Viciously Delightful

Nice little race last night. The circles turned out not to be so vicious after all. Or at least nobody went down in the sandy corners. Still, the pace was high and it kind of hurt. There was very nearly some puking. And yet we all went home with clean shoes. The group of eight quickly splintered. Mike, in his first ever FGBC appearance, went out hard and quickly settled into the lead with Chris. A bit further back, a group consisting of Darryl, Craig, Vic, and Brad worked together to keep the gap as close as possible. Apparently, their goal was not to get lapped. And they didn't. Dave L and Jonny M were further back, seemingly doing their own thing.

In the end, after a series of attacks and counter-attacks on the final lap, Chris took a narrow win over Mike at the crack in the road underneath the train tracks that served as the finish line. The middle group of four splintered further into a couple of pairs, with Craig beating Darryl for the final podium sport and Vic besting Brad for fifth place. Dave L and Jonny M strolled in a few minutes later.

Dave L managed to keep the spirits high, entertaining us with a tragic/comic story about the kids' stolen BMXs and his encounter with the thieves. Though he was not successful in securing the return of the bikes, he did get a chance to communicate his stance of disapproval toward their brazenly vicious actions. And so all was well in the end. Or so Dave maintained. While this evaluation of the outcome left a few scratching their heads, he made such a convincing case that this was indeed a happy outcome that it seemed wrong not to be happy ourselves. And so happy we were.






Good times at the clubhouse, post-race. With the Spring Ride done and our earnings in "The Book" cashed in, a new year was inaugurated and appropriately toasted. If my math is correct, which is a big if, our tally currently sits at around $6.40. There is work to be done. The night was not entirely blissful, however. There were a few minor issues of note. Some rather boisterous softball players were ensconced at our table, regaling themselves with tales of heroic feats performed on the diamond. And the sweet F&H music we love was replaced by country in the sound system. Our disapproval was registered and duly noted.

It was also noted that it has been a long time since we last paid a visit to VJs. Expect that to change in the near future. Running a few of last nights conversations together, perhaps this ought to be incorporated into a race of some sort. Anyone up for a Burger Cat? Oh, yes. I think we have a winner. Which leads me to wonder: if we had a race that required one to dine on the signature burger at five local burger joints, which ones would they be? VJs would be there, of course. And we'd foolish not to include an opportunity to enjoy a nip on the Esplanade Riel. Perhaps a Daly Burger too. Others? Some initial conversation also took place about potential events to be included in this year's Nordic Cross calendar. In particular, Opera Cross seems like a solid contender.

The long-rumoured bike racks are still non-existent.

OTT: Bob Drake, Weeds