In This Issue
- Planning Your End of Summer Rides
- El Tour Ride Leaders Wanted
- Our Feature Article by Dr. John Bailiff
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Support The People Who Support Us!!
Sabino Cycles
7045 E. Tanque Verde
520-885-3666
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For Sale or Items Wanted
GABA Classifieds Added to our Website
FOR SALE
2014 HED C+ Belgium wheels: 700c x 25mm wheels, DT Swiss spokes, Chris King hubs; Continental Hardshell tires (new) & Continental tubes. Ridden about 500m. Orig. cost: $1900 (wheels); $150 (tires) Wheel photos available on request...
Asking $999 OBO. Contact: john.bailiff@gmail.com
For Sale
Litespeed Catalyst, 46cm titanium frame, Mavic helium wheels, EMS carbon fork, Shimano Dura-Ace 9 speed, STI shifting, Easton carbon seat post. Excellent condition. Low miles. Asking $800.
Call Sandi at (520) 349 - 3749
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Extra, Extra, Read all about it... In addition to the listings that we've started in the Paceline, you can now post your own classified ads on the GABA website. You'll find the link on the left side of the home page and when you click on it you'll find yourself on a page titled Want Ads. You do have to be a GABA member in order to post an ad, so...if you're reading this and you're not already signed up, here's just one more great reason to join GABA.
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If you have a bike related item you'd like to buy, sell, or trade, send the details to me and I'll put it into the next issue. Be sure to include your contact info so an interested party can contact you directly.
In order to keep the ads fresh, we're going to run them for a couple of issues, then make room for new merchandise.
If your item sells before I drop it, please let me know and I'll save you some phone calls by removing it sooner.
And, of course, if you'd like to re-list your bike... just send it in again.
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Bikes and Links of Interest....
And Two Links suggested by Ike Smith
Active
Please send your ideas for new links to ...
paceline@bikegaba.org
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Greetings!
Well...it's still summer, but it's time to start planning for your fall overnight and century rides with GABA.
In this issue, you'll find information on the Trail of the Mountain Spirits Byway Overnight Tour (August 30-September 1) and the Cave Creek Overnight Tour (October 11-12) and the ever popular Tumacacori Century (October 19th). You'll also find an article in which we're asking you to volunteer to help support the Cave Creek ride. It's great to be able to go on the overnight rides, but as I'm sure you know it takes a lot of people working behind the scenes and even more out on the road with you to make these rides what they are. If you've volunteered before, Great! It's time to do it again. If you haven't volunteered, now's your chance to help GABA and all the people who ride with GABA.
In addition to our normal assortment of articles and information, we have a Feature Article by Dr.John Bailiff and because of its length we put it at the bottom of the Paceline. So if you're in the mood for a good read, skip down to the end and read all about John's Portland trip.
BT.
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SeptemberGeneral Meeting
Monday, September 8th
7:00 p.m.
Elaine Mariolle: Geography of a Cycling Life
Adventuress, author and educator Elaine Mariolle will share highlights, horrors and humorous reflections from her 30+ years in bicycling. A geographer at heart, Mariolle believes in range. Although she excelled in endurance cycling--winning the 1986 Race Across America in record time-- Elaine also competed in traditional races as a Category 2 road cyclist. Mariolle co-authored "The Woman Cyclist" (long out of print but still available for a few cents online), was a cycling columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle and writes regularly for Tail Winds.
Some of her bicycling adventures include: the Alaskan Iditabike, the Australian Bike Challenge (a race across the outback), the Soviet/American Peace Ride, Paris-Brest-Paris, PACTour Route 66, and a tour of South Africa from Capetown to Johannesburg by way of Lesotho and Swaziland. She was the on-road coordinator for several 10-to-12 week cross-country tours benefiting the League of American Wheelmen (now the League of American Bicyclists). In 2006, she was voted into the Ultra-Marathon Cycling Hall of Fame.
Currently, she is public affairs and education director at Perimeter Bicycling, where she manages the middle school bike program for Pima County. Elaine takes great pleasure in working with fellow bike ambassadors to help the next generation of cyclists.
