March 6th 2010 Ride

[dstanley]

Beautiful crisp and clear day for a ride past some daffodils and over Deception Pass, thru Oak Harbor and on to our final destination: The Penn Cove Muussel Festival ! $5.00 bought a large cup of mussels cooked in lemon,cilantro and garlic, served with bread. Tasty, tender and fresh ! Thanks Jim for a great suggestion !!!

[John G]

Nice post Debbie!

Following the meeting we were off for a short ride. Our Road Captain was Lenny with Jim riding as our Tail Gunner. Ride participants included Roy, Bruce & Debbie, Sherrie, Tom & Deliece, Kem, Laurie, John G, Robert & TJ plus Don & Andrea followed in their car for the first part. We rode off in search of the rumored blooming daffodils. We spied a few huge fields in the distance and stopped at the Roozengaarde Display Garden http://www.tulips.com/ for a short break plus photos. We then beat a path to La Conner to cross the bridge and headed to the turn off for Deception Pass. We tried to stop at the pass, but the tourists had clogged up the parking area and all turn outs to capacity. After all, it was a beautiful sunny day. We pushed on for the long way to Coupeville for the Mussel Festival. Yum, mussels. John G bought a bowl of a dozen mussels in broth full of garlic, green onions and cilantro for $5. Kem bought a bowl with the same, but red sauce instead of broth. Others lined up for ice cream. Before they could emerge with their dairy concoctions, John G had found fresh coffee and gourmet chocolate bars. We discussed departure points and headed off down the road in the direction of home. Yum, mussels.

1. Did you have a good time? You bet.
2. Would recommend this ride to others and attend again yourself? Mussels, yum.
3. What did you most like about the ride? Mussels, yum.
4. What did you like least about the ride. Where's the rest room again?
5. Was the pace OK - Too Fast - Too Slow? perfect
6. Were there enough stops for pictures - too many stops or not enough stops? yep
7. Were there enough breaks in the ride or too many or too few? perfect. I should have timed my need for a restroom with the times when we stopped.
8. Any other comments you'd like to make on this ride (your comments will be held strictly confidential should you so indicate). Mussels, yum.

[John G]

COPY/PASTE these questions into your reply and include your responses.

1. Did you have a good time?
2. Would recommend this ride to others and attend again yourself?
3. What did you most like about the ride?
4. What did you like least about the ride
5. Was the pace OK - Too Fast - Too Slow?
6. Were there enough stops for pictures - too many stops or not enough stops?
7. Were there enough breaks in the ride or too many or too few?
8. Any other comments you'd like to make on this ride (your comments will be held strictly confidential should you so indicate).

[Lenny]

Great ride and participation despite the late start after our marathon scheduling meeting (although necessary). We blended John G's flower tour with Jim's Mussel Festival idea in Coupeville. Worked out great, even though the flowers aren't ready yet. Weather was about as good as it gets for this time of year. I haven't Road Captained for a few months so it was a good challenge to keep ten bikes together through sunny tourist traffic (starting early this year!). Plus Coupeville as a destination really worked out for me!

1. Did you have a good time? Yes!
2. Would recommend this ride to others and attend again yourself? Yes
3. What did you most like about the ride? The weather and cooperating traffic lights
4. What did you like least about the ride? The flower detour was a bit disappointing
5. Was the pace OK - Too Fast - Too Slow? The RC set it perfectly (biased of course!)
6. Were there enough stops for pictures - too many stops or not enough stops? I stopped a few times, everyone wanted to keep on going.
7. Were there enough breaks in the ride or too many or too few? Everyone was asked. Deception Pass didn't work out due to congestion
8. Any other comments you'd like to make on this ride (your comments will be held strictly confidential should you so indicate). Riders that went seemed to have a good time.

Lenny
VP and RC

[TailGunner#2]

View from the REAR....The weather was as good back here as it was up front. A Great day, Lennie did a good job and though I had my doubts about finding a parking place downtown, Lennie did find the municiple parking area via some businesses parking lot and a little shuggie between a car and some trees. Iam a certified mussle junkie and I have to say these were a taste treat. I could have gone for another load, but my conscience and weight watchers said no. For the same reason I didn't follow John G down to main street for the ice cream and gromet chok-lit bars.