Pine Loop de Loop

The inaugural Draft was a bit drafty.  Thanks to gale force winds out of the south-southwest, 14 Drafters felt like rockstars leaving the corral and heading north.  BrickO and Z Rex were sure to take turns pulling early (read: while tail winds were strong), leaving the Highway Men to do the dirty work on the way home.   Too Hip and Tick Tock definitely earned their cold draft at the Free House, pulling us through the wind tunnel.  These Highway Men did not miss a day commuting throughout the winter months (need I remind you of the snow fall and sub-zero temperatures in Feb?) and it showed in their quadriceps strength and mitochondrial density.  All I have to show for my "winter training", which consisted of a serious Netflix regime and sampling of dark and mysterious microbrews, is a few more adipocytes.  Time to taper, I think...The route was pretty straightforward, or so I thought. Tough Girl ignored the GPS coordinates and posted map, ending up in Waunakee.  What is that saying about the road less traveled (by someone wearing his wife's bike shorts- or is that a different literary work)?  When accused of getting lost, Tough Girl retorted, "I wasn't lost.  I live in Waunakee and knew exactly where I was. I just didn't know the bike route."Despite nothing but sunshine (and wind) in the forecast, we rode hard to escape the looming black rain clouds that appeared approximately 2 miles into the ride.  Tick Tock muttered under his breath as we rode into town, "We couldn't get out from under it the entire ride",  to which I jubilantly responded, "Yeah, but we never got wet".  Famous last words.  Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain.  It wasn't so much the volume of water that fell as it was the tenacity with which the drops struck (Z Rex counted 12, confirmed by the divots on Sandlot's helmet).Drone Master is currently running unopposed for "best dressed" Drafter.  He looked stunning in his green kit, but I'm talking about the post-ride wardrobe.  This guy is brilliant- not only does he cut the ride short by stopping at his house on the way into town, but he showers, shaves, puts on cologne and looks fresh as a daisy for dinner at the Free House.  Table for One, please.A few riders represented the Draft from east to west in the south.  From Sanibel (Tobacco City Boy and Billy Bob) to Arizona (Nurse Sully), green was seen (or making a scene, probably both).  From far reaching corners of the county, we were represented earlier in the day (some folks just can't wait to get in their miles) from Fitchburg (CM and Vilks) to Middleton (Captain Joe). I appreciate flying the colors even when you can't join us.  Mysteriously absent was Bomber.  His teammate, Slinger, confessed that Bomber might need some alone time after pulling him (literally, with a rope) mid-Adventure race due to a pedal mechanical failure on Saturday.  Rumor has it that Bomber also rode the Railroad Roubaix route on Sunday (in the rain, as you may recall), just because Saturday didn't kill him.         The route for next week, April 15th, will head west to  Disenchanted Valley to test your quadriceps strength and mitochondrial density.  We won't attempt the full Spring Valley loop quite yet as we need to leave something hillacious to look forward to when the days grow warmer and longer.  For now, we will take the short cut on Pine Rd (~27miles).  There are a few nasty pot holes on Enchanted Valley before the Autumn Pond subdivision.  WATCH THE GRAVEL at the bottom of Schuman Rd and Spring Valley.  KP is more pot hole than asphalt. Imagine yourself as Peter Sagan bunny hopping his way to victory on the cobbles of Paris-Roubiax.  Other than that, it is delightful.PDF map to download:  Pine LoopGarmin link Pine LoopOne more thought to share: as we drafter out Pheasant Branch Road on Monday, I was struck by the number of beer cans (I counted over a dozen can of Fosters- who drinks that??) and countless other pieces of garbage.  It makes me sad, as I do think we owe our planet a bit more respect.  So, I'm thinking maybe we can give back a little to the earth that allows us the opportunity to ride around on it.  I have put in an application for "Adopt-A-Highway" on behalf of the Drafters, specially requesting that stretch of road.  Should we be selected, the commitment is 3 clean-ups between April and November.  I'm happy for any and all help, should we be selected.  Beer will be provided for all who participate.  And it won't be Fosters or Duchess.Draft responsibly,BrickO