The weather was great for Mardi Gras this year. So Monday I went over to the LBS and picked up about ten pounds of bike locks, came home, and got six bikes ready for a night ride through town to see a couple of parades. The ride to the parade was, well, interesting. With four rather inexperienced cyclists in tow, it was slow going, but at least nobody crashed. We were again at our friend's parents' place on St. Charles Avenue for this one. The parades themselves were really good. I think these are really some of the best floats of all. Later that night, as we rode back along St. Charles Avenue, plastic beads crunching under our wheels, I was already calculating how much time I'd have to ride the next morning. It wouldn't be much.
There had been a flurry of emails about the
Mardi Gras day ride, and the consensus was for a 7 am start. Since we were planning on leaving for the parades at 9:30, that meant I'd have to turn around a little early. There was a pretty big group up on the levee for this ride, and I made it all the way out to the parish line before I had to turn back. On the plus side, the weather was warmer and the forecast couldn't have been better. So after getting home and taking a quick shower, we rolled out the bikes again for the ride down St. Charles Avenue. This is always a fun ride because there are lots of bike riders out on Mardi Gras. Since traffic is clogged up all over town, the bicycle is the best, and least stressful, way to get around.
We arrived at St. Charles and 2nd Street right on schedule, and within half an hour the lead vehicles for the Rex parade. I knew Rex would stop half a block away for a traditional toast, so I grabbed the three nieces so they could get this rather special glimpse of the king and some of the people who make Rex happen. Sure enough, the float and horses stopped and someone climbed up onto the float to hand the King a big silver goblet. There was a nice little proclamation, and then the parade resumed. We watched the whole parade right at the front of the crowd, pressed up against the floats and bands, and when the last float passed we headed upstairs for a drink.
The plan was to ride down to the French Quarter after Rex. The parade itself is followed by a zillion "truck floats" that we would miss. Shortly after the trucks started coming by, we went back downstairs to unlock the bikes and head downtown. As we were standing there we heard a loud "pop, pop, pop" that
sounded like gunfire, but of course it was hard to be sure it wasn't fireworks or something. Well, it was in fact gunfire that had erupted right about where we had been standing during Rex. Seven people were hit, mostly by stray bullets. People came running toward us on 2nd Street, some in a panic. The ambulance arrived within minutes and I went over to check on one of the victims who was in front of our building. She had a relatively minor bullet wound to her arm. A couple of others had more serious injuries, but they were on the other side of the street (and parade) so I didn't see them. Two suspects were caught almost immediately (there are police everywhere on Mardi Gras). One of the worthless crackheads was wearing an electronic tracking bracelet for violating probation for a narcotics conviction.
So anyway, the party must go on, and once the excitement died down we rode down to the French Quarter where I wandered around Bourbon and Royal Streets alone while the rest of the crew hung around the far more boring area around Decatur St. The crowds were really good and although I can't really explain how or why, I just love being in the middle of it all. A couple more beers and I would have been dancing in the street at St. Ann and Bourbon myself. Alas, I had to lead the trip back home, so we left the fun around 4 pm, stopping for an early dinner on Magazine Street, and finally arriving back home right at dusk. I don't guess I can count the 12 miles we rode as training miles since our average speed was probably around 10 mph, but it was still way more enjoyable than the automotive alternative would have been. I took
a bunch of photos.
Wednesday it was back to normal with a nice steady group ride on the levee. Since Lent started today, I think I will take a shot at giving up caffeinated coffee for a while. We'll see how it goes. Meanwhile, the LAMBRA racing season officially started last Sunday with a couple of small races up in Monroe. Next up is the infamous Rouge-Roubaix road race (I use the term "road" loosely), unless by some miracle I decide to try out the track bike at our ridiculously early track championships next weekend (the velodrome is closing in March for renovations and will be out of commission for some undetermined length of time over the summer).
