The Bandwagon

Yesterday morning the weater looked gloomy.  The forcasters said it was going to rain all morning.  But what do they know, right?  Around 8:30am a post popped up on the Ocean Isle Beach Cyclists message board - here is the conversation that followed.

   Bike Shop Boy:  according to weather.com not suppose to rain until noon
                             whatcha think?

   Our Fearless Leader:  I can't do 9:00 AM, but could make it by 9:30 AM.

   Turtle Boy:  we talking today?

   Bike Shop Boy:  yes today I am in

   Turtle Boy:  ok ..........dirty bike here we go again.........

   Me:  I can do 9:30, wait for me!

Planet Bike Blinky
Super Flash!

So I get myself in gear.  Get the bike ready, whammo a bowl of cereal and head out the door with my "flashy light" blinking away.  It's super foggy, visibility is probably a few hundred feet.  Not the safest day to be on the road.  Plus the roads are wet because it's rained all night long.  I feel something that I'm going to call "mist" on my ride over to the bike shop.  It really feels like rain, but Bike Shop Boy said it's not going to rain.

We start out on the ride deciding to head away from the coast so there won't be as much traffic since it's still super foggy.  We make it just a few miles and what happens???  It starts to rain.  And then it rains harder.  So here we are, the four of us, The Usual Suspects riding in 50 degree weather in the rain.  We jokingly wonder what the drivers on the road must think of us.  I'm sure you have a pretty good idea. 

Of course I'm surprised when Harvey tells me to turn left on Ethridge.  We're going back.  Honestly, I was thinking "well we're already soaked, I guess we're going to continue on with the ride".   What kind of mentality is that? 

Bike Shop Boy offers me a ride home from the shop, but I tell him no thank you.  In my head I'm thinking, "that would cut off 6-8 miles, if I ride home and take the 8 mile route, I'll at least get in 30 miles".   Thirty miles is pretty much the shortest ride I will consider.  Anything less than that and it's just not worth getting your clothes dirty.  Turtle Boy's home is on the way, so I do take the 8 mile route.  By the time I get home I'm soaked through and through and freezing.  You know the kind of cold that when you take your super hot shower your hands and feet feel cold instead of heat? 

So are we dedicated or just plain stoopid?  I think neither.  I think we have Contagious Optimism!  It's nice to have a group of friends who are willing to jump on The Bandwagon and try to get in a ride no matter what the weather man says.  We made a fun memory to think back on this coming summer when we're melting in the 100% humidity.

Here is the message board post that was made just after the ride ended:

   Turtle Boy:  Just got some chinese food and read my fortune cookie
                        which I believe applies to OIB cyclists, especially after
                        today's Ride for Rain

                      It read.  "Confucious say "always check weather report yourself
                      before going for ride no matter what bike shop owner say".

I wonder what the next adventure will be!