In our last e-mail post, we offered a prediction of the 2011 NOB Ride. We are pleased to report that the actual experience was even better than the prediction! A group of focused and excited riders left the shop on time, Saturday, October 15 at 7 AM. Some riders were in short sleeves, some with light jackets. The 50 degree temperature provided those of us in short sleeves a motivation to work a bit harder to get warmed up, starting out at a fast pace to compensate for the inevitable slowing that would come later . . . when the hills appeared.

Super SAG person Lane (and SAG dog Sophie) collected the riders’ change of clothes at the shop, picked up lunch sandwiches and cookies at Subway, and managed to get ahead of us about 25 miles into the ride, for our first supported stop. As the group spread out less than a couple of miles during the entire ride, Lane was able to serve us all with hydration fluids, snacks, and great motivation along the way. The Natchez Trace was beautiful this time of year, with leaves just beginning to loose their summer green. Lunch at Rocky Springs was perfect, and everyone enjoyed visiting with the touring cyclists from Colorado that we had passed a few miles up the Trace. They had a big bus, but we had the awesome white Outback (WhiteOut) and Barbara’s truck! Thanks Lane, Sophie and Barbara!

With temperatures climbing to the low 80s, the wine, cheese and sausage reception was a great treat at the park after negotiating the 3000 feet of climbing, mostly in the last third of the sunny, 104 mile ride. As everyone arrived within minutes of each other, and almost an hour ahead of schedule, we relaxed a bit, showered, and took our time before heading to the restaurant. There were thousands of folks on the streets of Natchez gathered for the hot air balloon race, but we pulled in the Magnolia Grille parking lot and parked at the front door!

Our table by the window offered a great view of the river and the ballgames on the big screen. The bloodymarys and other drinks competed with the river, TV, and landing balloons for our attention. Many balloons were flying directly overhead and were landing within a few hundred feet of our table! The fellowship and food were great, and everyone agreed it was a fantastic day! The ride home was pleasant, with many deer sighted, and we arrived at the shop ahead of schedule.

The Natchez or Bust Ride is dependent on a schedule for many reasons. We appreciate the efforts of all riders and support vehicles in helping us to keep this ride an institution, and look forward to next year for another great NOB Ride! We hope you will consider joining us then! We plan to upload some pics of the event on our gallery.
Ride South . . . The Way to Ride!

BentLovers & Friends

This Saturday is our annual Natchez or Bust Ride! Aptly named, this is a tough ride down the Natchez Trace from the Ride South shop to the Natchez State Park. We have a dinner reservation at the Magnolia Grille at 4:15 PM, so the pace needs to be spirited to make the 104 miles, enjoy a wine & cheese reception, shower, load the bikes and drive to the dinner spot, overlooking the river! Lane will provide SAG with the Outback and bike trailer and Doug has offered to leave his truck at the park (he will be riding up from Natchez on Friday). I will drive Doug’s truck back as he has other plans on Saturday.

Please come by the shop this week to sign up as we have limited space. It is important that riders leave the shop on Saturday with the rest of the group. The logistics and worry are too much to allow riders to join us along the way! Remember to bring a small bag for your change of clothes to put in Lane’s car. We will return by 9:00 PM to the shop directly, so you can leave your vehicle here during the day. The shop will be closed all day Saturday. We will hold a brief 6:00 PM meeting on Friday to firm up transport plans.

On the other extreme, The Annual Ridgeland Christmas Parade will be Saturday, December 3! This three mile ride usually runs at a blistering 2 MPH . . . just right for fully decorated recumbent trikes from Ride South! Anyway, we have decided to spice it up this year with a little competition, in another way. Decorate your trike for a little friendly competition and win valuable prizes from the shop, and maybe get our group judged the best in show! Wouldn’t that be something! The Parade lineup is 12:45 PM at Holmes Community College. Be there early!

Ride South
The Way to Ride

The passing of Steve Jobs has left a black hole in the Innovation Universe. Not in our time, has there been a more consistent driving force in so many areas. Personally, and professionally, I have known no other platform other than Macintosh/Apple since the mid 80s. Participating in the ups and downs of Job’s innovation challenges has been a multitude of wonderful experiences, as we have used every product introduced, in our engineering business and now, in our bicycle and kayak business. At Ride South, we understand the difficulties of bringing innovation to the marketplace, which was only one aspect of his enormous contribution to the world. We salute you, Mr. Jobs, for setting the Innovation Bar at it’s highest point yet.

Jim

The Ride South NOB ride is planned for Saturday, October 15! We will leave from the shop at 7:00 AM and ride the 107 miles down the Natchez Trace to the State Park, just outside of Natchez. After a shower and bike loading, we will drive into town to the Magnolia Grille for dinner overlooking the Mississippi River. A nice, leisurely drive back up the Trace, gets us back to the shop by 9:00 PM.

Lane plans to pull the trailer which can accommodate 10 bikes. We will need other SAG (support and gear) vehicles to transport folks to the restaurant and back to the shop. Some folks like to stay overnight and enjoy the annual Hot Air Balloon Glow festivities in Natchez. Let us know if you plan to stay. The timing for the ride works best if riders can maintain 15 mph average speed, with minimal stops. The ride is moderately hilly, especially toward the end. We will have a light lunch provided at Rocky Springs and snack support along the way.

Please let us know if you are interested in the NOB ride, or can help SAG. Riders should bring their change of clothes in a small bag to be loaded in the SAG vehicle Saturday morning. We will determine the cost of the ride and publish other info as soon as we get a head count. This has been a fun ride for many years! We hope you will plan to join us!

