Summertime...and the Living is Easy: The SIR Summer 200k Brevet

"Summertime...and the living is easy."

I saw the rope hanging from the tree over this crick, and Gershwin's tune came to mind in the heat of the day. This was a summertime brevet, and the fish were jumpin' and the crops (if not cotton) were high. I've always been struck by the irony of the high cotton. Easier to pick, but still picking the master's cotton. According to Wiki, it can also mean that the price is higher. This 200k Brevet (7/24/10) sponsored by the Seattle International Randonneurs was indeed a hot one.

These two sisters had just left Seattle headed for California. It's great to come across touring cyclists. First, it changes my perspective from "I'm really on a long ride, probably longer than that cyclist." to "Wow, imagine what they are doing!". Second, it feeds my dreams.

Hay, in ordered bails in neat fields.

A hay disorder.

Fox, or young Coyote? Tough summer for some. Another rider said Fox after I suggested Coyote. Looking again now, I think her Fox guess is right.

Old Growth Forest Wayside Mini-Park. A cooling oasis.

A mini-nap by my companion-for-a-while, Chris. Unfortunately, Chris didn't finish.

Chris told me he'd been working 90-hour weeks for a while prior to this brevet. This confirms my Physical Therapist's theory that our ability to perform depends much more on the amount of rest we get in the weeks leading up to an athletic event than a little sleep loss the night before. I use this to comfort me as I toss and turn with excitement the night before. I am happy to report that Chris came bgack the next weekend and slew this DNF demon by completing the same route as a Permanent, then finished the challenging Three Volcanoes 300k the following week, and to top it off completed RSVP the week after that!! Something tells me I caught the only time Chris was on his back in four consecutive weekends!!

A young Great Blue Heron also didn't make it across the road. I came upon this beautiful bird shortly after it was hit. Unlike a Great Snowy Owl I came across one cold winter night in Oregon that felt remarkably "light as a feather" for its size, this Heron felt about as heavy as I imagined by looking at it.

Oregon Trail era cabin.

Yep, that's coon gut stretched out there. For tennis fans, have you played with rackets strung with "Catgut"? Wiki tells us catgut isn't made from cats' guts. Any guesses whose guts do make fine racket strings?

My new tree-hugging Pereira.

I ended up hooking up with another posse, and together we formed a group lanterne rouge.

At the finish, we were greeted by Brevet Organizer Josh. Last time you saw him here he was helping to fix my sunglasses on an early season permanent. Thanks for your brevet organizing, Josh! It was a great ride!!

Keep it heavy with summertime heat,

CurioRando