The Drafter Grand Tour continues. 22 drafters set forth to Riley Tavern.

Skipper and Goose flew in hot in just after the photo, and Pepe joined the fleet from his home base, and Hammer Time started just as the group finished, sporting her new white Trek Madone. The bride to be choose her steed wisely.

The trickiest part of the ride was navigating through the chaotic intersection at the epicenter of Middleton Hills, where apparently blinkers, full stops and any other semblance of order imposted by traffic laws was largely ignored by drivers. But not the by the Drafters, who had two feet down and thumbs up at the red light.

Traffic quieted down and the drafters heated up once through the round-about on Blackhawk Rd. Skipper captured this gorgeous photo of the peloton climbing Blackhawk and Twin Valley.

The pecking order was established fairly quickly as Vilks and the Iowegian Birds of Prey, Goose and Hawkeye took flight. BrickO, von Diesel and Air Bourne managed to stay in formation until Riley, and then fell back into a more sustainable pace.

As is tradition, beers and smart talk commenced after the Draft. Shameless plug for Super Tuesday: for those who missed the rooftop concert last Thur, you can catch Queenie this weekend at the one and only WaunaFest!

Slim took a different route, MTBing through Cross Plains and Blackhawk trail systems to find his way to the backyard.

The Grand Tour was even more grand with a surprise drop in by Billy Boy, who actually intended to draft but was thwarted by a flat tire. There’s something a bit more Grand about Billy Boy this month…. congratulations to Sir Billy Boy the 6th!

Grandma Pit Stop and Grandpa Billy Boy were just ga ga over their grandkiddos.

Another surprise! A fly by visit from Gopher and a junior Drafter.

WEEKEND HIGHLIGHTS: Congrats to Keez and Hawkeye on their Blue Mound Classic Cap Brew Ride event on Sunday.

Coming soon…. Calling All Femme Drafters! The 4th annual Tour de Dane Femmes will take place during the month of August. The format will be slightly different this year. There will be 8 stages with 4 classifications of awards: GC for most miles ridden during the tour, polka dot points for 2 climbing stages, green points for 2 sprint/TT stages and pink points for most spirited rider. Riders must complete ALL stages to be eligible for awards. Be sure to enlist on BrickO’s Drafters Strava Group in order to participate. You must be 18 years or older (for beer delivery purposes) and identify as Femme. No other restrictions apply.

On tap for Monday July 28: Full strength Latham Loop 30 miles and Northbound short pour 21 mile routes. Departure time 4:45. This worked well last week! The full strength self selected B team will roll out first, followed by A team, and then the short pour!

RidewithGPS link Drafters | Northbound Short Pour

RidewithGPS link Drafters | Latham Loop

Draft responsbily,

BrickO