Ride Report

[lucky...@gmail.com]

TW: Bridgestone content 

We do “Sac From The Dead X Shred to Ed's”. A ride report inspired by Leah’s Adventures in Wilding 

Caveat, I did this ride on my 1992 Bridgestone XO-1. It does have Rivendell Silver Shifters. I do own a Rivendell Atlantis and even thought it's a 26er, I left it home. I normally would not put a ride report on what is probably for many of you an event that was too disorganized, too chaotic, and contained too few Rivs. Nonetheless, I was regaling my RivSister Leah with tales of my imagined dirt-goofin' prowess, and she told me to write it down. I enjoy ride reports and bike pics, it’s the main reason I spend time on lists or forums. So here we are. 

A couple of weeks ago I turned fifty. That came with complicated feelings of...well...getting older. Because fifty is one of those age numbers that feels bigly different to reach. But also, I felt happy because my kids are also getting older and that's brought some really positive changes to our household. Including both kids really embracing bike riding! 

Let me start by saying that I know some of you here IRL, and you know me. We live in the same town and maybe you were on this ride! If so, hi. If we follow each other on social media than you already know that earlier this week I made the assertion that if you are an adult with young kids who has lately been thinking about how you'll never get to ride your bikes (or certain of them) again, and you should sell them, you should belay that thought! I spent what felt like *years* trying to get my kids into cycling with me and many a bike got sold for "gathering dust", but last year my older son discovered riding and now it's all he wants to do and talk about. Wow, if he is a mirror of me, I am pretty annoying. But I digress, he has found his legs and the courage to start working on bikes, and talking about being an engineer, and going outside, and volunteering, and touching grass. It's great! So, because he likes to ride and it's something we can do together, we went on a community ride last night: The "Sac From The Dead X Squid Shred to Ed's" (a collaboration of two rides). 

The bikes: I rode my purple 1992 XO-1. It's set up with a Nitto Hi Hi Bar and Panaracer Paselas in the 1.5 flavor. This is the second time I have taken this bike (my "road bike") in the dirt. My son rode his Velo Orange Piolet, AKA The Pig, which is monstrous and made even more so by the addition of Tumbleweed Persuader handlebars. On previous rides I've brought my Rivendell Atlantis and my (formerly) dirt dropped Hot Salad MTB. 

"Sac From The Dead" is billed as the "26^th of Every Month ATB Ride" and the idea is supposed to be that you show up on your old 26" wheeled bike and go wild. I've done a couple of these rides and they've varied from comfortable cruising all over town, to what felt like riding into a headwind along twenty miles of chunky railroad ballast. 

"Shred to Ed's" is both a model of BMX bike built by Sacramento locals Squid Bikes and the description of an activity which involved "spirited" riding to the eponymous Ed's Market, a local corner store with proximity to Sacramento's riverside cutty trails, training and proving grounds of these cool kids of tracklo and cyclocross. Someday I'm gonna ride one of those Squid Bikes...some day. 

Yesterday, the combination of the two rides resulted in a lot of chaotic choices disguised as opportunities to end up at the same place. Levies, both up and down! Semi-active construction sites under the freeway! Deer trails laden with both goat heads and broken glass! Surprise drops, whoops, alley oops, plain old oops! Blinded by the sun, blinded by the dust, don't lose that wheel in front of me because there ain't any sweeps today. But as the ride leaders said when we all met up to get started, or something to the extent of this, "Guys, it's a little gnarly and you might get incapacitated but we'll meet for hot dogs, so it's fine". Okay, no one said that, Leah summed up the ride I described with that and it was so funny and accurate I just made it so. 

You're wondering about the hot dogs. The 26'er ride had advertised the possibility of hot dogs at the end and implored you to "Bring Buns". Yes, there were in fact eighty hotdogs and a grill on one participant's vintage Schwinn Cimmaron (you know who you are), and yes, we ate them at the end. 

So, there was an easy ride and a hard ride. My son looked at me and said, "You're going on the easy ride? I'll see you at the end." And off he went on The Pig. The "easy ride" took off at a brisk pace and I scrambled to follow. Good news, my XO-1 is actually a fast bike (for me) and I could keep up. We jetted along the paved trail until we came to a dirt trail and off we went, up down all around. I was lost in minutes, in my own town, probably minutes from the exits/freeway/neighborhood. I had the experience of no time whatsoever to consider whether or not I could ride an obstacle, because there were people doing it in front of me, and people hard on my wheel behind me. Those Panaracers handled the loose scree admirably. We ended up under the freeway. I was sweaty and dusty. I fist bumped some other Bridgestone riders and drank water. We took off again. I never saw my son. I was worried, but mostly because he had my two cold Sierra Nevada Hop Splash Citruses in his Carradice bag. These are delicious. We rode on. I followed a guy with a bluetooth speaker dangling from his bars. The beat was perfect. I slid out in some gravel but didn't fall down. I felt young and badass. Having recently turned fifty, this was a great way to feel. Note: I have since seen a video with me in it and I do not, in fact, look badass.

