Possums And “Q” - LSR 200K “Honey Do” Permanent

So Beth and I finally got to go visit Val and Robin in the Dallas area along with the Lone Star Randonneurs last month. This is the first time I have ever experienced a club that was founded as a “Rando” and not like RMCC which was started previous to brevets and permanents. But back to the riding, possums and “Q”. The Sunday ride had taken us NE of Dallas to ride the 200K “Honey Do” permanent. There were great smells along the ride which came from smokers doing the BBQ thing. Hard to pass up when I’m hungry but with the amount of possum flesh on the road and rumors of BBQ possum I wasn’t going to stop. I even saw a fence with stretched hides of some critters that I assumed to be possum. The tails are a dead giveaway.

Above ... Robin and Beth

Val taking a break, decked out in his Durango club bike cap:

Val had always said that their rides were not that easy with the wind and rollers. And I said “Yeah right” every time he mentioned it. Initially it was fun to push all the way back up the rollers but then they never seemed to end. So miles into the ride with a stiff wind in your face these little hills begin to get the best of you and halfway up it’s “oh crap” as you reach for the shifter before you crest the hill. And Val said this was one of their flatter rides.

Robin riding with mascot ...

Roads are great but the chip seal is done with rocks. But there are roads everywhere that are quiet and paved which results in many various rides all over. And the strangest are the friendly and courteous motorists. Riders can ride double and make little effort to hide along the shoulder. What a concept as this makes for a very social ride and fosters camaraderie that I have never seen before. I would put Texas as one of the best places to ride along with Northern California. But Texans don’t think twice about letting Rover out for a run along side your bike. They will even name rides for the dogs.

See you on the bike!

-Brent