| A Review of 2007 | |
Thanks to great volunteers and friendly cyclists, the Ride Around Puget Sound was once again a great success in 2007. We had about 300 participants start the day with the Tacoma Wheelmen on Aug. 25. Thirty had planned to do the ride in one day, and 24 made it back to Tacoma by nightfall. All proceeds went to support the Bicycle Alliance of Washington's statewide advocacy and education. Here's how the weekend went. Cyclists caught the first ferry to Vashon Island, then some raced and others meandered across the island to the second ferry to Southworth. The reststop in Manchester offered homemade cookies by members of West Sound Cycling Club, yogurt and blueberries, and "race rolls" with fruit and nuts from the Great Harvest Bread Company in Lake Forest Park to fuel riders up a few more hills. There were plenty of sag vehicles with ham radios and a few motorcycles tracking cyclists all the way to Shelton but first came the lunch stop at the Allyn Waterfront Park. The Backwoods Windjammers community band played during the peak, encouraging toe-tapping and smiles. The Pizza Factory in Belfair supplied the tasty calzones and BIKES Club of Snohomish County organized the chaos with help from our friends at the Allyn Community Association. At Shelton High School, one-day riders enjoyed fresh-made fruit smoothies before they raced on to Olympia. Two-dayers found root beer floats, massages, and cold showers to enjoy at the Shelton High School. (Sorry about the showers folks. We'll make sure we mention HOT showers in the contract this year). The Shelton Dance Team boosters provided a great dinner for those who stayed (and a brief demonstration of their dance routines) while Mason Transit offered a shuttle to town for those who strayed. After dinner a great sextet from Olympia played outside the cafeteria for those who could stay up that late. At 8:45 p.m., people in the gym were wondering when the lights would go out. We had mechanical support both Saturday evening and Sunday morning. The Dance Team fueled many riders with breakfast in the morning, though a healthy number stopped by at the Blue Heron Bakery outside Olympia as well. Everyone still seemed to have room for the yogurt parfaits and fresh bagels hosted by Capitol Bicycling Club in Olympia after a wonderful trail detour around construction. A few miles on the Chehalis Western Trail and riders made it to the final reststop on the Yelm Highway. Did we save the best for last? Some said so. Seattle Bike Club volunteers served warm Indian wraps, fresh fruit, and yummy fruit bars. The shade and grass made for lots of lounging before the final miles. Back at Tacoma Community College cow bells rang for returning riders and the Clover Park Kiwanis helped serve up ice cream and cookies to the triumphant finishers. Luggage waited neatly for its owners. The showers were warm. The sense of accomplishment was genuine and well-earned. Wear those great RAPSody socks proudly this coming year, and tell a friend what a great ride it is. We like that RAPSody is sort of a boutique ride in its small size, great food, and outstanding support, but we'd also like a few hundred more people to make all our hard work worth it — and raise more money for the Bicycle Alliance. | |
Rapsody 2007 Stats
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