Please note that the Ride South shop will be closed for the day, Saturday, October 15.

BentLovers & Friends

Here are a few things happening this weekend:

Rise & Shine Bread Ride at 7:30 AM Saturday: We will finish at Pelahatchie Landing on the southeast end of the causeway to send off our kayakers participating in the Gator Bait Regatta Kayak Race! Yes, we will have bread at the shop, too!

Gator Bait Reservoir Regatta: Race times are 9:30 and 10:00 AM. Here is a contact: David Moore, [email protected] We understand there will be food and refreshments for the spectators!

Paris-Brest-Paris Randonneuring Brevet: OK, it starts this weekend and Doug Morgan is heading that way! Best of luck to Doug! Here is a link: http://www.rusa.org/pbp.html

Thanks for all the notes and visits concerning my participation in Roll over America. Your concern is very much appreciated!

Jim

A leap of faith was required to join the Europeans on their Roll Over America mission. Actually rolling over, the second day, was not in the plans. My accident on I-84 while crossing a rumble strip, caused too many wounds to quickly overcome, both for the rider and the velomobile. After a week of riding through the beautiful mountains, we hitched a ride home with family, in route from Wyoming to Alabama.
Our mission was to learn about velomobiles and their role in personal transportation. We did learn from the organized Dutch, independent Germans, fun-loving Danes, smart Brits and all the rest, that velomobiles are a viable car alternative, and should be considered for the fit and adventurous. Mingling with high speed interstate traffic or agile city bikes on trails and sidewalks are not their best suits. Sagging presents some challenges, and maintenance is a bit more complicated. However, the visibility, protection and green aspects of velomobiling seem to outweigh the difficulties and may justify the cost when you factor in the fun!
At this writing, the ROAM mission continues for many. We hope the challenges offered in the remainder of the journey can be overcome by our friends, and they too will have many good memories. We were reminded what a great country we have and what wonderful opportunities we Americans have to make it even better. Would we go again? You bet!

Yesterday we left the first campground in Montana. A Dutch rider remarked about the beautiful country, then we saw an American flag and a Montana flag in front of a home beside the road. “We love Montana!” he exclaimed. Must have been the 10 mile downhill. The countryside was beautiful. We were just “liking” Montana after spending the afternoon climbing McDonald Pass.

ROAM Rolling Over (in) America

The Roll Over AMerica tour began with a great media event and send-off by the mayor of Portland at the city fountain. The crowds gathered, and questioned the riders about the upcoming adventure and our strange machines. TV, radio and newspaper interviews were given and off we went on the first leg of an epic journey.

The second day turned out to be the most important day for this rider. Miles of dodging tire parts, wires and other debris on the shoulder of Interstate 84 resulted in about twenty flats for the day, including two for this rider. In spite of detesting the dangerous interstate riding, I was feeling pretty good about the bike and engine. I called the shop during a long climb and requested a gps to be shipped to me at one of the next stops. After lunch, in Arlington, Oregon, we were making good time, when everything changed.

During a medium decent, I saw a bridge approaching at the bottom of the hill. The heavy duty truck rumble strip separated the shoulder we were riding on from the traffic lane, and went all the way to the bridge, where the shoulder was discontinued. To cross the bridge would require crossing the rumble strip and entering the traffic. Four riders up ahead had managed it, and were beginning the next climb. Reducing speed by braking, I noticed that the traffic was clear and I angled across the strip. That’s when all hell broke loose. The rear end of the bike, jarred by the vibration of the truck rumble strip, floated to the left about 30 degrees causing the bike to suddenly be at that angle to the direction of travel, floating at 25 mph! When the bike returned to the roadway, the left front tire dug in and the bike, and rider, rolled over to the left.

Crashes happen quickly. The Mango first landed on the left side, then the top, then the right side and finally the top again. Somewhere in the roll the front hit the guard rail of I-84, right after my right elbow, forehead and both hands were pressed into the pavement by the velomobile landing on top of me. I then noticed the blood dripping and felt the heat of the abraisions. I was screwed.

Unclipping my feet from the pedals, I climbed out from under the machine and waved to the riders up ahead that I was ok, sorta. They had stopped due to a mechanical on someone’s bike and were too far ahead to notice me, I learned later. Riders behind me stopped and helped with first aid. Very inconvenient for everyone.

I sagged for a couple days and the wounds began to heal. I have ridden two and a half days since the roll over and a couple of the British riders have begun to quit calling me roll over Jim. Yesterday was a gorgeous ride through the mountains, and today, we finished the mountains and hit the flats, mostly, into Billings, MT. Overlooking the city was a great photo op we will share with you later. A huge storm hit as we pitched the tents and cooled it off a bit. Tomorrow is a long ride into Miles City, where we will spend two days. Will catch up then.

Jim

BentLovers & Friends

Over the years, we have tried to emulate the oak tree by continuing a slow growth process. A new branch of our business involves velomobiles, a car alternative for many folks on our planet. We have been riding and testing different velomobiles for almost a full year, and find many advantages and uses for these unique machines. We are continuing the testing process on a cross country tour that you can follow here www.rolloveramerica.eu.

Even though we will be gone for 4 weeks, the shop will remain open through most of August for your needs. We appreciate your patience during this time and hope that the knowledge and experience we gain from this adventure will help us continue that growth, so we can serve you better. We are also working on changes to our web site to help us help you better. Hopefully, those changes will appear soon. Here is a press release for ROAM

Jim