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In absence of the Hilly Hundred ...

There was no Hilly Hundred for me in 2005. It was there for my sister and her son, Teresa and Julius Parod. It was there for my friend, Doug Kaufman. But it wasn't there for me because I didn't get enough hill training during September for me to be comfortable on the ride.

Doug climbed Mount Tabor and Bean Blossom Hill for me. Julius reported that his mom thought the hills were bigger this year.

As for me, I spent a rare full weekend off doing things in the greater Alton area. On Saturday, I went to Godfrey to see some artwork from a buddy from the Fairview Heights Borders store, Brenda Elfgen. Brenda's work was part of the ArtEAST exhibition, a studio tour in the Alton and Edwardsville areas. Brenda, an art therapist, does interesting work in mixed media, and the work was her own form of art therapy. I ended up buying one of her pieces.

On Sunday, some of us from the Belleville Area Bicycling and Eating Society took a trek up the Great River Road to Pere Marquette Park. It was an absolutely gorgeous day marred only by the rough trail through the city of Grafton. There's a major project along the riverfront that has left the bicycle trail covered with clods of dirt that make traveling through town uncomfortable. But other than that, the trip was wonderful. The leaves were starting to turn, making the ride along the bluffs an enjoyable experience.

Over the weekend, I found out former Belleville News-Democrat copy editor Ron Warnick has started his own blog page, a clearinghouse for news about Route 66. Ron and his wife, Emily Priddy, are big-time advocates for the Mother Road, and I admire their dedication to preserving the old buildings along the road. Emily, in fact, is running the Oklahoma Marathon to raise money for Route 66 preservation. You can read about her training at her blog, 26.2 for 66.

Finally, I'm playing bicycle repairman for my mom, Jean Kramer. When I was in Brighton over the weekend, I tried to air up her rear tire, but I stopped when I noticed a big hole in the sidewall of the tire. She was worried that the gravel in the the 0.33-mile lane that leads from the road to her house had done the damage, but the tire simply was too old. I managed to put a boot in the tire as a short-term solution, but I'm getting her a new tire so she can have peace of mind when she goes to get the mail and paper each day.

Roger 0 comments 4:29 PM