I have literally nothing to complain about (which could make some people wonder why say anything at all I guess), other than the Penguins getting a win last night and having to wait until Saturday for another game. So instead of writing, let's do a picto-blog from BTD. Better late than never.
Here's an opening shot of the south-bound ride just as we were getting on. I think this was at about 5:15 that morning. We were later than the in-laws would have liked but plenty early for me.
Here's my pelaton passing Soldier Field. The best part of the ride was sprinting to get ahead then trying to get decent shots of everyone as they passed. Then you got to sprint to catch up again until the next picture. I realized early on that I sucked at timing how to take these pictures as people were moving, which is why this rapidly lost its novelty during the ride.
A panoramic from the way back. We were still early enough that down and back on the south-branch was pretty empty the entire time. The crowds picked back up by buckingham as we started the north-bound loop.
Eventually, I was just taking shots from the bike as I got separated from the group for a while. This one by Oak Street beach actually turned out okay. The rest of the ride was so incredibly bumpy though, that this didn't really happen again until the ride was over. Huge potholes, and in one asinine case, someone going the wrong direction in the north-bound lanes, made for some slightly less tranquil riding.
Our meeting point at the end of the ride. It was only about 8:30 by the time we were done, so the fountain was as good a place as any to meet up. Until someone wiped out on the gravel, when they tried to turn too sharply and forgot they were wearing clip-in shoes (not me). No pictures of that though.
Turns out 35 miles was about all the Frankenbike could handle. He/she/it performed admirably though, and the chain only came off once after bouncing off an absolutely horrendous pothole at the bottom of the downhill after crossing the river. Sitting at the fountain, I could imagine it sitting there, almost like a dog with its tongue hanging out. There are times when I have very fond feelings for Frankenbike, like when I'm zooming down belmont and manage to snake between a bus and someone trying to turn onto clark through cubs traffic (just like yesterday). BTD was one of those times, even though by the end of the ride I felt like it could fall apart out from under me like a cartoon, parts falling off left and right.
Riding with a camera was fun too, and I'm starting to think I should just carry one with me at all times. Earlier in the week, on my way back to Lincoln Park for our late softball game, I was cruising down lincoln while the "Public Enemies" Dillinger movie with Johnny Depp and Christian Bale was setting up. Each side of the street was lined with old fords and edsels, and all the stores by the Biograph had 30's-style awnings up. Pretty cool to see up close and not something I would have seen if I wasn't out riding. My ride might not always be the most interesting, but it has it's moments.
Current beer-scale: 2.2
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