Where's the commitment?

This morning's weather check showed very light winds out of the NNW and a balmy 56°. On the NWS site for KMSY was the  CYA-Who-Knows?-It's-Anybody's-Guess  smorgasbord of observations, the triple threat of Light Rain, Mist, and Fog. The last couple of times I've ridden when that trio of two obscurations plus a precipitation was listed it has been more fog and mist and not so much light rain. Once I got out in it this morning the slushy mess was heavier on the light rain. Don't get me wrong, there was plenty of fog and mist, but it was definitely raining. About ten blocks from home I started to question the wisdom of my decision, but I was already wet and had only ridden my bike twice in more than two weeks. I was going to ride.

As I was trying survive the fog-shrouded blind curve on River Road just before the first levee access, I was surprised to see a blinking light between the pump stacks. It turned out to be Seattle Mike, currently in New Orleans visiting his brother who lives here, but, it turns out, is currently in North Carolina. (There is a very reasonable explanation.) Anyway we stood around in the light rain and for several minutes squinted through the mist and fog both upriver and down levee expecting another rider or maybe a few. No one showed.

Seattle Mike

Turns out Mike used to live in New Orleans (Jesuit '84 and Tulane Law) and he is also a photographer, so it was a pleasant 19/20 mph conversational ride out to the Big Dip. After ten or so miles the weather improved considerably and, except for my flatting, it was a thoroughly enjoyable first ride of 2014.

It was a little disappointing more people didn't show for the ride. Years ago, when people failed to show, I remember D. Reeder would ask, "Where's the commitment?"
 
I could post here the familiar image of a supine Vega, but it would be unfair to single him out for not showing this morning. I would suggest that we, each of us, allow ourselves to be photographed while re-enacting the famous Vega pose so that those images could be used to memorialize individual lapses in commitment during 2014. What do you think? Right, right. No way. Absolutely no way. It would disrespect, dilute, and cheapen what is possibly the most beautiful cycling image ever captured.

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