The pop to end pops.

[Ken]

Windy, hilly and rustic best describes the populaire we rode Saturday
from Columbus. Some eleven of us signed in at the start outside the
scaffold covered 1891 court house and most of that number completed
the route. Although I did wonder at the end if Ranger and Abbey were
going to become the mythical ghost riders that would forever haunt
this route.

And another trail ride was notched, this time it was the Night Hawk
Trail Riders out of somewhere in the middle of nowhere – which
characterized much of this route once we traveled west of La Grange.
The wagons and horses and mustachioed weekend cowboys and cowgirls
were encircled in a muddy field preparing to crowd the narrow country
lanes and impede Spunky – she said. It was a colorful scene for this
21st century indeed.

We’ve ridden the roads between Columbus many times before, but it was
the route beyond La Grange that was untrodden, or unwheeled, territory
for some of us. The vaunted Country Club hill was to be shrugged at
but it was the endless rollers all the way back to Columbus, which,
together with a relentless wind, made this ride a trying chore. I was
not sorry to have it over with.

New friends were made, Adrian, Abby and Ranger, and it was a pleasure
to welcome Spunky back into the fold. Much food was consumed by two of
us at Weikels – I’m not mentioning any names but Adrian swallowed a
huge chocolate doughnut and Mark inhaled a very creamy looking slice
of cake thingy. I stuck to my new found dietary supplement, chocolate
milk. Yummy!

It was a long ride, longer than I thought it would or should be and I
was disappointed to find I spent nearly an hour off the bike during
the course of it. Apart from the flat, which can, and often does,
happen to any of us, it is clear that time management off the bike is
an important factor in completing these rides in an efficient manner
and time.

Finally, I have to pay tribute to Mark who climbed those pesky hills
as if he was ironing them flat as he went. When I grow up, I want to
climb the hills the way he does.

Ciao.

Ken.