Arrrrrr Pirates!

Pirated the Chilly Hilly with 20 or so others. Had no conscious in that decision. I've done the CH twice before and got nothing in return. No free chilly, no free snacks, nothing but a stupid number and sticker for my helmet that people insist on wearing 6 months after the stupid ride. Rode my singlespeed with slicks and made it up the hills just fine, but overall the gear was waaaaaaaay too low (60" anyone?) to get anywhere efficiently. Freds that I passed going up hill got much delight in passing me on the straightaways or, god forbid, downhill. About half of our group did the ride on fixies and finished a good hour before everyone else. What a bunch of animals. They even ate all the food before the rest of us arrived. Arrrrrr!

I did meet a few noteworthy Freds. One guy shouted out, "Hey Fat Chance!" as I rode uphill. He caught up with me and was riding a full suspension mtb with knobbies. Turns out that he owns two Yo Eddies, but can't ride them anymore because a snowboarder collided with him 4 years ago and broke one of his vertebrae. So now he's relegated to full suspension and sitting upright. But he finds joy in the riding he can do and has also filled his life with a new wife and baby girl. It was so fun to ride with him. I think he enjoyed his trip down memory lane and heckling me as he shifted uphills.

The next day was even better when Aaron's picture appeared in the Seattle PI as the one representation of the CH ride. So not only was a Pirate representing the ride, but he's riding a tall bike and not wearing a helmet. Those Kaskaders had their lycra in a wad over that one. Go Aaron...let's all just ride bikes.