No Go on SIR 100K..=-(

No rando for this rig...=-(

I got to the ferry terminal at 4pm today. Made it through US Customs no problem. As it was closing in on 7pm we still hadn’t left dock. High winds and big waves don’t work so well for a small high speed ferry. The crew was getting weird [like they knew something they weren’t allowed to tell us] so I decided I should ask to leave the boat. I figured I just missed my chance when one senior member came in and said customs didn’t want anyone to leave the boat since we were already technically in the US. *sigh* I’m not a fighter and I knew it wasn’t the crew’s fault so I was prepared to return to my seat and wait. Luckily the same guy saw me come in with my bike and told me quietly that if I grabbed my bag and helmet he’d get me off, but I had to do it without letting people know what was happening since he couldn’t let them off. I pulled a mission impossible and casually acted like I was changing seats for one that would recline! As I was getting off three separate crew members came up to me to tell me they liked my bike…=-)

Back inside the terminal the rest of the crew were ordering pizza and getting ready for a long night. They figured the boat might not leave until midnight and were figuring out how to kill time. I am soooo glad I didn’t stay on the ferry any longer with no real food and no beer!

In the end I think my bike saved me from that potential 10hrs of ferry hell! If I hadn’t been on my bicycle they wouldn’t have had any reason to treat me special, but somehow the bicycle is the international symbol for nice guy who doesn’t mess with you and maybe you should help him out.

I’m sorry I won’t get to ride the SIR 100K, but I figured I needed to be up at 6am to get ready and eat before the 8am registration. Getting in to Seattle after midnight would have made that less than fun. Not to mention the hassle for my kind host John.

I did get a credit for another ferry trip so I’ll make my way to Seattle in May, perhaps with Sharon, for some bike riding, coffee drinking, beer imbibing and bike shop browsing.

2011 Brevet Schedule…

BC Rando Club Jersey...

Here is my tentative brevet schedule for 2011:

• 27 March – 100K Victoria Populaire
• 2 April – Victoria 200K
• 9 April – Tour of the Cowichan Valley 200K
• 23 April – Hills are Alive 300K
• 14 May – Highway to Hell 400K
• 25 June – Nanimo Populaire 100K
• 11 Sept – Fall Isle-Lander 200K

All these rides are on Vancouver Island with the BC Ranndoneurs.

If you are a hardcore randonneur you may be wondering where the rest of my list is? Well I’m weak and lazy so this is all there is! If things go well I may add a 600K next year, a 1000K the year after, a 1200k the year after that culminating in PBP 2015. Talk about a long range plan!

Ultimately my goal is to have fun on my bike. I’m not going to set speed or distance records in the rando world so I may as well just have a good time…=-)