UPDATE: There is not going to be an UPDATE
started the "race report" the morning after the day of the event
then that afternoon... I drove to Boston to drop my younger son off at school
after the drive up... the drive back... all memory of the day was erased
I am sure I could dredge up something
but for what
I think the images are enough for future memories
hope Heather is well represented... she kicked ass
it was a funny dynamic
as... at one point I wanted us to be a couple
Heather put me in the friend zone
I had taken my FREE GAZA posters off my wall as an effort not to offend this pro Israel person
did not want to "cock block" myself
those posters are back on the wall
not sure if Heather noticed them when she came over the morning of the race
then also...
I posted all the photos from the Couples Cat on Instagram... which dropped them into Facebook
later I amended things in Facebook to make it clear that the images are confusing
that we are playing the role of a couple
again... not trying to "cock block" myself
but... the images had the appearance of a happy couple on a "romantic" bike ride around the city
our poses give off the wrong impression
hope any and all potential suitors did not misunderstand that it was just a game for the day
and not really a couple
MESS LIFE NINE
Brian Clark aka Bigs has a tradition of throwing a major DC Messenger event each August around his birthday... this year would be no different... well... a little different
Brian would be throwing MESSLIFE Number Nine
but this year... with Brian and Lucia's engagement
this year's MessLife would be WEDD LIFE 9
in anticipation of the wedding this fall!
CONGRATULATIONS!
when I first heard of this couples cat
I scratched my head... "Couples Cat?"
I thought... who can I get to ride\race with?
who is anybody going to ride\race with?
it pleased me that there was buy in
it pleased me to hear that people would be racing with their actual couple
but me... I am not in a couple
who would I race with?
I knew I had to lock that up
reached out to a fit roadie friend -she had no desire to play in traffic
hit up a friend on Facebook who I had encountered commuting
knew she was fast and fit and very comfortable in traffic
she dug the idea... but had family plans that weekend
I made a few random reaches to cyclists outside the current messenger chic circle
I was coming up empty
gave it some thought
went ahead and asked my friend Heather to see if she wanted to partner up and race with me
there was question... there was hesitation...
she said yes... but that yes did not seem like a firm yes
the notion of it being a "Couples Cat" confused her
as we are not a couple
that is not the intention of our friendship
I tried to make it more clear... that people did not have to be a romantic couple
just a
MALE-WTF couple
WTF? Yes... Woman Trans Femme
our couple would qualify under those parameters
to make it more clear... I referenced that Bruce would be racing with Kate
Bruce is a recent widower... Bruce's wife Dolores passed away in the spring... love to Bruce
while Kate is a gay mother of two
so... clearly not a couple
but... they would be a couple on race day!
Racing as a Couple!
I felt like Bruce and Kate would be a couple to bet on!
Bruce and Kate would be a couple to beat!
I asked... Heather accepted
honestly... I had my doubts... I feared she might flake... I was braced to show up on prom night without a date... gave some thought to finding a back up or even a replacement as I was not sure
some of the electronic text style conversations between Heather and myself gave me the notion that she was not entirely onboard
as the event date approached
Heather's tone changed... she seemed to be more game... more on board... more excited about the Alleycat and the day itself
Heather and I had never ridden bicycles together... so I had no idea of what to expect of my Alleycat race partner
that gave me pause... patience is not my default setting
that said...
I know how to ride with people
I rode with my sons as they were small children on to the present road and mountain bike rides we do
I know how to ride with people
and
I was married-with the same woman for 20 years
4 years of dating and 16 of marriage
I know about compromise
we should do fine
it is one day
what is the worse that happens?
we fight and break up?
RACE REPORT - MessLife 9 aka WEDD LIFE NINE!
August 31st arrived with a mildly hot mildly humid day
not Bangkok hot
not Bangkok humid
yet still hot and humid
the weather report seemed to be stable for the race
with some threat of rain in the evening
it did not worry me
Heather drove to my house with her bicycle and we rode to the start location at Picnic Grove 29 in Rock Creek Park
the location that has become the Start\Finish spot for the last several Mess Life events hosted by Bigs
Heather was not early... not too late... showed up with ample time...
we got our gear together and got on our bikes
on the ride to the pavilion I was pleased by Heather's upbeat attitude and her riding intensity
Heather was excited to be riding a fun 70's Custom Road Bike that she turned into an Urban flat bar bike with cushioned saddle
while not considering herself to be competitive about some things
I think Heather was feeling a little excitement about racing an Alleycat!
Racing the Alleycat!
