Ok you bikers! This is bike-to-work month! Dust off those bicycles and plan a route into the office!
We've been watching Tour de France videos. We're on 2001. I keep thinking that they'll get boring (lots of guys in spandex riding up impossibly steep hills) but so far they're proving to be quite entertaining. The videos, combined with my dad's long distance daily bike rides to work, have been motivational. I'm not promising that I'm going to be the next Mario Chipollini but I'll poke along on my bicycle and save a few gallons of gas in the process.
Tomorrow will be my third excursion into the office via the Santa Ana River bike path. I was initially discouraged due to an extremely hazardous stretch of intersection half a mile from my office; however, a coworker discovered an alternate route that only adds about ten minutes to the ride. Not too bad, considering the alternatives. So, in addition to the Waterstone Hiking Club and the Waterstone Skiing Club, I am pleased to introduce to you the WATERSTONE BIKING CLUB (membership: 2). We are currently accepting applications for membership; however, let me warn you that we're very selective in choosing new members. (read: We'll take anyone.)
For all you hard core bike riders out there, feast your eyes upon the Cascade Bicycle Club rankings page. 1000 teams (of 5 to 10 riders each) have signed up to see who can log the most miles in the month of May. My papa happens to be on the Sterna Paradisaea team (currently in 3rd place). Not too shabby, eh? Sterna paradisaea, by the way, is the scientific name for the arctic tern, the animal with the longest known 'commute' (24,000 miles, round-trip) (according to wikipedia). Click on photo to enlarge.
