Staying out of trouble, and maybe getting into good stuff.

I realized I haven't posted for a while. Since I did the Ride Across Minnesota Wisconsin, I have been riding most mornings before work, and then trying to find somewhere interesting to ride on weekends because I got in a riding rut. The weekend rides haven't been very long - in the 40-something mile range.

A few weeks ago, I finally joined the Major Taylor cycling club, which I've been meaning to do for a couple of years. About 10 days ago, I got an email from the club letting me know about the inaugural ride for the Ride4Reparations, which was a week ago today. I went for a ride to Swede Hollow and St. Paul and then hightailed it through Bloomington and up into Minneapolis with just a few minutes to spare until the start. I didn't know what to expect - the info was pretty limited.

In a nutshell, this super nice guy Hal and some friends formed a non-profit to use cycling as a tool to raise money for organizations that serve the African American community. Due to COVID, their plans for one big event got set aside, but they're doing a series of small rides to get people engaged and participants are invited to donate to one of the identified organizations. 

Here are some shots from the ride.

First African American-owned service station in South Mpls

George Floyd memorial site

This is the part that makes me tear up a lot whenever I visit the site -
the very long list of names of all the people killed.

I ride on that street you can see on the far side of this lot, but haven't
seen these markers representing tombstones of
African American/Black Americans killed. It is striking.

The plaza honoring former Mayor Sharon Sayles Belton - the
first African American and the first woman mayor in Mpls.
We are holding phones to show our donations to worthy local organizations.

I had no idea we would get shirts for the event. I was pretty toasty
wearing two shirts, but look forward to wearing it more and getting
questions from people.

It was an interesting ride of South Minneapolis African American history and landmarks, not unlike some of the sort of content that's been covered in the overnight rides I've done. I liked the fundraiser aspect, though. And, in typical Maggie fashion, after talking to the organizers, I volunteered to helping them with future rides and planning. I look forward to sharing more information with friends as things progress.

This year, I've been doing a lot of riding in Bloomington and Richfield. I took a couple of hours the morning after the Ride4Reparations to do some research on these roads - - which ones connect to what? I can now say, with authority, that crossing 494 at 12th Ave (purplish arrow) is better than at Nicollet, which is better than at Lyndale. I can also say, with authority, that crossing 66th and Hwy 62 at Nicollet (red arrow) is better than than at 12th, which is better than Lyndale. In fact, Lyndale, while prettily-re-laned south of 494 and all that jazz, is pretty annoying to ride on. There are too many partial roundabouts. However, there is a really nice, clean biffy just off Lyndale at the Richfield Historical Society Museum. I recommend it. (Blue arrow.)

The Minnesota River, August 16. Brown, eh? But so peaceful.

If you've seen any of my Facebook posts, you know that I've been riding with a face covering this year, particularly on any trails where I cannot stay far, far away from another person. I offer you this collection of assorted photos.

May and June: my lightweight wool buffs, which I fold over 2-3 times.
Very warm. Perhaps not very effective, given a recent article I read?
Although they didn't assess one made of this fabric or
one worn "in the Maggie way."

Paul and Babe. As they say here in MN: "Oh fer cute!"

This mask likely is totally ineffective in most
circumstances, which is a bummer because
it fits nicely.

I've gotten on a lot of compliments on this one.
Fits well; hard to breathe when biking,
so probably effective. As they say here in MN,
"Oh fer funny."

Today, I needed something new to do. So, I finally got the nerve to try something I've been mulling over for a while - - find a route to my brother's house in Lakeville. (I already have a good route to my other brother's house in Richfield. I'm lucky that two of my brothers moved to the area, like me, during their college-ish years. I'm the oldest of the three of us. I'm happy to report that no one in Apple Valley got close to hitting me (that I know of), which is remarkable because Apple Valley is horrible for bike riding. But Eagan and Lakeville were nice! I took a route back that would get me close to the river, and allow me to ride through the state park. Beautiful!

As noted on FB, the orange mask is reversible and is also the green mask that I wore
on the Ride4Reparations. It is a great mask for biking. My work mask, from
Katmai Government Services (the federal contractor I work for, who assigns
me to CDC) is comfortable, but seems unlikely to be the most effective for 
breathing heavily on a bike.

So this concludes Chapter 5 of the cliffhanger, "What Maggie Did This Summer." I betchya can't wait for the fall to see what delights await you!