As always, the monthly meeting will be held at the - Pima County Medical Society Building 5199 E Farness Tucson, AZ |
Start Planning for Your End of Summer Rides
Trail of the Mountain Spirits Scenic Byway Overnight Tour
August 30 - September 1, 2014
This 3-day, 105 mile, loop tour, with camping and lodging, offers one of New Mexico's finest cycling routes in America. The ride starts in Silver City, New Mexico, only 200 miles and a 3 hour drive from Tucson.
This area of New Mexico has a rich and diverse history with beautiful forests, craggy bluffs and unspoiled wilderness. It also sports one of the first national monuments in the Cliff Dwellings Monument.
There will be many sensations you will experience as you pedal along the Trail of the Mountain Spirits National Scenic Byway. The name reflects those who have walked and pedaled this ancient route through the ages, and experienced flora and fauna that will captivate you
Click HERE for more details.
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Cave Creek Overnight Tour
October 11 & 12, 2014

This 40 mile-per-day road ride takes you from Animas School, New Mexico, to the eastern side of the Chiricahua Mountains and scenic Cave Creek Canyon. This is a great ride for anyone trying touring for the first time. On Saturday only. riders wanting more miles can add about a 10 mile loop through the little hamlets of Cotton City and Animas. Click HERE for the short map, HERE for the longer option.
Roadforks lies along Interstate 10 near the border of Arizona and New Mexico. The first 30 miles of the ride is through gently rolling hills with one long downhill to the first rest stop. Next we turn east towards the Canyon and start a long, gradual climb to the tiny town of Portal.
Once entering the Canyon, we'll ride along a flowing creek in the shade of lush sycamore trees, meandering on the canyon floor between colorful towering cliffs. You'll pass small meadows where deer graze at dusk, and see birds of all descriptions around you.
Our unique destination is the Southwestern Research Station, surrounded by the Coronado National Forest, and offering a welcome retreat from the heat of the desert. The Station, with its comfortable dormitory-style cabins, is operated by the American Museum of National History.
As you come upon this oasis, the beautiful grounds with towering trees and green grass beckon you! A 60-foot-long, cool, creek-fed swimming pool will seem inviting at the end of your gradual climb to the Station. After lunch you can take a short hike, dangle your toes in the pool, or take a nap if you please. After dinner there is usually a spirited game of ping-pong happening in the game room, along with other games such as cribbage.
Click HERE for more details
We are in need of volunteers and a Ride Organizer for the Cave Creek ride. If we cannot find them, this ride will be cancelled! So please contact Supported Rides at supported rides@bikegaba.org immediately. Thank you for your help.
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Tumacacori Century
Sunday, October 19, 2014

The most popular GABA bicycle ride in Southern Arizona! Three options are available for riders from novice to very experienced cyclists: 42.8, 82 and 101 miles!
What makes this such a GREAT ride?
* It's October in the desert...perfect weather for a bicycle ride.
* It offers excellent training for El Tour de Tucson, which is one month later.
* The route is mostly flat, with some rolling hills, and very picturesque!
* Many cyclists record their best time for riding a century on this route!
* The route is well marked (just follow the GABA signs).
* Route directions and maps provided for all ride levels.
* SAG (food stops) are delicious and plentiful, served by cheerful & helpful volunteers!
* SAG/Sweep support is available along the route for tired cyclists and weary bikes.
* Bike Mechanic on hand for minor repairs and adjustments.
* Scrumptious Eegee's lunch provided to all cyclists at the conclusion of the ride.
Click HERE for more details
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Ride Organizers and Volunteers Needed
by Jim Harms
GABA needs your support so that the club can continue hosting our wonderful rides! Becoming a Ride Organizer and or Volunteer is a great way to give back to the club.
What do you get in return? You'll help your fellow club members enjoy a great event! As a Ride Organizer/Volunteer, you'll receive mileage reimbursement for driving your vehicle, lodging on overnight rides, group meals, and GABA credits (to use toward other rides or membership renewals).
As a Ride Organizer/Volunteer, you will also enjoy gorgeous scenery and the friendly atmosphere of a weekend overnight ride. This can be perfect for someone who doesn't want to ride him/herself, but wants to spend the event with a rider-friend.
