rides of march, part four. guest post!

This is a special guest post by my most beloved Big Brother (who will be in this fair city oh-so-soon! eee!). He writes about what has undoubtedly been the pinnacle of "rides of march" good times. Cheers!


My Little Sister was in town for a Spring break, incidentally coinciding with a Friday full moon. Full moon Fridays are for Booze Croozin, slow, pseudo-organized night rides usually involving adult beverages and barbeque. Little Sister was game and The Wife was willing to stay home with the Chillins.

I have several guest bikes in the stable and Little Sister usually rolls on an Electra New Belgium Cruiser when she stays with us. She has short legs, but the bike fits well if we mash the seat all the way down. The usual crooze route winds about twenty miles through hilly Tacoma, so the reclined single speed was a questionable choice. Thirty minutes before departure, Little Sister decided she'd rather have gears, so I dusted off a ladies Costco Special mtb that I had commuterized several years ago. She posed insightful questions whilst test-riding such as, "Do I stop pedaling to shift, like on my bike?" No! And don't forget that there isn't a coaster brake, use your hands! It's a good thing Big Brother is here to set her straight. I loaded up my Xtracycle with 2.5 litres of dunkel, fixins for s'mores, and a few extra layers of clothes. We were off.

We rallied at the grocery store so everyone could stock up. I needed brats and Little Sister needed tissues and two pounds of gummi dinosaurs. There was a "bum" theme for the evening, which was widely interpreted or ignored. An hour after the scheduled rendezvous, all riders and trailered dogs hit the trail with blinky lights flashing and Dr. Octagon blasting from the boom box. The weather was perfect for croozin; temps in the 40's with completely clear skies. We picked up other riders along the way. The ride to the park was relaxed and uneventful, aside from the occasional failure to yield the right-of-way to an unsuspecting motorist. We rode around the park gate, killed all of our lights, and slowly rolled to the barbeque spot as the moon rose through the trees.

The Narrows at night

Is a beautiful sight

By the full moon at 5 Mile Drive.

Everyone shared what they brought. We drank a few beers and grilled sausages and veggie patties. The boom box played Eazy-E, Beastie Boys, and Metallica while folks tossed an LED frisbee and made s'mores. The dog kept the animals away for we didn't see any deer or raccoons on this trip. The stars were dazzling above the faint glow of homesteads across the Sound.

The fire was dying and we were cold, but the ride home would warm us. Little Sister and I chatted the whole way, while she lazily shifted gears like an old pro.