J.R.A.

No nothing catastrophic happened to my bike last night but there was a true sighting. Made my way just a little south for an easy spin on the mountain bike. I haven't been to the 7th line trails in a while but heard the notorious raspberry bushes were not so overgrown that instant skin shredding would happen. Timed it well that that fun crew from C.T.S bike club rolled in at the same time. Pacing would be pretty good for what I needed to accomplish.

After being bugged about not bringing baggies yet again, we were off for a tour. It was some stop and go riding but when moving it was perfect A.R. pace while yet having fun. Secondary purpose was to get the body used to the heat even more. No wind in the trees.

There is an old saying when it comes to unusual things. You don't need to be the fastest but as long as you're not the slowest. In my case being that skinny frail racer type riding with a bunch of chill weekend warriors who are known for having chicken wings and beers as a recovery meal also left me low on the choice of potentially eaten. Yes, back to those raspberry bushes. As we bermed through one section things came to an abrupt halt. Look at the big fuzzy rock!! Wait it's moving. Now it's running away.

Yes, it was a black bear, yes he/she was eating the berries, yes it did what they normally do when they meet up with human. No there were no cyclists eaten, mauled, dry humped, hugged or robbed of gel packs. Why, because we didn't chase the bear as he walked away. Why, because cyclists are a little smarter than those other that? Maybe.

Ride continued along with the same numbers as we started with, the only blood that was drawn was from random raspberry thorns. An hour and a half of fun, they went off for wings and beer. I came home and made a salad. Eat, sleep, repeat.