Snap of the commute

I was in such a rando mood riding to work this morning that I stopped at a convenience store for a receipt. Sorry, private rando humor.

I thought about submitting this photo to the Smart Commute Challenge photo contest, but no...

Top Ten Reasons to ride RUSA 200K events

• Learn where the fastest dogs live.


• Eat all you want while losing weight.


• They will cull every marginal component from your bike.


• You can schmooze with convenience store society.


• You'll stop riding all non-credit miles.


• They provide a healthy way to hallucinate.


• You'll love the feel of chamois in the rain.


• They promote colon health without Activia.


• The next day, you can stand up all day at your job.


• They are a great way to prepare for really long rides.

And the best reason for riding 200K events:

• They provide time to compose stories for your blog.

200K meets 600K

Jayjay and I rode the Tar Heel 200K RUSA permanent today, in eastern North Carolina. About 30 miles of the route is common with today's NC Bike Club 600K RUSA brevet, and we crossed paths with eight of the 600K riders at a convenience store south of Stedman. We took photos and cheered them on their way. It was the highlight of our ride. (See photos and videos below.)

After the 600K riders departed, Jayjay and I had great fun analyzing who looked best, who looked dead, who had the silliest rig, etc. In return, I hope we provided them with some good laughs at our expense too.

Weather was mixed and unsettled today. First, we rode through about 90 minutes of 'heavy sprinkles' in the morning. I started singing like Julie Andrews, which was NOT good:

    Raindrops on Randos with
    Smart Woolen mittens...

Luckily I don't remember the rest. It got sunny and warm for the rest of our ride in the afternoon. It resumed raining again in Benson just as we packed up the bikes and drove home. I suspect the 600K riders hit a bit more rain on their route. (My house got bad storms and even lost power for 37 minutes due to a nearby lightning strike.)

I was in a camera mood today. Here are lots of photos and videos.

Best of luck to the Super Randos on the 600K...

PS: Beware of dog named Roscoe, north of Dunn: map

Hoopcycling 101

Hula Hooping while Bicycling

I was changing a flat tire a while back, when I aimlessly began spinning the old tire like a hula hoop. A light bulb went off in my head. Hooping and cycling were made for each other.

So far, I can do basic hand-hooping, with a single hoop, in the daylight, with my eyes open. I've got some video clips demonstrating different moves. In one, I bike in a circle in one direction around a cul-de-sac, spin the hoop overhead in the other direction, and swap hands in the hoop each time it goes around. More advanced moves will take some practice.

I may finish the video someday, but until then, please enjoy the still photos. (Click on the little photos to embiggen.)

PS: Just beware this is dangerous. You can kill yourself doing this. I don't recommend it to anyone.

Update May 13: I was honored that this story was featured today on the front page of hooping.org, the world premier hooping website, as their 'photo of the day'. I archived a screenshot here. They archived a snippet here.