top ten rides of 2006

Because in the end, the FGBC is all about the ride.

The last installment of a series of 2006 top-10 retrospectives.

I realize, of course, that these views are subject to debate and potentially vigorous disagreement. There have been rumblings of dissatisfaction with aspects of the other lists. And so it seems appropriate to note that the opinions expressed here and in the previous 2 lists do not necessarily represent the official views of the FGBC. If you feel the need to register your dissatisfaction with the judgments reflected below, click here.

Too many good rides to choose from, really. But these were the best of the best.

10) Hotter than Hell ride. July 30. Morden lake trail. Short, but less than entirely sweet on account of it being the hottest day of the year. Post-ride beverages and bike films at Jonny S's place. And a discussion about whether we might be able to pull off a winter trip to Moab.

9) Race against darkness. June 23. Epinette Creek trail. Just me and Jonny G. Almost the longest day of the year, but not quite long enough. 30 light-less minutes in the dark to finish it up. And then a battle-royale with the racoons at the campsite.

8) Nick's Inn ride. August 1. Token road ride. Only a few hours after the 7th best ride of the year. Pigeon Lake and back, with a breakfast pit-stop.

7) Extra pickles, hold the e coli please. July 31. Post-ultimate ride to VJ's. A summer tradition.

6) The inaugural foot-down competition. Sept. 2. Ingolf. Jonny S kicks ass. Unger conquers the unconquerable climb--in front of a crowd of speechless Gord's guys.

5) The unveiling. Oct. 28. Trans-Canada trail, south. The official riding debut of the new FGBC jersey, not to mention Juan Eppstein's long anticipated new wheels.

4) Penner's Intervention. Dec. 9. Ass. Forest. It takes more than a toothless cog to hold a good man down.

3) Morden, Tinker Creek, Trans-Canada trail. June 18. Hal and myself, accompanied by Paddy, Tomek, Steve, and Cam. Cam broke his thumb about a kilometre in, the earth opened up and swallowed Paddy, then burped and spit him up so he could keep going, and the skies opened up with a viscious downpour to end it all off. It didn't rain frogs, but it was epic nonetheless.

2) Moab. Dec. 28-30. Three days of pure riding bliss. Does it get much better than this? Barely.

1) The 2006 Spring Ride. June 9-11. Ingolf, Falcon Lake, and various points in between. A mammoth 3-day excursion, really. More like a festival, complete with slow race, bunny hop and skid competitions. Easily the best spring ride so far. 17 brave soldiers. The best accomodations ever. Reaping the rewards of "the book" (i.e., F&H buy-back plan). Scotch club. And on and on. Any ride that gets a movie made to commemorate it has to be #1.

OTT: The Pixies, Where is My Mind?