Here is a list of what we need so that we don't have to cancel an event because of a lack of volunteers:
Cave Creek - October 11-12 Ride Organizer and volunteers
Tumacacori Century - October 19 volunteers
Silverbell Century - November 9 Ride Organizer and Volunteers
Please contact us at supportedrides@bikegaba.org to let us know how you want to help.
We thank you for your support,
Jim Harms and Pam Cullop
Supported Rides Coordinators
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Bicycle Articles of Interest
Due to copyright restrictions we don't have permission to include the text of these two articles. The first is from our local newspaper, The Arizona Daily Star and the second is from the New York Times.
As of the time this issue of the Paceline was published the links worked, but there is no guarantee that they will continue to be available.
Arizona Daily Start and tucson.com - July 21, 2014
Want a Word With the Mayor? You'll Find Her in the Bike Convoy
New York Times - July 20, 2014
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A Riders Response to the Loop Article
by Damion Alexander
When the county sent out the press release, I sent the following back as a response to walkers and runners. When using the loop, please stay to the right side of the path. When you walk in the middle of the path it is more of a challenge to pass. If you hear a cyclist say, rider back or passing, maintain your line of travel. If your group is more than 2 people, consider not walking abreast. Be aware of your surroundings for your own safety and that of others. If you are walking with music and it is turned up loud, you will not hear cyclist warning you they are coming up. Before changing direction, please look behind you to see if anyone is coming. Do the same any time you decide to cross the path or make any lateral movement. Finally, PLEASE be patient with the cycling community as a whole, and not judge us by a few jerks on bikes that are not respectful. They represent a small portion of the total population of cyclists.
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GABA El Tour
 Training Ride Leaders Needed The GABA El Tour training rides begin in early September and ride leaders are still needed. We have volunteers to lead the eastside long training rides from Udall Park, westside long training rides from Pima College, and the central short training rides from Swan and Ft. Lowell. We would like to have ride leaders for short training rides starting on the east and west side. Previous ride leaders have developed the mileage schedules, routes and route maps. The position requires that you arrive at the starting point early, describe the route, provide directions and answer questions. You are not responsible for the riders after they begin the ride. We would also like to have additional volunteers for all of the rides to fill in in the event the ride leader is unavailable. The rides will be posted on GABA MeetUp. This is an easy process;, but I will be available to help out. This is your chance to give back to GABA. Remember you get $5.00 worth of GABA credits for each ride you lead. If you are interested, please contact Chuck Martin at dayrides@bikegaba.org or call me at 795-1000 or 906-0719. |
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Two events on the BICAS calendar this time...
If this issue gets to you in time, you'll be able to attend one or both of these events. If not, at least you'll know that BICAS is doing lots of good things in our community.
"ART after DARK" - Friday August 8th (7-9pm)
Tucson Museum of Art (140 N Main St, 85701)
"Help construct a kinetic sculpture with BICAS using bike parts, TONIGHT! Bicycle parking provided by BICAS."
Build-a-Kids-Bike Class - August 9th & 10th (9am-12pm)
BICAS (44 W 6th St & 9th Ave, 85705)
Enroll now: http://bicas.org/august-bakb/
Recommended for ages 12 and up!
Experience Level: Beginner to Intermediate
Class Outline:
* How to fix a flat and change a tire
* Intro to bearing systems
* Brakes (including removing and installing a coaster brake wheel)
* How to check and maintain the bicycle chain on a single speed
* Bicycle safety check and safety tips for riding with kids
* Take bike home!
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Want to Bring Happiness to Hundreds of Bicyclists?
... by Pam Cullop
If you want to feel the love and gratitude of hundreds of your fellow cyclists, you could give each of them a high-end road bike with electronic shifting. Or a top-of-the line cyclocross bike with hydraulic disc brakes. Or a carbon full-suspension 29er.
Or, if you don't have the better part of a million dollars to spend, you could become a leader or volunteer for a supported GABA ride.
Every season, supported GABA rides bring joy to hundreds of cyclists, but those rides can't take place without ride leaders and volunteers.
On Saturday, September 13, GABA will sponsor a Volunteer Training Session that has been designed to explain every volunteer position from Sweep to BAG to SAG to Organizing on special events, century and overnight rides. Whether you are an experienced ride leader looking for a refresher before tackling the assignment again, or a first-time volunteer who would like to learn more before making a commitment, this session is meant for you.
