So several of us Messiah Cyclists participated in Ride Solar this last Saturday. Ian, Sam, Julie and I all got rides thanks to the Collaboratory and some very generous Professors! Thanks for making this possible. Julie and Sam both rode the 30-mile course while Ian and I took the 63-mile route. All was going well and we were both enjoying the scenery very much until my front wheel's hub started to squeak. I had had it overhauled recently at my LBS, but apparently something wasn't right as the friction and noise increased until we were forced to stop at mile 35. While we were waiting for Ian's parents to come rescue us, we watched an Amish farmer mowing a field of hay with his team of horses. It was really interesting to see the clash of more traditional Amish culture with some threads of modern culture. For example, a buggy went by with a bunch of grocery bags from Wal-Mart. When the farmer who was mowing the hay finished, he came over and said hi to Ian and me. When we explained that we'd had a mechanical but had a ride coming, I'm sure he was chuckling inside: "All that fancy equipment and it still doesn't work." A huge thank you to everyone who donated to this ride, even though I was unable to finish!
