Ah, Seattle. You always seem to be wet, at least when I visit. (Unless it’s in the middle of summer.) This weekend has been a pretty wet one, and of course it was a decent steady rain when I got up this morning. Will anyone show up to my silly ride?
And amazingly, people did show up! Nine total, including myself. We even had surprise out-of-town guests Andy and Vince from Portland. Plus Kris who came on up from Olympia. The ride was split fairly evenly between three speeds and non. Kris had a lovely “Orbit” bike from Leeds, Ed had their Hercules, Vince his MTB three Speed conversion, and Blair his Raleigh Superbe. There was also a good number of rain capes.
We went up our only real hill of the day, two blocks of steep by Volunteer Park. Then a descent down Interlaken to the University Bridge, and then we’d hop on the Burke-Gilman trail and head west.
We had a pause at the PCC Market in Fremont for provisions at our picnic/tea stop. We continued west on the Burke-Gilman to the bitter end, Golden Gardens Park. This beach provided a great view of the Puget Sound. Also, it had picnic shelters. Of course, the rain stopped right before we got to the park, almost to spite us. (And it would remain dry for the rest of the ride.) Tea and coffee was made and consumed, along with some pastries and other snacks.
Andy and Vince broke off here (Blair broke off before the U Bridge) so then there was six of us. We headed back east, toured Hiram Chittenden Locks, the busiest such structure in the United States. Then eastward along the Ship Canal Path to the Fremont Bridge (saying adieu to Andreas and Kris). Four of us made it to Fremont Brewing for beverages.
Despite a crappy forecast, the ride was a success! 18 miles total. I definitely want to do another Seattle Three Speed Ride in 2020. But it might be late spring or summer instead. Keep your eye out for details!
Society Of Three Speeds 
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