The weather was great for Mardi Gras this year. So Monday I went over to the LBS and picked up about ten pounds of bike locks, came home, and got six bikes ready for a night ride through town to see a couple of parades. The ride to the parade was, well, interesting. With four rather inexperienced cyclists in tow, it was slow going, but at least nobody crashed. We were again at our friend's parents' place on St. Charles Avenue for this one. The parades themselves were really good. I think these are really some of the best floats of all. Later that night, as we rode back along St. Charles Avenue, plastic beads crunching under our wheels, I was already calculating how much time I'd have to ride the next morning. It wouldn't be much.
There had been a flurry of emails about the Mardi Gras day ride, and the consensus was for a 7 am start. Since we were planning on leaving for the parades at 9:30, that meant I'd have to turn around a little early. There was a pretty big group up on the levee for this ride, and I made it all the way out to the parish line before I had to turn back. On the plus side, the weather was warmer and the forecast couldn't have been better. So after getting home and taking a quick shower, we rolled out the bikes again for the ride down St. Charles Avenue. This is always a fun ride because there are lots of bike riders out on Mardi Gras. Since traffic is clogged up all over town, the bicycle is the best, and least stressful, way to get around.
We arrived at St. Charles and 2nd Street right on schedule, and within half an hour the lead vehicles for the Rex parade. I knew Rex would stop half a block away for a traditional toast, so I grabbed the three nieces so they could get this rather special glimpse of the king and some of the people who make Rex happen. Sure enough, the float and horses stopped and someone climbed up onto the float to hand the King a big silver goblet. There was a nice little proclamation, and then the parade resumed. We watched the whole parade right at the front of the crowd, pressed up against the floats and bands, and when the last float passed we headed upstairs for a drink.
The plan was to ride down to the French Quarter after Rex. The parade itself is followed by a zillion "truck floats" that we would miss. Shortly after the trucks started coming by, we went back downstairs to unlock the bikes and head downtown. As we were standing there we heard a loud "pop, pop, pop" that sounded like gunfire, but of course it was hard to be sure it wasn't fireworks or something. Well, it was in fact gunfire that had erupted right about where we had been standing during Rex. Seven people were hit, mostly by stray bullets. People came running toward us on 2nd Street, some in a panic. The ambulance arrived within minutes and I went over to check on one of the victims who was in front of our building. She had a relatively minor bullet wound to her arm. A couple of others had more serious injuries, but they were on the other side of the street (and parade) so I didn't see them. Two suspects were caught almost immediately (there are police everywhere on Mardi Gras). One of the worthless crackheads was wearing an electronic tracking bracelet for violating probation for a narcotics conviction.
So anyway, the party must go on, and once the excitement died down we rode down to the French Quarter where I wandered around Bourbon and Royal Streets alone while the rest of the crew hung around the far more boring area around Decatur St. The crowds were really good and although I can't really explain how or why, I just love being in the middle of it all. A couple more beers and I would have been dancing in the street at St. Ann and Bourbon myself. Alas, I had to lead the trip back home, so we left the fun around 4 pm, stopping for an early dinner on Magazine Street, and finally arriving back home right at dusk. I don't guess I can count the 12 miles we rode as training miles since our average speed was probably around 10 mph, but it was still way more enjoyable than the automotive alternative would have been. I took a bunch of photos.
Wednesday it was back to normal with a nice steady group ride on the levee. Since Lent started today, I think I will take a shot at giving up caffeinated coffee for a while. We'll see how it goes. Meanwhile, the LAMBRA racing season officially started last Sunday with a couple of small races up in Monroe. Next up is the infamous Rouge-Roubaix road race (I use the term "road" loosely), unless by some miracle I decide to try out the track bike at our ridiculously early track championships next weekend (the velodrome is closing in March for renovations and will be out of commission for some undetermined length of time over the summer).
1 comment:
Great Stuff ! Thank You for you time and effort,it's very much appreciated & admired by me.
Post a Comment