Monday Mashup

I don't usually do the old mashup post. This blog is more cyber diary than media platform but its a 500 zillion degrees out and I am pretty sure I have heat stroke so why not. Its better than just sleeping on the couch while the cat stares at me. And speaking of cats. I love cats. I think Stevil is pretty rad. One of the things I like most about Stevil is his love of his cat. If you aren't familiar with Stevil's cat its required some medical care from time to time. Well it looks like Buddy needs an echocardiogram. I can't even imagine what the street value on that test would be. And while Stevil is pretty much the king of the interwebs he is not rolling in the Benjamins if you get my drift. Stevil is a true artist and one of us. If you love cats and the culture of cycling go to All Hail the Black Market and buy a tshirt or water bottle. Stevil designs some really cool stuff. You will be the envy of all and you will know you helped out Buddy get better.

Which leads me to my next missive. I have been meaning to post this little ditty for a while. My good friend James Scott relocated to Colorado. It seems all the good ones are heading out of dodge lately. James is such a great guy. Super chill and always up for some crazy ass adventure on the bike. He has been a fixture at the Ronde de Rosey from day one. He is so chill you may not know how much he has put into the #NECX. Blue Hills Cycling Club has put on a bunch of great bike races over the years. Road, CX and mountain. We owe them a lot. When Pete MacLeod told me James was leaving and that he wanted to surprise James with a secret 'Hell of the South' ride I was all over it. Pete and I scouted out a really fun mixed terrain route. Then everyone somehow kept it a secret!

My summers are often controlled or semi-controlled chaos. Other than my high paying job as Minister of Mayhem of the CBL my primary job is manny. Ok stay at home parent. Its a fun job but can be sort of crazy. I knew I couldn't take the whole day off and join in with all the BHCC shenanigans but had hoped to intercept them at Cutler as they rolled through with James and ride with them for as long as I could. I got a text from Pete saying they were running a tad late. That was ok I had the route so I rolled out from Cutler and headed to the BHCC pain train. It was hilarious. I would go a few blocks in West Roxbury then text Pete. Then check my Garmin. Then roll. This went on for a while until I saw a huge group of riders emerging from Turtle Pond. I did a U-Turn and hopped in with them. It is so cool meeting another cycling club. We tend to isolate ourselves a bit and only ride with our friends and teammates. I love meeting new riders and sharing a club ride. I get to see how they operate. A club is like a living Borg hive mind. It has a pulse and a vibe. I could tell right away I was going to enjoy riding with this crew.

We somehow didn't die riding down the VFW parkway. Still unclear how we survived that. I got to catch up with James and chat with Pete a bit. I also saw my good friend Pat Flaherty who is the manager of the new Needham Landry's. Pat and I go way back. This was his first ride since breaking his leg last winter. Dude is a one man house of style and it was a blast to ride with him. We had a spirited ride through Cutler. At the Dedham side we had what was I think flat number 4 for the group. They were running out of tubes and daylight. When we popped back out on South Street we had another flat. Pete and I talked real quick and agreed we needed to start cutting out some woods and just beeline it towards Dover and Adam's Farm. We rolled into the parking lot at Caryl and may have scared Deitch a bit. Too funny. At Caryl we stopped in a mulch pit and Pete unveiled a beer stash to rehydrate. It was great drinking a last cold beer with James and the BHCC. I led them through Noanet and then said my goodbyes and peeled off before I turned into a pumpkin.

Thanks Pete for letting me join in on these shenanigans. It really was one of the highlights of a very rad summer. All the best to James. I know he is going to love CO. Hopefully we will shred some gnar together in the near future.