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 headway 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