International Harper Day will inconveniently fall on a Wednesday this year. I plan to have the ride on the weekend either Saturday, 31 August or Sunday 1 September. Monday 2 September is a (lesser) holiday in the US, Labor Day. I chose the weekend following my 61st birthday because, if I did, Tom Blackwood promised to renounce his US citizenship thus ensuring the continuity of the international status of the ride. Tom will buy citizenship in whatever country will offer it to him the cheapest…probably Canada or Zimbabwe. (Also, I have a friend coming in from Arizona that week who will ride a bike on the outing like a big sissy.)
We will ride the Iron Horse Trail (John Wayne Memorial Trail) from Hyak, Washington, to Rattlesnake Lake, as usual. This is a fun, easy, all downhill ride of 25 miles with a very cool tunnel the first 2.25 miles of the ride. We shuttle the unicycles for this ride.
If you are a non-US rider who can attend this event, please notify me as soon as possible so we can attempt to maintain Blackwood’s tenuous, if not questionable, citizenship.
The date is set. Saturday 31 August it is. There are eleven riders signed up so far but it looks like Blackwood’s citizenship is still at risk. My go-to alien, Bruce Dawson, is going to be out of town. Maybe GILD or Into-the-Blue will take his place.
With the date now set, this is the final announcement on the SARS page.
International Harper Day will inconveniently fall on a Wednesday this year. I plan to have the ride on Saturday, 31 August. I chose the weekend following my 61st birthday because, if I did, Tom Blackwood promised to renounce his US citizenship thus ensuring the continuity of the international status of the ride. Tom will buy citizenship in whatever country will offer it to him the cheapest…probably Canada or Zimbabwe. (Also, I have a friend coming in from Arizona that week who will ride a bike on the outing like a big sissy.)
We will ride the Iron Horse Trail from Hyak to Rattlesnake Lake which is about a 22 mile ride down a 2% railroad grade. You only have to pedal to maintain balance it’s so easy. There is a 2.3 mile long, pitch-black, dark tunnel right at the beginning of the ride. If you haven’t gone on this ride before you must realize that you will need a unicycle and a VERY bright light. My hair is getting so white that I may be able to illuminate most of the tunnel, but not all of it.
We will meet at the lot just south of the Issaquah Park and Ride between 9:00 and 9:30 AM Saturday 31 August. To get to the lot, take exit 15 on I-90 to SR-900 (Renton Road) southbound. Go about four blocks and turn left onto Newport Way. Then, turn right into the driveway to the parking lot. Lots of free parking and it’s easy to find people. Then we consolidate unicycles, riders, and vehicles and drive to Rattlesnake Lake to drop off a shuttle car. Finally, we haul all of the riders and cycles to the Hyak trail head of the Iron Horse Trail and we RIDE, BABY, RIDE back to Rattlesnake Lake.
If you are a non-US rider who can attend this event, please notify me as soon as possible so we can attempt to maintain Blackwood’s tenuous, if not questionable, citizenship.
Perhaps we can lure Anne-Sophie down now that she is back from her Big Adventure. She’s already proven her ability to ride with a major pack, so we’ll have her carry the espresso machine and beer keg.
Two weeks to go. I have a Ford Explorer which has a pretty big cargo area. I think I’m going to strap a bike to the top. Anyone bringing other vehicles big enough to transport unicycles?
I thought you had that enormous GMC Suburban. I don’t think Kevin is going to make it with his monster truck this year so we’ll need something else to haul all of those unis to the top. I’ll buy Washington State Parks Discover Passes for whoever needs them. I’ll just have to know how many to buy ahead of time.
Greg, I’m able to take time off work so I’ll be there. I also have access to a full size truck. I’ll be a road menace and drive to work on the night before.
I plan to be there, but sometimes life take unexpected turns. My small Toyota pickup can haul a few, plus I already have a Discover pass but it’s nice for you to offer.
