23 Drafters battled the southerly wind, which curiously did not carry warmth. Squeak took precautions with her polar jacket. “I may be over dressed?”, she said, sheepishly. The wind blew in two newbies, bringing the roster to 202 Drafters!!!! The wind apparently also blew Lost Boy off course. There was a brief sighting near Dane, before he got lost again.

Big Girl Shaq brought a friend who can really play ball. Barkley has been officially drafted. Expect big things from this not so very big newbie.

The A Team was well represented. Octane was on time, Booker J stayed the course, and the Myrland crowd was in full force with Air Bourne, von Diesel and Supe.

Vilks promised to lead out below 400W and shared his secret fuel with all of the Drafters: caramel and jalapeño popcorn. Sounds awful but actually is quite tasty. And effective.

The choice: get better or stay the same. Two “senior” drafters took that challenge (even before eating caramel and jalapeño popcorn). Dang. Smokin’. Need a boost? See opportunity below.

Newbie Supe was feeling strong and happy to take some pulls on on the way out. Into the head wind home, he realized Superman had lost his cape in the wind. With Keez and Vilks trading pulls, he marveled, “They are frickin’ Energizer bunnies.” Caramel and jalapeño popcorn on tap for next week.

Flying Burrito and Speedy set their own records for most food comments per mile. Typical teenage boy – he noticed the size of Keez’s burrito and headed straight to Lupe’s.

WEEKEND HIGHLIGHTS:

Congrats to all the Drafters who got dusty at the Dairy Roubaix. Spigot conquered the formidable 111 miles of Driftless gravel. Tornadoes in the Viroqua area on Friday night caused Cujo, Tank and Herbie to do their own version of the Dairy Roubaix, while Grit and Vilks slept in. Separately.

Z and BrickO explored the Monterey Aquarium and played bikes at the Sea Otter Classic. It is a pretty cool experience to start and finish on a race track (for cars, not bikes).

Looking to get stronger on the bike but not into caramel and jalapeño popcorn? Check out this Virtual Strength Training Program. There is a crew of Drafters who have been training with Corey at Digman Fitness over the past two years and will attest to his methods and results.

Looking go go GREEN? The Hincapie Drafter store is open through April 26th midnight. Road options include Axis club cut or Velocity race cut. Shorts and bibs come in two inseam lengths. The Endurance Bibs have a side pocket for your cigarettes and gels. Long sleeve jerseys include light weight, great for spring and fall, and polar, for you Drift Draft fat bikers. Vests and polar jackets (Squeak wore hers last night, so clearly not only for winter). You pay direct, and shipping is direct to you (signature required as package coming from Columbia). ETA 5 weeks.

PLEASE NOTE DEPARTURE SCHEDULE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE SEASON:

Full strength B team departs 4:45PM.

Full strength A team departs 5PM.

Short Pour departs 5PM. Please abide, Dudes. We’ve tried two departure times for the short pour in past years, and it has been met with confusion and folks getting mixed into the wrong distance. 5PM ONLY for short pour. Thanks.

Full strength route just over 30 miles, short pour 25 miles.

RidewithGPS Link: Drafters | Backdoor Riley

RidewithGPS Link: Drafters | Backdoor Riley Short Pour

Looking for the PDF map? You are welcome to print one from the link above.

Draft responsibly,

BrickO

The threat of storms kept numbers low. Those dirty dozen trusting of the radar were rewarded with a different kind of wet. It’s not the heat, it’s the stupidity. Shaq, fully acclimated from her recent trip to Patagonia, was sporting her signature mismatched Drafter kit. It is hard to say if this is a fashion statement or indifference. Love her either way.

On the topic of matching kits…. still hoping to have the fabulous 2026 design available through the Hincapie Drafter store in the next day or two. Once the link is live, you will have two weeks to place an order, which is delivered directly to you and requires a signature (unless you give permission on the FedEx website). Thanks to Skipper for his labor of love.

Welcome back, BOOKER J. It’s been 13 months since your last draft. It is so good to have you in da’ house.

Wait… is that a Drafter pulling in after 5PM???

Theme song for the week “Turn the Page” by THE Bob Seger.

On a long and lonesome highway, west of Middleton
You can listen to Vilk’s engine moanin’ out his one note song
You can think about the climbi’ or the beer you drank the night before
But your thoughts will soon be wanderin’ the way they always do
When you’re ridin’ twenty nine miles and there’s nothin’ more to do
And you don’t feel much like climbin’, you just wish the trip was through

Here I am
On the road again
There I am
On the front
Here I go
Playin’ star again
There I go
Turn the page (or pedal)

The Silver Bullet is Bob Seger’s band and the speed of the paceline down Schneider Rd. Somebody needs to check the fuel mixture in Vilks’ tank. He’s defying the principles of aging. Gratefully, Keez had just come off of Rough Road 100 and was jonesing for a bit more chill pace. She reeled him back in as the rest of us pretended not to be gasping for air. There’s a good chance Booker J took an alternative route home after the silver bullet down Schneider. Octane circled back to be sure no drafter was left behind. Gracias. It is unclear if this was penance for his tardy sin or just good guy behavior. Either way, we love him.

There were good reasons, beyond the threat of rain, for a smaller crowd. A herd of of Drafters were out west. There was a Footer sighting in Montana, and Slim and Skipper were testing their mettle in Utah.

The route for next week is 30 miles, the upper limit before add a short pour. Departure times: B team at 4:45, A team 5PM.

CANINE ALERT: a few weeks back, the farm at the end of 100 mile road had a puppy in training. My hope is that the dog will be better trained or contained or both. If you are fearful of dogs (no reason to believe it was going to take my leg off, but I wasn’t waiting around to find out), don’t be the slowest ridder. Or, take a RIGHT onto Hahn Rd as you leave Dane (Hyslop turns into DM- Hahn is before the pond and climb) and follow the rest of the map.

RidewithGPS Link: Drafters | 100 Mile to Easy Street

Draft responsibly,

BrickO