Evolution Reflections

I've only ever ridden a track bike in the street but I aspire to one day ride the velodrome.  So I attended the OBRA fundraiser for the Alpenrose Velodrome.  Plus, they had free beer.

A coupla sweaty fixie kids came skidding up, finishing their alley cat race.  So naturally, I pretended to be a race official.  It worked - they handed their manifests over, no questions asked.  I used to race in alley cats in San Francisco for fun, now I steal race sheets for kicks.

Java Joel, of Courier Coffee fame, was there too.  I first met Joel in Eugene in 2001 when he approached me in a bike shop asking if he could organize his own race and would I teach him.  This led to a handful of poorly-attended (but fun!) alley cat races during my first cold, wet, Oregon winter.

Next I saw Bill Alsup, Randonneur Extraordinaire, who came up and introduced himself to me.  Bill is the owner of the Donuts To Domination 200K permanent I rode last weekend.  We had an enjoyable discussion about rando riding - which is very much like a grown-up alley cat race.

The long ride home in the rain felt short and easy on my single speed - now a freewheel and no longer a fixie.