Sleazy G took some photos... the above shot is from after the Alleycat
Heather and I each with some post race fuel courtesy of Brian's father working the grill
THANKS POPS!
Burgers and Hot Dogs Hit the SPOT!
it was a good showing...
it pleased me to see all the couples
Dario brought his girlfriend...
Gabe brought his girlfriend...
Vik would be racing with Rebecca...
Andy would race with Annie...
and so on...
and so fourth
it was cute... a number of the couples were wearing matching outfits
Gabe and Clara had fun black and white stripe shirts
AZ and Annie had matching pink AZ DC t-shirts
it was all in the spirit of the event
Heather and I did not Match!
I regretted not dressing like one of the Beverly Hillbillies to match up with my riding partner
this does not have Elly May in her jeans and button down shirt... but it serves the purpose to say it is a compliment and shares an hilarious still shot from two characters from the show
but no...
Elle May did not have Jethro to ride with on this day
it was Elle May and Gwadzilla
there was good buy in
you can not have a good Alleycat without "buy in"
it was eventual... it was essentially ontime... maybe a few minutes late... but pretty close to what was expected and we all got a copy of a somewhat confusing manifest
my head spun when I saw the manifest
having never ridden with Heather I had no idea of her knowledge of the city
no idea of Heather's comfort with navigating to an unfamiliar location
with the manifest in hand... in two minutes I was done reviewing the manifest
done reviewing and ready to race
I like to get the manifest and start rolling
the notion of spending 30 minutes reviewing the manifest does not appeal to me
it seems unfair to the racers who are not phone dependent
there were only two spots on the manifest that I had some question about
1250 Maryland Avenue and Congress Street
yet... we had to wait...
and wait... and wait some more...
then it happened
we put our bikes in one area and lined up at another
instead of just running to our bikes
Brian had people do a human wheelbarrow race
and then
we were on our bikes and off to start the race
below are two more shots by Sleazy G
screen capture off his Instagram
check it out
Sleazy G on Instagram
city life and then also Greg's travel photos
these are some of his photos from yesterday's Alleycat!
thanks Greg... great shots as always... frames is a cute shot for sure!!!
I had created a quick list of my first 7 or so stops
SNAPPY'S would be first
for many people that was the logical first stop for many racers
at our bikes all sorts of cyclists took Piney Branch and left off in the same direction
at one point I suggested to Heather that we shortcut on foot
up the grass to Taylor Street
it was a good move
others made the same move
THEN IT HAPPENED...
early on Heather and I got separated
not even to the FIRST CHECKPOINT and we were already separated
I had to find her
Heather fell behind at a light and turned when she should have gone straight
I was able to find her... luckily... I could have called her... but I caught her
that was an immediate wake up call about the notion of riding with a partner
STAY TOGETHER!
we had to backtrack a few blocks
when we got to Snappy's others were just arriving... we could have been their first with our little grass hill shortcut
instead... we got there after the masses had already flowed through!
Andy Zalan Always Snaps Some Solid Shots
Andy Zalan on Instagram
the race unfolded with us intersecting with a few set of racers for the first few checkpoints
Dinn and Nick S were a Boy on Boy Team without matching outfits... not sure if they were in a different category or if they had an extra set of rules as they were not Male-WTF... or were they?
Andy and Annie in their matching Pink AZ DC t-shirts were arriving to checkpoints as we were departing
I knew that this corresponding race plans would change soon enough
too many choices for people to run the same race
and honestly
I was not sure how to split the shared checkpoints
it just seemed to be easier to ride most of the manifest together
my across and then over then loop back pattern seemed to make sense
I was just not sure how to send Heather off on her own
that was demanding more DISPATCHER SKILLS than I had in this moment
not knowing my rider's capabilities
I was not sure if I could send her someplace and then trust that we would be able to get to the next meeting spot with more time saved than us just doing the route together
so... for the most part we stuck together
it was a laugh
it was a giggle
it was a hoot
it was a holler
it was a scream
Heather and I had fun...
we rode quickly and safely through the city
seeing all sorts of fun spots
doing some fun and interesting things
DC IS A VIBRANT CITY!
WE WERE IN IT!
WE WERE DOING IT!
WE WERE WITNESSING SHIT ALL OVER THIS PLACE!
