Rose Bowl Ride, June 29th
June 29th 1993, that is.
You know, June 29th thirty years ago, did not fall on a Thursday, but rather on a Tuesday; either way it didn't matter, I was at the Rose Bowl both nights that week, as I was most weeks. Crashes have always been a possibility during the Tuesday / Thursday Bowl ride, but the one that took place that night was one of the worst that I can recall. The group came flying down the Rosemont Avenue side of the loop and were approaching the sweeping turn onto Seco in the fourth lap. Nothing unusual in that, but this time there was a car in middle of the lane. The first riders in the bunch, and I was fortunate to be one of those, swept around the right side of the car free and clear. Then, just as the mass of the bunch behind began to split around the left side of the car, the driver decided to turn left. The result was mayhem (and I don't mean the funny guy in the insurance commercial); not to make light of a much earlier historic disaster but, oh, the humanity! Brakes were squealing, the reek of burning rubber rose in the already smoggy air, there was cursing and yelling. Riders hit the ground and flew through the air. One guy hit the front of the car and went up and over the hood, landing and tumbling well down the road.
I don't know how long it took to sort everything out, but not much stops the Bowl Ride, not even such a scene of mass carnage. After that I put everything into staying at the front, or off the front. At one point, when the bunch eased up, I looked back to find that I had a gap and to notice that Scott King was coming up fast. Scott must have thought I was serious about making a move to get away, though that idea was the furthest thing from my mind. I was far more interested in soft-pedaling and waiting for the group catch up, but felt some obligation to keep our little break moving. I might have been riding really well that night, but by then my legs were fried. I wasn't loosing steam, the steam had already dissipated. I don't think Scott King appreciated my lack of support, but what are you going to do. Wait for the bunch and sit in, of course.
The last time I did the Bowl Ride was ten years ago - April 2013. I don't really hold out much hope of ever getting back to the kind of fitness needed to do so much as hang on to the back, but I tell you, I watched that Nexflix show about the 2022 Tour de France over the past week, and it came as close as anything to convincing me to get out and hammer. Sometimes that's all we need, a little inspiration. Who knows... never say never.
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