Ten Thousand

Went to the inaugural running of Axletree's Ten Thousand down in Freeport. Grant and I got up early and took off on time, but missed an exit in Monroe and ended up getting there about five minutes before the start. Went to the pre-race before we took the bikes off the car and ended up starting a couple minutes behind he field.

Meh. So what? We were in it just for the ride anyway.

It rained on us pretty good starting maybe 20 minutes in, fogging glasses and covering us in slurry. Rode with a fat biker and leapfrogged with Kierstin and Dan, who would all ultimately do the short route.

This was the maiden voyage for the roll chart, and I was really glad I made it shed water. Speaking of maiden voyages, Grant had built up his new Soma Wolverine the week prior and put the finishing touches on the night before. There were a number of stops for adjustments.

The route ran north and west into the Driftless area, and some of the hills were just about steep enough where a person had to walk. The rain quit eventually and we swung back and forth between gravel and pavement; occasionally, in the middle of nowhere, the pavement would just start or end.

There was one checkpoint and one c-store, both with ample water. Good thing, because we got a couple peeks of sun and it warmed up and got good and humid. Grant and I mostly rolled and talked but also took occasional turns at dropping or lagging.

There was some very pretty scenery on route, and a B road that couldn't be beat. Came upon some good ol' boys parked near the end of the B, drinking and having a good ol' time with the laughing and the bullshitting. They asked whether we were the sweepers, and well, we said no but knew then that we were at the back of the pack for the long route.


The joke then became that we would welcome some rain to cool us off a bit. Nearing the finish, we passed Pearl City and I agreed to the rain, but only if it hit after we got back on the pavement. Within a few miles of the finish we got our wish and it poooouuuurrrred. Rolled into Krape park as the second to last group to find only Chad and a couple of others still there. The last group came in as we were changing into dry clothes in the parking lot.

Had a lousy meal at a hotel restaurant in downtown Freeport and drove home in a huge thunderstorm.

Great day, all in all.

Pictures are in the album.