Eventually we stopped under a tree. My son appeared and told me he had crashed hard and landed on his face. He was sporting a cool scrape and the beginnings of a shiner, maybe. Naturally there was also a root to fall on. Later he told me he had a not-insignificant bruise on his hip, to match his face. Reminds me, he needs a new helmet. The ride went on and he departed again with the fast group. Woo hoo!

After what felt like not very long, we arrived at Ed's Market. I secured my still-cold Hop Splash and chugged it. My kid got an ice cream because "I fell on my face". Beers and sodas were purchased, and we made our way to the riverside "beach", a dusty, dried grass filled cut-out in the shore where the grill was set up and the chicken franks smoking away. Not everyone brought buns but fingers and beer can tables and dirty knees were pressed into service, and hot dogs gobbled. A few folks jumped in the river. It was an idyllic, hot, Sacramento evening and a great time. 

Riding home with my son, sharing his dynamo headlight because I forgot one, was a great end to the evening. This year my son is going to try mountain bike racing on a teen league and it's just awesome that he's able to go out into our own community and ride bikes and work on skills in a low pressure environment full of nice folks who just want to also ride bikes. So that's my ride report. And I didn't even take any pictures (too busy trying not to crash). But someone else took a pic of my bike, so here it is. And here it is with someone else’s XO-2. And here’s my son on his Pig, but from a different day.

Thanks for reading this far, if you did!

Liz in Sacramento 

[Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!]

This ride report has made my whole entire night. Who is doing the fun rides, the interesting rides, the wilding rides, the rides that may break a hip - Friends, it is your RivSisters. 

We are out there on our purple bikes, challenging our physical limits, putting ourselves in harm’s way, riding with yahoos, sometimes also with our teenage sons, so we can come here and tell you a good story…and maybe eat hot dogs. We are nothing if not audacious. 

Liz, I am grinning from ear to ear. I love this story. I love your bravery. No way are you 50. Also, your son is adorable. And it is a crying shame we have not had the pleasure of more of your stories. Write them all! We are here for them!

Love,

Leah

[Doug H.]

Liz,

What a fun story! I enjoyed reading it and smiled and chuckled. Your writing is fantastic, not exaggerating. You and Leah have inspired me to search for these types of rides in my area. Keep the ride reports coming Sistas.

Doug

[ian m]

Sacto seems like such a cool bike town. I rode out there so many years ago for NAHBS and had a blast. Great write up!

On Tuesday, August 27, 2024 at 6:22:40 PM UTC-4 Lucky wrote:

[Jeff B]

Liz,

Your X0-1 was looking great out there! Certainly qualifies as back from the dead.

Thanks for summarizing our great ride, we certainly hope others can be inspired by it.

It's always special when we can collaborate with the Squid Bikes crew and crash their party.

In the winter months I ride my Atlantis because it has a dynamo. As you mentioned, lights are certainly needed once the libations are over, usually around 9pm!

During the summer I ride my 1st generation Stumpjumper, and just use a battery light.

Hope to see you out there next month!

Jeff, in Woodland

[Sarah Carlson]

Thank you for the ride report, it made me feel like I was there. I also have a teenager on a MTB team and likes to "shred," and lick sports gels and stick them to the top of the bike frame for races. I pointed out the amount of dirt on said gels and was told, "You've got to taste the trail mom!" That was how at 45 I went to my first women's MTB clinic. There is no write up because I promptly crashed into the bushes and collected a rainbow of bruises across my hips and thighs. These are not the rainbows Leah and I are into designing into our bikes.

Sacramento is not far and I am trying to decide if I want to run towards or away from one of these rides...

Sarah

[J J]

Fantastic report, Liz. Inspiring. Thank you!!

Jim

[Ted Durant]

On Tuesday, August 27, 2024 at 3:22:40 PM UTC-7 Lucky wrote:

The bikes: I rode my purple 1992 XO-1. 

Awesome ride, fabulous report. Grant commuted from Walnut Creek to Bridgestone HQ on an XO-1. His commute involved a lot of trail riding over the mountains that separate Walnut Creek from the Bay, every day, rain or shine. The XO-1 was conceived and built for it. Sounds like you took full advantage of it!

Ted Durant

Milwaukee, WI USA 

[Ben R]

this ride looks insanely fun!  so rad to see all the bridgestone love.

it makes me want to take my MB1, go grab Sarah, throw all of us and our stuff on amtrack and catch the next ride!!!

getting fomo hearing about you and jeff absolutely having a blast!

[Sarah Carlson]

I do think we should do a test run on Amtrak....

[R A]

I recently joined this group and am really liking the content here. Your ride report was a joy to read—it captured the chaos, fun, and sense of adventure that makes group rides so memorable. Reading about the Bridgestone XO-1 on a mixed-terrain event like this really makes me want to find one and add it to the stable, even though it’ll overlap with my others.

I love the description of the camaraderie, and the unexpected challenges on the ride. The mix of nostalgia and excitement in your story was spot on, thanks for sharing!