Bike early and party the rest of the 250th USA birthday!

No one gets to celebrate a 250th birthday very often, so let’s party hard. Eat, drink, and be merry. Let it all hang out. Get gnarly and jiggy with it. Okay, maybe that slang is too much for some of you. You get the idea, though, right? Hardly anyone is planning on being too restrained this 4th of July, especially through the afternoon and into the fireworks at night. But first…!

Yeah, but first, what? Well, let’s do something healthy and sensible first thing, so we can feel less guilty about whatever we do the rest of the day. And since we’re all members of Tampa Bay Cycling, maybe that sensible thing is a trip around the Dorie Loop together before it gets too hot out. 29+ miles all the way around, and yes i’ve watched anal-retentive, OCD people circle the parking lot a few times trying to get their mileage up to the round 30. Do what you want, but i’m gonna feel good even if my 29 doesn’t turn into 30. (Don’t tell anyone, but maybe or maybe not i’ve done a few parking lot loops to round up to 30 myself. Allegedly. Once upon a time). We won’t go especially fast for the first 3/4 of it, probably 13-16 mph with small incursions into the 17 or 18 mph zone. But, after the Bridge of Doom everyone is invited to ‘break away’ for the last 7.5 miles and go as fast as your legs will take U.

We’ll start from the parking lot behind the Safety Harbor Marina bathrooms, which is also the new public parking lot behind the Resort. We’ll go through Philippe Park, then Oldsmar, find our way to the Town & Country Trail, and take George Road to SkyWay Park. From our rest stop at SkyWay Park, it’s basically Courtney Campbell Causeway to Bayshore and our start point.

A couple or three other things. If U can, please wear Red, White, and Blue. Because we’re starting early, there’s no group lunch after the ride. And, all the rules, regulations, disclaimers and so on that always apply still apply. More specifically, U must wear a helmet, must follow all traffic laws and rules and regulations, should be prepared to deal with your own flat tires, be hydrated and in good enough shape to keep up with the rest of us, and so on. By participating in the ride, you agree to all the TBC conditions, and accept that all risk and consequences are yours alone.

Gene Sanders
412-779-5151