Tree Farm Extravaganza

It all happened on a Sunday, the 15th of January, 2012, to be precise, and Team Hot Dog was ready to conquer the cold. I rolled into the parking lot around 12:30. Hot Dog was there a minute later. After a handshake and a nice to see you, Jeff Cooper, Jeff Cooper, Jeff Cooper, came flying through the parking lot on his baby blue Bianchi, "The Cuss". Yep he's out of retirement and had been there since sunrise training for the Dirty Kanza 200. Soon after James, Steve, G-Mudd, and the man of the hour and new father, Jrad, rolled on in.







After we donned our base layers, toe warmers and shoe covers we hit the trail. I started off slow. That is purely from my perspective mind you. I was bringing up the rear and having trouble negotiating the tire ruts. Things were a little sketchy. That and my hands and feet lost their blood supply. It was a struggle, but eventually I caught up to the rest of the pack.



No sooner did I catch up, I began having equipment problems. No, not my legs. I'm refering to the combination of my face mask and my sun glasses. My face was a hot mess and my glasses were fogging up something fierce. I had to stop after nearly going ass-over-apple-cart into the creek while crossing a bridge and remove the mask. It's a good thing no ladies were present, they wouldn't have been able to contain themselves. Yep, I'm gorgeous.



Again I catch up to the pack. G-Mudd gives me a tip on how to resolve the foggy glasses issue. It involves dish soap. I'll definitly give it a whirl next time out. Thanks Gary! We venture forth and make our way to the crater. I'm feeling good at this point. Blood has returned to my hands and feet and it's game on! Well, before that game on, I decided to take some pictures of the rest of the crew taking return trips to the crater. Steve approved.









Now it's game on! Things were functioning fairly well. I'm warm, more confident in the snow, and handling the ruts fairly well. We continue our ride at a pretty decent pace for the 15th of January. Yep, Team Hot Dog is in full affect. Before you know it, we're at the pump track. There was a crowd gathered around watching us dominate. Actually, it was just one guy in a blue snow suit. But he was definitly a fan. Steve signed his water bottle and G-Mudd busted out some crazy hip hop dance moves.







After we said goodbye to our super fan, the last two miles of the ride were uneventful. Except for my epic crash...which John has on film...I might have said bad words...We all survived and made it back to the parking lot in one piece. After breaking down our cold gear and loading up our bikes we made our way to the Bayside Grill for some beer. Except for Cooper. He went out for another loop. He's unstopable!

Anyway, it was an awesome day and a great ride. For those that missed out. See you next time.