im - 10/19/2006 02:36:00 PM

Brauer's Wednesday Night Ride report: Cast (in order of appearance): BrauerPower Zye toe Trevver Pete Geigle Cockleburr Corrosion Bodie Butcher (HoboCamp) Giegle rolled up to the bandshell 8 sheets to the wind after starting his adventure at the TownHall at about 1700 hrs. Upon arrival he 'gracefully' dismounted his bike as he prepares for his debut cyclocross race of the year on Sunday. After the requisite handshakes and pleasantries were exchanged, we set out to prepare the city for the HomeyFallFestival. Giegle executed another fabulous (impromptu) dismount a mere 3 blocks from the bandshell. His tireless training regimen is truly inspirational. We rode the east side of Calhoun via the woodchip trail and Irving alleyways. As we crossed Lake Street, T-Bomb took the lead and made some sweet connections around the waterways of Calhoun/Isles/Cedar. As we neared the Cedar Lake bike trail, Geigle made it magic number three with his most spectacular dismount of the evening. He wisely chose to stop with his face--its a little known technique only applied by the most elite of Belgian crossers. His remount wasn't as fast as one might like though. I wouldn't worry much though, folks, as Mr Giegle is a VERY experienced mounter and dismounter of bicycles, and rest-assured be in TOP form on Sunday. With his training complete for the night, he pointed towards the friendlier streets of St Louis Park. Somewhere around here Bodie was lost, presumably caught by one of the cougars prowling the alleys of Kenwood. From here the Cockleburr took the lead into Kenwoodburgh and up and down the finest brick alleyways in the city. The cobbles look to be in fine shape for the HomeyFallFestivalers. Wet leaves abound and the blind corners are always enticing. Down we went World's Steepest Hill and into the lovely burgh of Bryn Mawr, home of that most famous of hobos, Hurl "Hobo King" Everstone. With the Hobo King in convalescence, we took to the enchanted forest of Hobo Camp to make final preparations for the annual harvest festival in his stead. We all set to work, busily cleaning, remodeling, and repainting our beloved camp. The Butcher stealthily snuck into our midst, bringing a healthy supply of tall boys. A respectable pile of wood was produced, due to the forward thinking nature of Z-Toe as we used classic teamwork and caveman engineering skills to fell a mighty tree. While breaking the felled tree apart using the leverage offered by two adjacent trees, another tree was felled. All without the help of tools! Inspired by our felling abilities, Zito proceeded to tear down much of the forest, as Corrosion said, "like a bored gorilla." Cockleburr furiously raked (?!?!) the leaves about the camp for reasons we still haven't quite discerned. Happy with our work, we slowly went our separate ways. Cockleburr and Corrosion were first to go. Shortly thereafter, the Butcher pedaled bravely back to his beloved NordEast, supposedly for a ride through the 331 Club and onto Grumpy's. Z-Toe, T-Bomb and myself absconded to the Bryant Lake Bowl for a final brew or two, but now without stopping at the Walker for some art appreciation. All in all a fabulous ride, a perfect warmup for the bike-est weekend of the fall. We'll see y'all at the Homey and also at the Pow-pow-powderhorn Cross Up. -Studs Terkel -----