Tuesday Night Worlds is the sort of unbridled ride that no legally accountable organization wants to own. The riding occasionally strays into reckless, rude or illegal territory. Incidental poor judgement is not what defines the ride. Enthusiasm and race-like intensity makes it popular; the other stuff is just good shorthand for the vibe.
So about that tire... the group had just come back together after chasing down a hilltop flyer. The road was typical New England: pockets of development, stone walls, ponds and a little narrow. It followed the land's contours so that there is rarely a straight and nary a hard turn. The curve ahead was shallow enough to negotiate without a thought. But the trees had filled in and there was enough arc to hide oncoming traffic. Or a big delivery truck attempting a three point turn, which is exactly what lay in wait.
I was repeating a question to a buddy and so was a couple of milliseconds late to react. The delay led to an overlapped wheel. The overlapped wheel led to some crazy body english and a locked up brake. Observant readers will note the rubber missing from the photo above is not exactly centered on the tire. It indicates the extent to which I slid sideways. I didn't notice at the time because I was furiously trying to keep my front wheel from leaning hard against the rear wheel it had overlapped. My front tire was touching the left side of rear tire and I threw my weight left while skidding my rear wheel right to remain upright. I fully expected to be rammed from behind, but the cycling gods were smiling upon us. Everyone stayed upright. The GPS says we barely slowed down.
Brief bout with terror aside, the ride was a complete blast. The adrenaline rush came from burning the proverbial matches without a thought to what's left in the pack. This time of year, there are lots of matches and boy do they burn bright. The recklessness is an unfortunate side effect.
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