Please join us for the 516th Annual Thanksgiving Day Ride. And yes, we know it's been 517 years since Christopher Columbus' voyage to America in search of a better Thanksgiving Day ride passage for Queen Isabella. But true cycling historians also know that there was no ride in 1764 during the last swine flu outbreak. Thankfully, medical technology and innovative advancements have given us lightweight carbon steeds so easy to ride that a nasty bout of nausea and intestinal duress no longer keeps victims off their bikes. We are therefore pleased to invite you to join America's most prestigious and time honored Thanksgiving Day ride, held once again, on Thanksgiving Day.
In a radical departure from tradition, this year's journey will launch from the North Shore Wheel and Sprocket on Green Tree and Lake Drive in Fox Point (north of Milwaukee). There's ample parking for anyone driving to the ride plus room for the television and film crews and their huge production rigs. In deference to the sanctity of Chris Columbus's maiden voyage, we'll roll north along Lake Drive toward Concordia so that we can enjoy the fresh pave along Lake Shore Drive which the City of Mequon rushed through to complete in anticipation of this event. From there we expect to head up to Falls Road, cut across to Olde Green Bay Road, and back south through Thiensville and River Hills to the ascent of the Col du Green Tree Road, summiting at W&S. If it's 70 and sunny we'll likely add mileage. If it's cold or wet, we'll cut back earlier. Likely ride time: 2 hours. Just enough to justify that 4th piece of pumpkin pie (if you're not counting the three slices of pecan pie).
Random thoughts regarding ride pacing:
This ride is intended to be ridden as if it were taking place at the end of November, a time fondly recalled for being that lazy stretch of year when it feels great to finally just let up for a moment and enjoy the beautiful mountains and ocean views for which Southeastern Wisconsin is so widely admired. You should consider the ride to be wildly successful and rewarding if you meet someone new or become reacquainted with someone you forgot you used to know. Consider riding as if you knew that once you finally return home there are likely several dozen chores waiting for your pre-Thanksgiving preparations, all of which will be done by whoever it is that ignored this advice, arrived there before you, and was promptly assigned all the tasks you would have done had you been foolish enough to arrive there first. The originator of the wise adage "it's not how fast you ride, but how good you look" understood these concepts. Everyone looks better when they're not riding fast on a holiday outing.
Please join us and help keep this one of the premier rides of year. Feel free to forward this message to anyone interested in riding. Hope to see you there.
Thanksgiving Day Ride
Thursday, November 26, 2009
10:00 a.m., W& S North Shore
http://wibikelaw.com/detail.php?c=314958
Due to the generous support of an anonymous sponsor, we are pleased to announce that once again, this event is free to the public. However, management encourages everyone to use their entry fee savings to join the Wisconsin Bicycle Federation which continues to lead the way in bicycle advocacy at the legislative and administrative levels. Memberships benefit us all and are as low as $25. See https://www.bfw.org/store/products.php?product_id=5384&storecategory_id=307 for more information.