Heather was really vibing on the whole day
she was appreciating the checkpoints and the romantic theme of the day
not vibing on our couple situation
vibing on Brian and Lucia
and
the Alleycat locations and the significance to the couple
not having the manifest in front of me
it being several days since the race event
these are contributing factors to my not having more details of each and every check point
it is hard to recall the details of the day
the Police Memorial across the street from the National Building Museum was a fun spot
at this location we needed to use the directory and the map to find the name LOVELAND
with pencil and paper provided at the memorial
we had to make a rub off of the name
original - unique- and not exactly easy
it took a second to figure out
Heather had a good feel for the Alleycat agenda
she reviewed the manifest as we raced and made solid suggestions
she was in the ball park
later in the game I grew confident with her city skills and we split off to knock out some check points SOLO and then met up
Heather Killed It!
in fact... towards the finish we had 4 Checkpoints to hit before the finish
I split us off to go to a few places separately and then meet at the end point
then when separated
Heather called... I had spaced on that 4th Checkpoint that was a BOTH SELFIE
dang... good catch Heather
it involved some backtracking
especially for me since I had gone to V Street by the 9:30 Club and then up Georgia Ave to a house on Kenyon Street that was a messenger group house
Good Catch!
Heather made some valuable contributions!
More than just a pretty face!
Brian Clark aka Bigs on Instagram
we knocked out the final checkpoints
but the clock?
was there a cut off?
I recalled there being a cut off for Manned Checkpoints... but what about the finish
I had not recalled if there was a cut off for handing in manifests
4 Hours?
was that an estimate of ride time?
or
was that when we had to be back by?
we hammered up 11th Street
left at Kenyon... right by Wonderland
then onto Park in Columbia Heights
on into Mount Pleasant
right on 17th at Mount Pleasant Street
straight to the finish line
we arrived at the finish
the majority of the racers had finished
a few stragglers continued to roll in after us
we arrived at 6:23
which was within the actual 4 hour window of release
but... we wrote an earlier time for easy math at the start
how would this be scored?
immediately I got bum rushed with hazing and jokes about the finish time
as people know I can be strict
alas no... we were within the window
we felt good
it was a complete manifest
we felt it was a perfect manifest
but no... oh no... scoring our manifest would tell differently
at one of the Selfie Locations that I hit Solo... I was supposed to get photo with a HIPPO
I took a photo of the sign at the restaurant
PISS SHT FCK!
we did not have a perfect manifest... my error... my fault...
MINUS ONE!
lots of people would have a minus one... fewer perfect manifests than expected
in the end... we scored DFL
DEAD FCKING LAST
the worst of the best
last of the top finishers
or
something to that effect
not last of the day... it would be the last of the complete manifests
but there were far fewer complete manifests than expected
all in all... it was great day
it rained a little at the finish
the pavilion offered enough shelter
there was food and friends
and
a great Alleycat
lots of fun
Thanks Brian and Lucia
thanks for bringing us all together
thanks for giving us a summer highlight and a series of memories!
the timing was perfect...
the Alleycat finished up with awards and birthday cake and I was able to get home in time for dinner with my boys
Heather and I rode back to my house together
Heather proved that she is an independent woman by loading her bike in her car herself
which was fine... but really... I would like the help if someone offers to me... as I do not want to bang the bike or the car when loading things
Heather drove home... I went inside... showered... then went to downtown Silver Spring to get an Ethiopian feast with my two boys
we feasted on Ethiopian food
then on the walk back to the car we stopped by Safeway
which was convenient because we parked in the Safeway Parking lot
there we grabbed bananas and then all the fixings to make Banana Splits!
HELL YES!
we tried to gather and watch a Pixar Film.. Elements... Grant teased me and said I would cry at the end
as I cried when we watch one of the previous Pixar films
not this one... I feel it missed the mark
none of us were transfixed
each of us were distracted
with some time left on the film
I excused myself from the downstairs and went upstairs to finish my night
I should have stretched more
I should have eaten more bananas
in the morning when getting out of bed I felt some cramping
there was the intention of proof reading this
I had thought that I would review the photos from the day and slap the keyboard with a few more detail
but no
this is good
Bigs' Couples Cat was a SUCCESS!
Well Attended... Well Received...
good showing.... great racing...
wonderful party
the Alleycat Carried the Intended Spirit of the Day
well... for the most part
I do not have the brain space for that side bar drama
thanks Brian Clark for a great event
worked out well with the timing of life
the Alleycat was on August 31st
the following day I drove my younger son Grant to Boston University to start his Junior Year
back in DC now
it was a fast UP AND BACK to BOSTON
the Alleycat was so full with details that all is nearly forgotten
the week has started
rather than looking back
time to start looking forward
