no need to apologize; it was just right for me

At the end of today's ride, Laura OLPH apologized for the shortness of the route.As far as I'm concerned, there was no need to apologize; it was just right for me.

(Great picture of Ricky, isn't it? I wanted it up there because that's the one that will show up in the Facebook post.)

Laura's listing indicated we'd either do 45 miles with a break, or 30-ish without, which implied we'd stop at a place we recently tried a few miles from the end. I had a slight preference for the new stop, but not enough that I was willing to argue for it.

Laura also indicated extra miles were available, but I'm not sure these days whether I have the extra miles in me (it turned out I did today, but I'd rather have the extra energy and not need it, than be worn out and miserable, and possibly be riding like a jerk, at the end). So I got to the advertised start at Twin Pines and found Chris C setting up. He found a gash in his rear tire; it didn't look great, but we decided he'd make it through the ride today (he did).

Soon Peter G rolled in (and rolled out again to look for Laura's crew), and then Laura, Racer Peter, and Andrew A came in with Peter G in tow.

We had the discussion about how far we wanted to ride, and decided on the no-break-but-stop-at-the-end option; we'd stop at the place I call "The Pig", because that's their graphic and I can't remember the name of it. Keep reading and you'll see why I call it "The Pig".

In consideration of the temperatures and the wind, Laura decided on a widdershins route around Hopewell, in hopes that the winds to kick up later would be at our back on the way home. This is my kind of route; I don't have to worry about knowing where I am; I can be in kid-brother mode all the way and let the leader choose the roads. And, although a bit cold, it started out a lovely sunny day.

It was a chatty ride; I got to talk to pretty much everybody, and had a good time with that (the fellowship is a major reason I like Laura's Hill Slug rides). We talked about bikes, and family, and jobs, and Laura's glass blowing (I hope Laura doesn't read my interest and fascination with her glass blowing as pushiness for her to continue.. but I certainly hope she DOES continue. Go see the "Hot Mess" posts on her blog for info about that).

Andrew mentioned an article in the New York Times about how a substantial number of fraternities on campuses were embracing a philosophy supporting inclusion and respect for women. I was flabbergasted, but apparently the article actually exists.

Racer Pete was on call, and got a call he had to address, so we stood in the cold for a while as he responded. Peter G took advantage of the opportunity to ride on; the rest of us waited.

When we went on, my hopes were realized, and near the end, we did stop at "The Pig."

The real, if too conventional name, is Sourland Coffee (and that may be why I don't remember the name), but there's this nailed to the counter:

...and the merch has these graphics:

What would YOU call it?

We got there ten minutes before they planned to close, and they were kind enough to serve us anyway.

And Laura's antlers were still on the buffalo, from last time.

At the end, Laura apologized because we hadn't quite hit 30 miles. Yeah, now THERE'S a crisis.

Ride page. We're not too fast; you oughta come out some time.