cold (and I left my vest in the car, duh) so I sort of kept up to ward off the hypothermia. At the first rest stop I admitted there was no way I could keep up with them, and AG wasn’t too keen to keep up that pace either, so we waved everyone on ahead and told them we’d see them at the next stop.
I have hardly any photos during the ride itself, I was in survival mode for the most part… Soon after the first stop we encountered The Hill That Went On Freakin’ Forever – it was one of those perverse hills on a windy twisty road that continuously fakes you out, just when you think you may have reached the top you turn a bend and see, uh no, notsomuch, and since you can’t see the summit you have no idea how much farther it is. Bleah. So I geared way down and watched AG pull farther and farther ahead of me (uh, spazz, if you have a moment I’d love if you could do another one of those great morph shots of The Look, but with AG as Lance and me as Jan … she totally smoked me going uphill. Scratch that, she just totally smoked me, period :p ). And then, when we reached the top and had a fun but all-too-brief descent (at which time I managed to catch up with AG, I like decsending fast), we turned a sharp corner and started Going Up Again (“wtf??” I am muttering to self, “I am not liking this!!”). The scenery was lovely and I should have taken photos but you’ll just have to take my word for it. Near the top of this second hill the evil Winner Photo guy was stationed (why must they place themselves where you are most likely to look like crap?) but he made my day when he informed me that yes I was at the top and the next rest stop was at the bottom of the hill – he lied a little but it was enough to get a smile out of me (click!) so that’s all that mattered.
Maybe ½ mile before the second rest stop, on a slight uphill on a really crummy road, I passed by a woman standing on the side looking really forlorn while others were going past her, so I pulled up and asked her if she needed any help, and she told me her chain had fallen off. I helped her put the chain back on, showing her how easy it was when you had someone to hold up the bike. I think that gave me enough Karma Points to finish up the ride without incident, the bulk of the hillage being over for the 50 mile ride, no flats, and my knee didn’t act up at all.
I met up with the rest of the group at the second rest stop, and the Fast Gang was ready to head out by then so we said our farewells. AG and I were joined here by Rob, who was also doing the 50 mile ride and decided he’d rather go at a bit more leisurely pace. So the 3 of us set off. Alas, I had a really hard time keeping up with them, but they very kindly waited up for me a couple of times and between that and the fact that we were riding through very hi-traffic areas with lots of stoplights (yuck) enabled me to more-or-less keep up with them until maybe the last 10 miles where I lost them for good – which was fine, I have no problems riding on my own, I’d just as soon everyone went at the pace they are happiest with, and there were always people to chat with along the way.
I saw Rob again in the parking lot loading up his bike, and we headed off to the celebration area where we met up with AG and met her husband Adventure Boy. AG and AB very graciously drove off and bought some champagne and strawberrries for an after-ride celebration when the 75 milers returned. In the meantime, we were checking out the food situation and Rob suddenly lit up like a kid in a candy store – he located the Beer Booth ! ( Oh dear, yet another Bad Influence for jobob :D ). Well, needless to say Rob and I made a beeline and since I had my wallet on me, I treated – which meant of course he had to buy the next round later. :rolleyes:
During that time snapdragen showed up – and boy was I relieved ! I’ll to leave it to her to report on her adventure, but I mentioned we had all started out at a pretty fast pace and she and Bill were riding together for a bit. At the first rest stop Bill gave us a rough idea of how far back she was, and I figured I would meet up with her there and ride with her the rest of the way. When she didn’t show up when we expected, we were wondering if she had a mechanical problem or if maybe she skipped or missed the stop and went on to the second, and when we didn’t see her there I worried a bit. Then when I return to the lot, there was her car, without her bike, so I figured maybe she was still out on the course. I had forgotten to take my cell phone (it was in the pocket of the vest laying on the seat of my car, duh), and when I checked it when I returned there was a missed call from her (with no message, slap slap). Then my imagination started going wild – OMG what if she fell and was in the hospital with a fractured pelvis or something? – and I on the verge of receding into Mother Hen mode when she appeared.
We had a bit of a wait for the 75 milers to return so we all kicked back and sat out in the sunshine, listening to the tunes being played by a DJ from our local radio station KFOG, and just having a grand old time. The weather started turning funky after a while, overcast and chilly with a brisk wind and we were hoping the 75 milers weren’t having too difficult a time. Happily the weather didn’t degenerate much more, and the 75 milers returned triumphantly:
http://tinypic.com/4t0wpc
And we pulled out the champagne and the celebration continued :D
http://tinypic.com/4t0x0m