Bicycling for all ages!

Today was a rest day well earned for Michael and crew and it sounds like the name of the game was "Consume as Many Calories as Possible." They slept in, then when they woke up went out to eat at a coffee shop for breakfast. Immediately after the coffee shop they went to some markets to buy food for the trip and the potluck this afternoon. Michael said he got falafel mix. Then they made the food and went to the picnic where they ate some more, hung out, and experimented with slacklining, which I can attest is much harder than it might seem. When I talked to him they were thinking about heading out for a second dinner. I'm sure they need the food, so great! Plus, we get the second round of pictures and I believe Michael has commented on them and the first round so we can have an idea of what is going on in each. Hooray!

At Michael's request I'm going to write about what I did this afternoon: watch a local bike race. The picture above is from the races. A mere kilometre away from my summer home on the Colorado State University campus are the "Races at the Oval" and it was great fun to go watch.

The best part about the races is that they are totally family friendly. There are races for all ages and abilities, both men and women (or girls and boys depending on ages here): under 6, 7-12, 13-17, 18+ and then 50+. In the last two categories there are also the distinctions of "citizen" and "licensed" racers. I went to see a friend of mine and co-intern for the summer from Colorado College race (he was in the 18+ men, licensed). It was great to see the older groups race around the oval and to oogle their very beautiful (and pricey) bicycles. It was cool, but a rather big crash in the last citizen men's race required an ambulance transport and reminded me that bicycles are not just fun, games, and racing. Fortunately the races require helmets (not all races do) as a safety example for the kids who are racing.

However, I think the best part was the kids races. The above is a picture of the start of the under six race. The kids races were great because these kids still had training wheels. I mean their bicycles barely come up to my knee and they're racing them! Older kids had everything from mountain bicycles, to BMX bikes, to road bikes. And they all just had a jolly good time. It wasn't super competitive and everyone cheered as they came into the finish. And I mean cheered the whole time until the very last kid completed his last lap. Talk about community support!

I think the best part of these races, which I want to emphasize and I think Michael would agree with, is that bicycling can be for everyone and not just racing. This race series includes things like "messenger" bicycle races for the career messenger bicyclists who use very different bicycles than a typical road bike. There were also trackstand contests to see who could balance longest on the bike (I know Michael is very proud of his trackstanding ability, of which I have none). Families who don't compete ride their bicycles there to watch and play on the grass and have picnics and cheer on others. And on the other end of the spectrum, there were definitely families where the mom, dad, and kids would be racing in their respective categories. Loads o'fun and very family oriented. If you want to see a few more fun pictures check here. I also saw a photographer from the local paper, so perhaps there will be some in there tomorrow too!