It seems like so long ago that we could easily post rides and look forward to a care-free, fun Sunday morning in the saddle. Ah, those were the days:
But it's gotta get back to normal! And to this end I like to have something to look forward to. This got me thinking, what is your idea of a dream ride? Not the route specifically (but it can be) but what are the requirements?
I'll go first. A warm, sunny day so that getting up early is not such a chore. An inclusive ride with lots of smiles, heading out for a proper adventure. A route that is low on tarmac but has a good mix of gravel, doubletrack, singletrack and rideable gnar. And, of course, ends at a greasy spoon for some really good eggs and off-colour jokes. Mmmmm, keep the coffee flowing.
I feel your pain, Ron. I can't believe it was only a month ago that this crew took Wonger's Magic Bus out to Royal Roads.
When I'm feeling like it's the bad new days, I just fiddle with some photos and videos and I'm reminded of the good times, when (nearly) every ride fit your dream scenario. I also can't add too much to your ideal ride. But how about (a) some rare, unique, and up-close wildlife sighting (racoons and deer don't count), (b) a harmless but hilarious bail by someone with a lot of self-confidence who can join in the chuckles (whose surname may or may not rhyme with "hassles" or "tassels", (but not "assless")), and (c) lots of unlooked for kindnesses—things like adjusting another's fender on the fly, or sharing cram, cookies, dehydrated apples, bacon, and bananas when it's time for a longer foot-down.
Johnny and I had some (responsible) fun yesterday; but it's not quite the same without a group.
Dang, I missed Wonger's ride too. My brief stint of single parenting followed by covid-19 has been a bit of a bummer for group rides.
Looks like you and Johnny had a nice ride though. I've gotta convince the gnar bros to get coffee and food more often. Even more important when intentionally keeping massive gaps.
No offense Ron, but your "dream" ride sounds like a regular old Sunday in the saddle.
Here's mine: I wake up super early and it's soooo dark I can't see anything. I turn on the lights and nothing happens. Must be a black-out from the tornado last night. It's hard to get dressed in the dark and I can't seem to find the head hole in my jersey. Where is it. Eventually I figure out by feel that there is no head hole, but it has three sleeves; weird. I cut a new head hole with the garden shears that I find in the bathroom vanity next to the lawn mower. I grope my way downstairs and find my bike has been left-outside unlocked all night. Not stolen, but it's been screwed up somehow. It has handlebars and a saddle, but the rest is all soft and stretchy and it doesn't seem to have wheels, which makes it hard to ride. I throw over my shoulder and run as fast as I can down to OBHS, but it's really hard, like I'm running underwater and the stretchy bike keeps getting wrapped around my knees. Eventually I get there and, amazingly, everyone is still there, including my grade three teacher who is collecting the big class project I JUST remembered I forgot about and haven't worked on all year. Suddenly I notice I'm not wearing any pants. Even Pluto's won't let me in dressed like that.
Even Pluto's won't let me in dressed like that.