PBR Me ASAP!

NorCal was represented today by Katrina, Cathy, Pauline, Heather, Erika, and Lil Lindsay, and myself. And the rest of the womens field was represented by the likes of Stella Carey and Rachel Lloyd. Good grief!

My ride consisted of trying to stick with the pack, as per usual, for as long as humanly possible, which was a little longer than last year, but not long enough. Alone on Elephant Hill again! Happily, I bridged to Lil Lindsay and we had a good ole time all the way down the coast. I lost her again on Marshall, and found myself in a group with the honorable Bill Best, Charles Beck, and Bobas!!! Now thats what Im talking about!

We were moving right along on Chileno with a healthy tailwind and passed Stella and some Giannis on the side of the road. Apparently folks were being buzzed by a territorial truck and finally he went too far and actually clipped Gabe Sanctuary. Gabes bike was toast, hes okay. The Good Samaritans who stopped to help him out finally bridged up to our group toward the end of Chileno, and these reinforcements sealed my fate. A few others lost contact, Ray Ray for one. We tried, and he got a lot closer than I did, but we both gave up. I was selfishly grateful for the companion; Ive had to ride back to Occidental alone one too many times in my lifetime. We were caught by Jim Jackson and toodled along until about Valley Ford. We found a couple guys there in VF who had some spunk, and Ray kept bridging my ass up to them when Id let a gap go. I finally had to tell him to GO! I was worthless and he still had gas in the tank. Ray, thank you for your help!

The gist is that I returned to Occi alive but must have misplaced my marbles because I accepted a Pabst Blue Ribbon, the Beer of Quality, given to me by some derelict Bobas.

Ill be out again next weekend, fer-sher.

-Claire

Gianni Love Fest

According to Rogers count, over 130 people were massed in the Union Hotel parking lot awaiting the start of Grasshopper #2 to Marshall Wall. Besides the usual suspects, I noticed riders from as far away as Redding, Sacramento, and Santa Cruz. These rides have come a long way from the our original motley crew who would slog it out on the roads of West County. Id like to take a moment to thank my amazing sister-in-law Tera Feldman Crawford, whos behind-the-scenes support helps to enable my awesome brother Miguel organize these super fun annual Grasshopper Adventure Races. Thanks, Tera, for all you do, while you chase a two year old with an infant on your back! To continue the family/Gianni love fest, thanks also to my brother Miguel for continuing to do such a great job organizing these rides that are so fun for so many people, and to Kim Dow for her endless contributions!

With an unfinished thesis sitting at home, I opted to do a partial Grasshopper. It was fun to ride with the group until midway between Valley Ford and Tomales, at which time I looped back through Bloomfield and Burnside and returned to my computer. Ych.

See you next time!

-Cathy

GAS #2 The Wall

What a difference a year makes! And I must say my new bike is dreamy- Soulcraft rules the world! The tailwind out there was great too. All in all a fine day for me! But not to fret my friends, my inverted !st place was never in danger- the suffering was just not as bad. Unlike last year, Ive got energy left over to operate the TV remote and may even do some beading.

By the way, I made this beautiful necklace for the female winner of the series- so ride hard ladies! I know the deal is (no prizes) and whatnot, but Im not running the show, its just my little gift to the women I admire.

Peace, Hello Katrina

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