Well, that was pretty sweet.
The 2021 Cookie Ride is in the books and we think this thing might be around awhile.
With a solid 50+ riders on hand at the crack of 7am, the sun was only just above West Grand Traverse Bay. With a slew of American flags lightly ruffled by the rising breeze and the soft whisper of the waves, who wouldn’t want to be on a bike in Traverse City on a day like this?
The strong scent of Gibby’s and grease was on the wind just as the various groups took off. With a prolonged neutral section provided by the new start location, it was a great chance for friends new and old to chat and catch-up. That’s something that matters even more these days, with group rides still small and the rigorous demands of life perhaps a bit more challenging than The Before Times.
While everyone knows the 32 mile route has more fun, the 64 milers took off at a stern pace. The average speed was comfortably north of 20 miles an hour after cresting Kasson and, thanks to some very Belgian road-closing early on the climb from a few riders we’ll leave nameless, most of the riders were still together for the Bow descent and the dash up Inspiration. After a brief split there, two groups came together to make up the day’s front bunch, while Ian Plamondon, Wes Sovis, and a strong crew created a functional and spirited second group on the road.
All the names you’d probably expect were up front, including both Owenseses, Kickbush, and a strong Drew Cummins.
But the real champion of the day was Bridget Powers. With a little help from her mom, Colleen, Bridget crafted dozens of delicious cookies for the riders. She also helped Linda from Great Lakes Humane Society set up some freebies for the riders and kept the Lady of the Hour, Rain, some company. Rain was recently rescued from Louisiana and has puppies; basically, she’s the perfect dog and there is a second generation of perfect dogs available at Great Lakes Humane Society RIGHT NOW! (You should also take a second to donate, too)
A big thanks for our main cookie supplier, Brew, for getting 50 cookies together during one of their busiest times of the year. We know that Terri put a lot of love into those, and we appreciate it!
We really want to thank everyone who joined us this morning and we hope you had some fun and kicked off a holiday weekend with a smile.
A note that the Next Big Thing is Patrick’s Heavy Ride on July 31 benefitting Norte. Be about it! And a note that if you can’t go all the way to the Bridge or stay overnight, we’ve got a “40 miles out and 40 miles back” crew, too
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