The morning hours will zero in on what each special event or ride volunteer's specific position entails. The afternoon will include some 'hands-on' experience with the club's ride files. To get the most out of this training, bring along your laptop for some practical application.
We will meet at the Ward 6 office, located at 3202 E 1st Street, from 9 am until 2 pm. We'll break for lunch (it's free!) from 11:00-12:00. Get ready to learn some interesting facts. Discover why volunteers are GABA's most essential and valuable asset!
To attend, you must RSVP by September 6.
Class organizers:
GABA Supported Rides Co-Coordinators: supportedrides@bikegaba.org
Jim Harms (520) 241-5556 Pam Cullop (520) 271-6678
We look forward to your participation!
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New Cyclovia Route
Mark your calendar for November 2nd; Cyclovia Tucson is back with a brand new route for our first-ever Fall event. Help make it happen!
The next Cyclovia Tucson will take place on a NEW route on Sunday, November 2nd from 10 am to 3 pm. We're thrilled to announce the return to some of the very first streets, neighborhoods and business districts ever to host Cyclovia in Tucson. If you joined us for that first event in 2010, it's not hard to remember the smiles and faces full of joy as they rode, car-free, down parts of Fourth Avenue.
Go to cycloviatucson.org to see the route.
So much has changed in the last five years since that first Cyclovia. South 6th Avenue is bursting with new businesses, art galleries, and will soon be the site of Tucson's very first Parklet. And, of the course, Sun Link, Tucson's Modern Streetcar began revenue service last week. You'll be able to ride the streetcar right to Cyclovia this year!
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How to Get to Portland
by Dr. John Bailiff
DAY ONE
You can start at 04:00 in the morning if you're one of the thousand-or-so people registered to ride it a day. Not me. I was there to ride the "Seattle-to- Portland Bicycle Classic" over the weekend with my partner Jane and 10,000 other cyclists of all descriptions. Even though "literally" is regularly misused nowadays to all sorts of metaphorical comparisons, I do mean literally of every description; from high-end road bikes to the guy riding a departmentstore mountain bike on platform pedals, in flipflops, with his feet at two different angles; from tandems ridden by couples and by parent-and-child, to the four-seater with a father in first position and three children graduated by age behind him; from slick carbon recumbents like Jane's Bacchetta to lowrider tricycles laden with panniers, bags, flags, fairings, and sunshades. Whole teams of the latter category, in fact.
All these bikers show up at a big parking lot north of the University of Washington stadium beginning in the pre-dawn Saturday darkness, to drop of overnight bags at one of the dozen rental trucks, inflate their tires, fill their bottles, and empty their bladders in one of the many-more-than-a-dozen porta-potties. (Anyone remember the scene in the documentary film Woodstock, in which a team films people entering and emerging from the portable toilets, when one drugged-out guy looks at the camera and asks what they're doing? "Making a movie," says someone off-camera. "What's it called?" asks the guy. Reading off the side of the toilet visible in the frame, the off-camera voice says, "PortaSan." "Far out," says the stoner. Well, I do.)
Anyway, the Cascade Bicycle Club rules allow two-day riders to start any time between 04:45 and 07:00am. By the time Jane and I arrive just short of 05:00 the early groups are already rolling. The start-system is to send off a set of around 500 riders at five minute intervals. We set out at 05:36 to negotiate the first couple of turns with our cohort through surprisingly busy traffic out to the ship-channel bridge. From there it's a technically demanding descent to the level of Lake Washington. This is clearly the most dangerous stretch, given the winding route and the range of bike-handling skills.
The sun is glancing off the lake surface as we cover the first leg to mile 10 and Seward Park, a "mini-stop" in Seattle-to-Portland-aka the "StP"-parlance, which means there's water and toilets but no food. It's easy to spot our friends at the Park. I just look for a little kid riding his own bike. There are two, in fact, but the one riding with his mother tells me he's twelve. Will is the one on the red Fuji with 24in wheels. It was his dad, Paul, who proposed we join him and Will for the 2014 StP, along with Carlos, a colleague in UofW admissions. Paul is Director of Admissions and a former student of mine. Will is nine. And this is the second year he's ridden it on his own bike.
