Sunday Morning RIDE - Talk of tweed, and a more philosophical bent

Harry sent me the ride announcement for tomorrow's morning RIDE, and this time around he discusses the upcoming Tweed Ride, Carlos Casteneda, and the possibility of an even more antiquated ride:

I THINK, THEREFORE IT MIGHT BE

There is a vein of philosophical thought which holds that if you think it, it becomes. This view was particularly popular during the late sixties and early seventies, as were various substances which were at that time, or were subsequently declared to be, illicit. According to some folks, ingestion of those substances could make apparent aspects of reality not ordinarily perceived by most of us (see “Carlos Castaneda”), one of said aspects being that thought and occurrence are in fact one and the same.

Personally, I don’t take a position on this hypothesis. I can say that, when ingesting those substances back in the day, it seemed quite reasonable, only to give way to the feeling of “What was I thinking?” as the effect of the substances ebbed. Some of my friends solved that dilemma by ingesting substances continuously. But I digress.

For those of you who do hold this truth to be self-evident, let me assure you that my musings in a recent announcement regarding the phenomenon of the Tweed Ride are in no way responsible for ATX’s own manifestation of that phenomenon, which has been announced for Sunday, 10 January of the upcoming new year. For those of you who have breathlessly awaited the arrival of this blessed event, I must modestly shun your worshipful accolades. For those who bemoan the event as yet another milestone in the de-evolution of The Authentic Cycling Culture, I say, don’t shoot the messenger. There’s a certain inevitability in this event, a sort of domino effect. San Francisco, New York and DC all have their tweed rides. Portland announces a tweed ride. The wave eventually rolls even as far as our own little town. Well, why not? I’m thinking that we can hold our own when it comes to cycle-chic.

But I’m a guy who believes that if a little is good, a whole lot is better, and way too much is just right, a philosophy which I adopted during those distant days of substance ingestion. Why mindlessly ape the antics of those other venues when we could do something completely original? Why not take it back 100 years further? Men could wear waistcoats and beaver hats. (That’s beaver, like the animal. Two hundred years ago, people made hats out of them. Seriously.) Women could wear ankle-length dresses with bustles, and we could all ride dandy horses ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laufmaschine ), thereby beating those big-city dandies at their own game. This might start a whole new trend. It could create a whole new reverse wave that might be felt as far away as (dare we hope?) Copenhagen.

But for those of us who can’t be in Copenhagen, we’ll have to settle for ATX. Join us on our regular weekly foray. We’ll launch from Clown Dog at 10:20 on Sunday morning. Route TBD. Bring some ideas.

Those of you who have ridden with us before know how we roll. For those who haven’t, please read the blah-blah below. It’s important. Really.

• Some of us are down with the fixed gear deal, but mostly we’re just about riding. Bring whatcha got and ride with us.

• Every cyclist is responsible for his or her own safety and well-being. We assume that everyone is familiar with basic rules of cycling safety and has enough hours in the saddle to feel comfortable with his or her ride. Use of helmets is optional (but highly recommended). Use of headphones, earbuds, Blue Tooth headsets or any other form of electronic distraction is discouraged. (It’s a SOCIAL ride, dammit!) All traffic laws and rules of right-of-way will be observed. Here’s the deal:

SAFETY FIRST!!!!!

If someone gets killed, it ruins the ride for everybody.

• This ride is 25-30 miles long through mostly urban and suburban areas. We do a convenience

store stop at about the halfway point for anyone who needs snacks or drinks.

• There is no SAG support on this ride. Bring a spare tube and something that will inflate it.

• The purpose of this ride is for everyone to have a good time and (we hope) to become better cyclists. We ride at a variable pace, according to the group on any given ride, and all skill levels are welcome. This is a 25-30 mile ride over typical Central Texas terrain. If this is consistent with your riding experience, or is perhaps slightly more challenging than what you’re accustomed to, you should have no problem going the distance.

You’re on your own when it comes to shopping for a dandy horse and a beaver hat, but I recommend Craigslist. I’ve never been disappointed yet.

It’s time to ride.

That's the word folks, Clown Dog at 10:20am tomorrow morning is the place and time. Ride whatever you've got, and wear that beaver hat.