2007 Doublewide Awards: Most Popular Permanent

When you've only got three established routes, it ain't hard to become the favorite. N.C. randonneurs nearly wore out the 208K Kerr Lake Loop in 2007. It was ridden at least once a month as a group ride, and several riders did it solo. The biggest ride took place in September when a dozen riders looped the loop.


Here's a picture of 10 from that ride.

In October, nine riders completed the Loop under picture-perfect skies.


Here's a photo of that hardy group.

2007 Doublewide Awards: Best Dressed

Okay, we've got a clothes horse among us. It's Jerry, who took top honors in the "Best-Dressed" category with these two jerseys.


1) This Houston Rando shirt with the mad-eye dog.


2) This jersey from the Open Eye Cafe in Carrboro, one of our favorite coffee shops.

Runner-up goes to JoeRay for his Curious George T-Shirt. True, he didn't wear it on a ride, but he bought it because we saw a woman wearing one in Clarksville as we ate lunch during a Lake Loop.

Doublewide Awards: Best Posts of 2007

Here are the nominees for favorite posts of 07, in no particular order. The swimsuit competition is likely to considerably thin the field.

The Spartanburg 300K: A lesson in surviving mistakes and miscues…

Team N.D.D: Big Adventures don’t get much bigger than this….

Blackbeard’s Permanent: A great crew + a great route = a great night ride.

My PBP Bike: A look at the vintage ride that carried me and the day in 03...

Oasis: Not just a band… Discovering the joys of the roadside eatery…

The 600K Pre-Ride: Me and Branson ride right through the battlefields…

My Fling with Little Debbie: The snack cake steals my heart…

Bagging Mount Mitchell: Hours of hills and cold were a perfect warm-up for PBP… The garbage bag was a bonus...

Chicken Stories: The Siler City Express. A joy ride with two of my favorite riding buddies, Joe and Wes.

Fun things to do in Paris before PBP: Title gives it away.

2007 Doublewide Awards: Best Convenience Store Purchase

When you're packing for a brevet, it's often easy to overlook an item or 2. On last month's Gappity Gap, I forgot a light for reading my cuesheet in the dark. Not to worry. I made do with this lime green beauty, purchased for $2.99 at one of the ride controls.

2007 Awards List: Best Permanent

It was always great to get out with buddies for our monthly permanent. But one ride stands out: the Blackbeard Permanent in July. A great summer night, great friends and a great route made for a magic moment. Here's the write-up and a couple pictures.

2007 Awards List: Hardest Ride

In the Doublewide Awards, Hardest Ride, hands-down, goes to last month's Gappity Gap. While only a 200K, it was anything but short & sweet.

Here's the write-up, and a photo of Nick Bull and myself taken by Texas riding buddy Edward Robinson.

2007 Awards List: Best Q&As

As PBP neared last summer, I did e-mail Q&As with several of the Tar Heel riders who were heading to France. In looking back through my blog posts from this year, I was struck by the gems from these great riders. They’re worth another read. I only got half of the Tar Heel riders. I'll do better next time.

Here they are, in alphabetical order: Adrian, Branson, Byron, Cap'n, Caroline, Chet & Cyndy, Jerry, Keith, Paul, and Wes.

2007 Awards List: Best Video

The Doublewide Award series continues.

Best Video Honors in 2007 goes to...

Yo Adrian! Who can forget the immortal video of Yo A, astride a microbike, reliving the glories of PBP? A classic!

2007 Awards List: Best Ride Poster

Big Adventures don’t get much bigger than the snow-capped ride of Flèche Team N.D.D. Talk about classy -- these guys even had their own poster. However, the team merchandise sales fell well short of predictions. The Team N.D.D. Store, saddled with an inventory of 3,500 unsold T-shirts, was forced into bankruptcy in October.

2007 Awards List: Best Photo

Here at the Trailer Park, it's time for our First Annual Doublewide Awards.

First up: the Best Picture of 2007. The envelope, please....



Laundry, by Capn John Ende, taken in July during Mountain Training Camp.

Ripe with past glories and future challenges, this picture was shot off the bike, between rides. Here, Capn Ende’s son Patrick helps hang the day’s road kill on the porch of the mountain house. A refreshing change from all those shots of smiling bike helmets.