The five of us join the stream heading south along the lake. This stretch along the shore presents some the most scenic views on the whole ride, the low eastern sun just beginning to warm the day. It will continue to do so all the way into the 90s by afternoon. It's urban and residential riding dow to the only real climb just about mile 45, where we regain the altitude lost early down to lake-level up around a mile at a grade of 6% to 9%. The courseguide headlines the ascent in block caps. I do a test-tempo pace past hundreds, providing yet another sample of the range of bikes and body-types. Instead of a tightly-grouped peloton you see a stream of riders, singly and in twos and threes, stretched out behind and all the way out to the horizon. It's exalting to see a field the equivalent of a small-city population on bicycles.
The big "lunch-stop" is in the REI-a major sponsor-parking lot at mile 50. It's packed when we arrive to regroup and chow down on PBJ's made with rolled tortillas and line up for the inadequate-number of water taps. And the porta-sans. Jane doesn't make it into this photo of our team, but she's feeling better than she expected to at the halfway point of Day One. By this time we've established a pattern. I ride along with the group for a few miles from a stop, then pick up my pace to pass groups, hook onto pacelines of riders, and have conversations about bikes and biographies. Some miles along I wait for Jane to pass and ride with her for a time. At the major stops we all re-connect.
It's getting hot by the time we hit the last big stop at "Spanaway." With only some 30 miles remaining I tell Jane I'm riding all the way to our overnightlodging at Chehalis. The best section of this stretch proves to be the 14mile "Tenino Bike-Path" south from Yelm. It provides most of the little shade there's been on the route since we left the city. The ride reaches Centralia - and mile 100-only a few miles later, where the majority of riders overnight on the local college campus. I ride on the four miles to Chehalis and locate our motel, then text Jane the directions. Paul keeps in touch by text also to update me on their progress and expected arrival-time.
The Best Western Plus motel a/c is as welcome as the pool and the nutritious spread of veggies and fruit laid out by the Park Place Inn for our cyclists. Will has yet to master pulling his bottle from its cage while riding, necessitating regular stops for re-hydration. Still, he arrives with his dad and Carlos feeling energetic enough for a swim before dinner.
DAY TWO
We sleep well. The motel accommodates the tour by laying on breakfast beginning at 04:00am, complete with waffles and a staffer making omelettes. This gets them all the available rating-stars from me. We all breakfast but Jane needs some more time to get herself and gear together, so they roll out about an hour ahead. Once our bags are stacked with the others for transport to our destination, Jane and I head out into a chilly overcast around 06:00am. Many riders are kitted just in jerseys or singlets, anticipating temperatures predicted in Saturday's range. I've got on my arm-coolers and a headsweat under my helmet and I'm feeling the cold over the twenty miles to Winlock, where lots of two-day riders also stay overnight. Jane has a jacket over her jersey.
By the time I reach the window of the open-air coffeeshop in Winlock I'm shaking. Jane rides on while I warm my hands and myself with the coffee. We're now about fifteen minutes behind Paul and company. With Jane ahead I'm free to sprint and I enjoy both the warmup and the speed. I stop a few minutes after I pass her to catch a photo. She's still wearing her jacket.
The course is now in rolling farm-country, even though it continues to follow the I-5 corridor. We're never more than a couple of miles west of the Interstate. I catch on with several pacelines and hook up with a young triathlete for awhile. She tells me she's just finished her master's at Washington and about what races she's done. We talk about triathlon-training and I have fun passing on some notes from my own racing career. Paul reports their departure from Castle Rock. They're now just a few minutes ahead, so we all re-connect at the bigger Lexington Park stop to talk about the final stages of the ride. Jane is feeling strong and Will is unfazed by the fact that he's now at hour six for the day, having done the first 100 in just under nine hours of riding-time. That's averaging about 12mph. The day is not getting much warmer. The mostly unbroken cloud-cover looks likely to remain. I don't bother to check the Weather Channel radar. We ride on, heading for the Columbia River crossing at Longview and the Lewis-and- Clark bridge over into Rainier Oregon. The plan now is to see one another again at the finish.
