Hmmm... Do I put this entry on my cycling blog or on my photo blog?
Photo blog it is!!
I did my best to announce the riders as they crossed the line. I had hoped to be able to have my camera on a tripod so that I could snap a photo as riders came in. Even with a shutter release cable, it just didn't work. The camera didn't focus on the riders on its own and I couldn't flip the switch and hold the rider list with numbers AND the microphone AND try to identify anyone at the same time. Sorry.
I did have company later in the afternoon.
This little girl came over and asked me if she may take my picture. She was a cutie. She photographed me, I took a picture of her, she took a picture of me looking at her stuffed doggie. I asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up. She said a picture taker. I said, "Oh, you want to be a photographer, that's great!" She asked, "What's a toe-phog-rapher?" I said a picture taker. :D She soon ran out of film on her disposable camera, so she helped me check for numbers on the riders. Her daddy was a rider this weekend. Gotta love kids. They're a lot of fun.
Sunday morning Nick and I got up, made coffee and went to watch the riders pass by. We live on the route, so figured we may as well cheer our friends on! I brought my camera to document the occasion since I wasn't riding it this year. I plan to send a disc to the chapter office in case they'd like any of the shots. So many people take pictures over the weekend. I'm sure that they have plenty documenting every angle of the ride.
There are more pictures of Sunday's ride here.
On our way home we watched two riders accompany each other into the ditch right by our driveway. We stopped. Everyone was fine. I still really hate watching people crash. The handle bars on one of the bikes got tweaked pretty well, so we gave her a ride to the next pit stop. She was from Madison, though I've forgotten her name. Donna, I think. She said that she felt bad that we had to drive so far (like 5 miles). I assured her that I've depended on the kindness of strangers before and it was no problem to help her out. Cyclists are so nice. Everyone is eager to help each other out. I think that'd be the same in any other sport/hobby though too.
