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Bubba will stretch his legs again this week with another long one.   Roll from the St Elmo Food City @ 8:30.     After a short warmup we’ll get right to business with a climb up Nickajack.      Left on Hinkle at the top all the way across 136, HOS, and down Daughtery Gap (CAREFUL!).   Refuel at the store and then Hog Jowl to West Cove and back.   (If the bridge is still impassible we’ll add a few miles by turning right at the end of Hog Jowl to follow it all the way to the highway.)    70 miles and around 4000 feet but it’ll feel like much more.    Easy to short it by dropping down 136 and coming back Creek Rd or Marble Top depending on which side you drop down.

AND REMEMBER,  IF YOU’VE  BEEN EXPOSED STAY HOME UNTIL YOU GET A “NEGATIVE.” ABSOLUTELY NO NOSE BLOWING , SPITTING, OR COUGHING WHILE IN THE PELOTON – DROP OFF THE BACK FOR THAT STUFF (THIS ALSO INCLUDES URINATING BUT HOPEFULLY I DIDN’T NEED TO MENTION THAT).   AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, YOU GET THE COVID BY SUCKING THE WHEEL OF AN UNCLEAN BUBBA AND THAT’S ON YOU.  REMEMBER THAT WE CAN’T GET IN SOME STORES WITHOUT A MASK SO MAKE SURE YOU CARRY ONE – YOU NEED TO WEAR IT IN STORES WHETHER THEY REQUIRE IT OR NOT BECAUSE FOR THE MOST PART BUBBAS ARE GOOD CITIZENS.   (I SAID “MOST PART.”)

Team Bubba rides remain paused.    Check back in a week or two for hopefully some good news.

For small, unofficial groups that are forming, keep in mind the 9 person limit under the order in effect in Tn through 5/29.

And remember, TB ain’t endorsing group riding so if you get the covid from sucking the wheel of an unclean Bubba that’s on you!

While official Team Bubba rides remain paused, with the lifting of the state and county shelter in place orders the Bubbawear ban is also lifted.   A Big Bubba Backslap to those who honored the request not to sport Bubbawear in groups during the lockdown.  (Pictures of those who didn’t will be posted on the wall of shame soon.)   As I said, Bubba has enough problems with motorists and didn’t need to add violation of pandemic rules to the list.

The lifting of the Bubbawear ban is not an endorsement of group riding by Team Bubba,  so if you end up on a ventilator because you sucked the wheel of an unclean Bubba during a pandemic that’s on you.

As expected, national cycling associations are now issuing guidance about Covid 19. Bubba will abide by that guidance (see link below) and will pause rides for the next week or two.   I expect some in the group will post rides and folks will likely show up for “standing” rides, but as a club we need to be proactive and abide by what folks such as USA Cycling recommend. (Bubba has enough problems making friends with motorists and the public in general so we don’t need to be a featured news story about how we spread the virus.)

For those who decide to post rides or show up for standing rides, a good strategy may be to break the group into smaller groups with some spacing between groups and perhaps some riding the course backwards. Some publications recommend  keeping smaller groups to the same folks each week to minimize cross-contamination risks since it appears folks may be contagious without having symptoms. Of course, everything I’ve seen encourages us to keep riding, just not in large groups. 

Keep in mind that a decision to be completely cavalier about the threat is not only a decision you make for yourself but also one that in essence you make for those you are in contact with such as your parents and other elderly folks.

Bubba will evaluate info as it becomes available. Our hope is that a week from now we learn all this was overblown, rides resume,  and my name is changed to “Chicken Little.”

https://www.usacycling.org/article/usa-cycling-statement-on-covid-19

 

Weatherman can’t make up his mind so we’ll pretend everything is fine.     Roll from Mikes (Chilhowee lot) @ 8:30.     Toe, Creek, Morganville Ridge, up Sand and across, down the good side, Ladd and 299 back.   (Temps on top supposed to be the same as off the mtn so we’ll take advantage and get some time up top.)    It’s a metric and 4200 feet.   Easy to short it by going Murphy Hollow instead of climbing.    Map is from Unum but WE ARE ROLLING FROM MIKES NOT UNUM.

 Bubba is keeping an eye on publications by national bicycle associations for guidance about Covid 19.    If the modeling is correct, there’s a good chance we suspend TB rides for a week or two beginning next week as it spreads through our community.   Certainly none of us want to wreck the respiratory/cardio systems we work so hard to develop.   More importantly we don’t want to spread it to elderly parents and elderly folks we sit on the pew with, or medically fragile folks we work or otherwise come in contact with, and we need to do what we can to flatten the curve on health care demands.     (Look, Rudy enters the high risk age category in 2 weeks!)     Perhaps the best thing we can do is stay fit but we can do that in smaller groups.   Heck, may even be time to break out the mtn bikes – Unit says he “socially distances” from me on the mtn bike by always staying a mile or two in front.     We’ll keep you posted about that.   FOR NOW, DO NOT SHOW UP FOR A RIDE IF YOU DON’T FEEL WELL.