Jacquie Phelan's Weblog

Big fun next week:

Halloween Critical Mass

Leo Land‘s  Halloween extravaganza

And a Hall of Fame weekend in Davis, the bicycle town of Calif, schmoozing with the beaucycle people. Or is it the bicyful people?  Some guy named Levi Leipheimer’ll be there to speak, but  BMX pioneer Cheri Elliott is being inducted, which is why I’m making the trip… surely we’ll see a few framebuilders, artists, and professors of bicycle history . I’m hoping Andrew RItchie won’t miss it…he’s the Brit that wrote all those great books (Major Taylor biographyy, etc).

And any of y’all  within range of U.C. Davis should mark yr calendars.

The muddy one on your wall…(aHEM)…NOT the 2009 one.

U.S.Bicycle HOF is not the Crested Butte MTB Hall!

USBHOF  grew out of the East Coast cycling establishment. These dedicated guys rented a space in a strip mall near  Somerville N.J. to keep a place mark for the sport

For sixty years or so, an annual crit  (Tour of Somerville) attracted crowds in the tens of thousands, prizes in excess of forty dollars, and naturally the best American riders came….pals VVA, Davis Phinney, and Glen Winkel raced there.  Glen learned bicycling ‘way too fast’ (code for: “you haven’t paid your dues in Category IV for a few years”)  and probably lacked polish.

Glen brought the pack down the year he raced Somerville. Or maybe he didn’t. Neophytes often get the blame in big crashes. I can’t remember if he was invited back.

I never dared go (wise choice).
Surely tisn’t easy patching together an American chapter of the  sport’s history.  The dark era , from the thirties to the seventies where all cyclists, esp. the racers, suffered in this cyclophobic culture (as compared to the French, Irish, Germans, Dutch, Swedes, Brits, Scots, need I go on?).

And you can BET funding was/is a challenge…hence the gala concept. Rub shoulders with the five or six inductees, feel connected, have fun.

Hope a couple of you make it. I know Peter Rich, who began Velosport Bicycle Shop in Berkeley, and practically singlehandedly detonated the West Coast Road Racing Golden Age, will be there. Pete:  it’s time for a new Goal: DON’T AGE :  On yer bikes! Say “new goal: don’t age” fast three times and you will understand my idea of wordplay.

RIght now,  fiber artist Pat Leo’s stitching a little polka dot number that will er…remind people of my spotty racing career.

King Of The Mountains jersey  (fat red polka dot on white ground) is ‘grand tradition’…for the men.

My polka dot tights were an indictment of my very legitimacy as a jock.

Pardon me for remaining sane!
Back to clothes, and  the eternal question: how to accessorize?

My beaded evening bag’s got a garbage gleanin’ sack inside.

But which sack should I wad up and put in?  The more traditional  Hefty black, with white polka dots, or  demure semi-opaque white, with black polka dots?

When everyone’s leaving,  I ‘ll  sweep through the banquet hall–inconspicuously , natch,  I’m the spirit of subtlety–  shoving all the unused butter in my conveniently provided plastic tupperware…as well as the half (or less) eaten roast beasts, desserts, cheeses, oh please let there be too much cheese from the California Dairy Council! My boast card collection (five different photographs)  will be depleted, and my little travel blank book packed with impressions.Maybe I’ll add  a blog about me in flagrante dactylo …

So…DO come…if you’re intrigued (stay home Otis if you’re repelled) .

The little card at upper left tells all…it’s two nights, by the way. Night one is free to all comers, at least the standing around being fabulous part’s gratis. I think you might have to purchase the refreshments…location: Bistro 33, downtown Davis, 6 pm.

God I NEVER use the word “refreshments”…. Also: I  NEVER EVER use the word “purchase”.. I like the efficiency of ‘bought’… Better yet, “found”, “swiped”, or “swapped”.

Cheerio.

Damn, another one of those W.I.N.U.

PS I noticed that some blogs get multiple millions of readers.

Any clue how to make this happen? Tell all..

~ by jacquiephelan on October 22, 2008.

Posted in Cycling, food, Jacquie Phelan, Night
Tags: "Bicycle culture", "Cheri Elliott", "Davis Phinney", "golden age of bicycles", "Pat ourselves on the back", "Peter Rich", "Polka dots", "U.C. Davis", "U.S. Bicycle Hall of Fame", 'bicycle gala', fashion, food, homophones