No one anticipates the problem crossing the Columbia. The Lewis and Clark bridge carries Washington Route 433 over the river to meet Oregon highway 30, which we'll take all the way southeast to Portland. It's the only crossing between Longview WA and Rainier OR however, and it's busy. The solution is to collect the cyclists on a frontage road and release them to climb the span between clutches of autos. There are about 500 riders waiting when Jane and I arrive together. The two lanes of autos stretch north out of sight. So we wait.
The Cascade volunteers say they've been working the StP for a cumulative 20 years and have never experienced such a cluster of riders. Speculation about the reason fills some of the time we await our turn. The clouds have descended now and the temps have risen very little. I feel sorry for all those who dressed expecting more hot weather. The bridge has several expansionjoints in such bad repair I'm surprised there've been no crashes or damaged wheels.
On the Oregon side the surface is much better. As I pass through Rainier I'm thinking about the last food stop in St Helens. It's situated at the confluence of the Columbia River and the Willamette which bisects Portland and whose course we'll follow into the city. I head for it and stop at the turn into the venue to wait for Jane to appear. I fall into conversation with a couple of young faculty waiting for their fellow riders, one who teaches political philosophy and one who teaches philosophy. I'm a retired philosophy professor. What are the odds?
I enjoy a stimulating exchange about our mutual interests and learn something about the challenges for academics now in mid-career. Their friends ride up just as Jane turns in.
While we're downing some more PBJs and watermelon Paul, Will, and Carlos show up. We all eat on the grassy hillside and talk about the last leg. That's when I notice the clouds have darkened. I look at the radar for the first time. It shows a widening band of thunderstorms and rain moving northeast, right over the route. Riding in the rain appears inevitable.
And so it is. Since we leave together I'm able to catch a photo of the Seattle three along with Jane. Will is riding as well after mile 170 as he has been all day. And the day before. When the rain thickens we stop under a gas station canopy until it slackens, then gird ourselves for a gritty final 20 miles to Holladay Park.
Riding in the rain is no fun and going slowly only prolongs the suffering. So I crank for the finish, passing dozens at a time. On the climb up to the Sauvie Island junction I hear a woman ask whether she can get on my wheel. That's a first. I see in my mirror that she's young and followed by a couple of men. I'm doing about 17mph and ask her if the pace is OK. When she acknowledges it is I hold steady for awhile.
When the grade steepens I glance back to find I'm dropping them. I don't wait. You get a real sense of arrival in Portland by on the steeply-angled approach to St Johns bridge, a mammoth girder-span high enough to allow passage for the largest vessels on the Willamette below. I worry about Jane and the others as I bike up the slippery spiral that leads to the bridge. I remember-not fondly-running across the span during the Portland Marathon more than twenty years ago.
I descend with a large pack and proceed to pass as many as I can through the industrial zone and along the northwest heights into town. The final couple of miles are marred by a series of short signals which I know annoy drivers even more than cyclists. The curving roof of the convention center is prominent on our right as we get into downtown traffic. Officers controlling the remaining intersections allow clumps of a hundred or so to collect, so we roll slowly along the wide bike lane leading to the park. It feels great to cross the carpet beside cheering throngs, to thumping music and the forced but still exciting enthusiasm of the race announcer.
The park is packed and noisy. I park my bike by a tree and head for the start, where I get the announcer's attention and tell her about Will, giving her his number. She promises their spotter's will watch for him. I get my bike bottle and join the crowd on the curb.
I feel lucky to spot Jane when she stops before the finish. She greets me with a big smile, which tells me she's felt good as well as finished strongly. We're in the park and talking about the ride and the the evening when I spot Paul, Will, and Carlos being handed their StP patches by the finish-line volunteers. I greet and congratulate them. Paul reports that, to his astonishment, Will was singled out by the
announcer and given wild applause at the finish. I'm glad.
It's a great way to get to Portland.
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Your Article Could Go Here
Do you have something interesting to share with the Tucson cycling community? A link to an event? An article that we don't know about? A topic that might be worth looking into? We publish the Paceline every two weeks and need content...
If you have something that you think others would like to find out about, please share them with me, Bruce Tucker at - paceline@bikegaba.org
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