Bicycle Ride Across Georgia Time Again

Well, it is about 1 week away and we will be leaving for Bicycle Ride Across Georgia 2008. I have prepared much better this year than last with over 1,000 miles ridden so far and another 100 or more still to ride this coming weekend plus a couple of 20's during the week prior. Last year I might have had 500 miles in before BRAG started.

The picture below proves that I have been bicycling for about 57 years although this picture is of yours truly when I was about 8. By then, the bicycle was at least 2 years old and I had already had a major crash into the middle of Texas State Highway 11 in "downtown" Newsome, TX.

What is more amazing, none of us had helmets and I do not remember any kid bashing in his/her head from a wreck although we sure bashed legs and such. Amazing how far bicycles have come and now, some are going retro. The one you see was a 24 inch Western Auto Western Flyer which proably cost $25 or perhaps less. Here is a link for everything you ever wanted to know about Western Auto. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Auto

Anyway, I will be riding BRAG on my Giant OCR2 which is a bit faster and definitely has more hill climbing capability than the Western Flyer although in east Texas, the hills were not that bad in most of area I rode in. We did have a couple of cow trails that went straight up but we usually arranged our rides (just like today) to go down the steep ones whenever possible.

BRAG will leave Emory at Oxford on Sunday, June 8 and end up at St. Simons Island on June 14th. Intermediate stops are Griffin, Macon, Dublin, Hazlehurst, and Jesup. It is not too late to register and join the throngs who will be on the road that week. I, once again, get to sleep next to a SAG driver and this makes my life on the road much easier.