castlerobber
Zen MBB Master
If it's the first Saturday in August, it must be time for the Bikes, Blues & Bayous ride in Greenwood.
Attendance has surpassed 1,000 riders for 3 years now--not bad for a Mississippi delta town with a population of 14,000. The ride organizers added a small expo for this year, along with more things for non-riding friends and family members to do during the ride, and a few post-ride events to encourage participants to stay over Saturday night.
As my husband and I were headed for the car after packet pickup, I saw a Vendetta on the back of a parked-but-running SUV halfway down the block, and took off at a jog to try to intercept the vehicle. It turned out to be @Kerry Kerr, come over from Alabama for the 62-mile ride, so we talked Cruzbikes for a few minutes.
The heat Saturday morning was slightly less oppressive than usual, with clear skies, and the light breeze was favorable to those of us on the 46-mile route. Ride volunteers showed their usual gracious hospitality, one of the reasons so many riders come every year--that, and the pancake-flat course.
As I was leaving the rest stop at the turnaround, a rider from the Major Taylor cycling club in Little Rock asked if she could draft behind me. She was having trouble keeping up with her group, and didn't want to ride solo, so we traded pulls for the next 20 miles. Apparently she got enough draft off the S30 to help some, and it was nice to have company!
Unfortunately, for the first time in the 12-year history of the ride, a cyclist on the 62-mile route was struck and killed by a pickup truck while crossing a major highway, less than 45 minutes after the ride started. Details still aren't clear as to who was at fault. BBB has law enforcement officers directing traffic at every major intersection and most minor ones, with cyclists always given the right of way, and drivers being generally courteous; this was totally unexpected.
Kerry and me before the ride:
With my second-half riding partner, Nickie, at the finish:
Until next year:
Attendance has surpassed 1,000 riders for 3 years now--not bad for a Mississippi delta town with a population of 14,000. The ride organizers added a small expo for this year, along with more things for non-riding friends and family members to do during the ride, and a few post-ride events to encourage participants to stay over Saturday night.
As my husband and I were headed for the car after packet pickup, I saw a Vendetta on the back of a parked-but-running SUV halfway down the block, and took off at a jog to try to intercept the vehicle. It turned out to be @Kerry Kerr, come over from Alabama for the 62-mile ride, so we talked Cruzbikes for a few minutes.
The heat Saturday morning was slightly less oppressive than usual, with clear skies, and the light breeze was favorable to those of us on the 46-mile route. Ride volunteers showed their usual gracious hospitality, one of the reasons so many riders come every year--that, and the pancake-flat course.
As I was leaving the rest stop at the turnaround, a rider from the Major Taylor cycling club in Little Rock asked if she could draft behind me. She was having trouble keeping up with her group, and didn't want to ride solo, so we traded pulls for the next 20 miles. Apparently she got enough draft off the S30 to help some, and it was nice to have company!
Unfortunately, for the first time in the 12-year history of the ride, a cyclist on the 62-mile route was struck and killed by a pickup truck while crossing a major highway, less than 45 minutes after the ride started. Details still aren't clear as to who was at fault. BBB has law enforcement officers directing traffic at every major intersection and most minor ones, with cyclists always given the right of way, and drivers being generally courteous; this was totally unexpected.
Kerry and me before the ride:
With my second-half riding partner, Nickie, at the finish:
Until next year:
