Yeah, but did you celebrate?
August 31, 2018 § 7 Comments
Most of the time the ride finishes, you go home, take off your stuff, and get on with the day. And most of the time that’s okay.
But you owe it to yourself and your fellow riders to celebrate every once in a while. Celebration is one of the hallmarks of humanity. People who celebrate are people who have stopped for a moment to live. People who celebrate are, like a great pianist who creates music in the space between the notes, creating happiness in the pause between the motions.
We finished Flog v.4, arbitrarily numbered #71 out of laziness, even though technically it’s more like Flog #140, and repaired to the Yellow Vase Cafe to celebrate, quickly, with coffee and some awards.
But this Flog was special and therefore deserving of celebration for another reason. The ride’s founder, Joe Yule, after an absence of four years or so, showed up to see how his children were getting along. Joe’s heart recently went on vacation, causing a bit of concern to those around him, but with a new defibrillator/pacemaker/carburetor/aerator/crankshaft installed, the docs say he will unquestionably live until Sunday.
When your heart stops for the better part of 30 minutes, you are quite happy with Sunday, thank you, and maybe Monday while you’re at it. And when you make it through something like that, well, your celebration means just a little bit more than everyone else’s.
Bottom line is that Joe did the ride and regaled us with the true original honest-to-goodness real story of How The Flog Ride Came To Be, and I was lucky enough to have my camera switched on to video:
After the tale was told, parts of which were actually true, we turned our attention to prizes and trinkets.
Dan Cobley was Flogger of 2018 for amassing 60.5 points; next closest had a piddling 33.
Kristie Fox was Flogette of 2018 for being the woman who flogged hardest and most often. She missed maybe one flogging all year and was there in sickness and health, in sadness and in joy, but it being the Flog, mostly sadness.
John Labib was Floghead of 2018 for being the man who flogged most. John missed two flogs when he went to watch the World Cup somewhere. He will go down in flogfamy for his honest question, “Can I keep doing the Flog after it ends?” Yes, John, you can.
Salvador Bravo was Jumpin’ Jack Flash for most improved flogger. He just got better and never gave up.
Bob Reichman was Happy Camper for flogger who was always in the best mood with no good reason for being so.
Finally, Ivan Fernandez a/k/a My Pony Boy was honored for best Flog lead-out, where, instead of burying himself to the top of PVDN, he made a mockery of the entire ride by leisurely pedaling to the top at about 8 mph. And if there’s one thing a true flogger loves, it’s a mockery.
END
Cycling in the South Bay 
Good stuff. Love to hear old guy’s reminiscing about the origins of a long lasting ride.
AMAZING!…
…again…thank you Seth for making a record of the stupid things we do
It’s a pointless job but someone has to do it. Actually, I suppose they don’t.
All hail the immortality of his nobleness, Sir Junkyard. May he continue to enamor us with his boundless creativity, his cynical wit, his inhuman recovery abilities and above all his unmatched flakiness.
Regarding Flog v.4, I offer up the tongue of SJ Perelman:
“I don’t know where we’re going or how we’ll get there, but when we get there we’ll be there – and that’s something, even if it’s nothing.”
Sidney J. Perelman!! One of my earliest and worst influences!
WOW! It was the last 3 lines of his story that are the most important here! Glad he is still with us. BUT you didn’t mention the new moniker. “Mouth of the South Bay” and the fact that you want to “go fast” all the time! Ride on Seth!
Oop …