| Date | April 13, 2013 |
| Hosts | Team Pumpkin (Cheryl Prudhomme and Mark Cook) |
| Where | Bedminster, NJ |
| Who (else) | Caren and Mike Bianco, Barb Flint and Neil McPhee, Brenda and Larry Isherwood, Susan Nicolich and Dave Snope, Linda and George Wells |
Participating Teams: Cook/Prudhomme (Mark & Cheryl), Wells (George & Linda) Isherwood (Larry & Brenda), Flint/McPhee (Barbara & Neil), Bianco (Caren & Mike), and Nicolich/Snope (Susan & David).
Although Team Bianco reported rain as they departed their home to participate in the 2013 Spring Thaw Training Ride hosted by Team Pumpkin & Spice (a.k.a., Mark & Cheryl) the day was an almost perfect Spring cycling day. The temperatures were in the 50's to low 60's, the sky clear with puffy clouds, the only deficit was a pretty good wind that challenged the riders but also provided some great tailwinds.
The routes chosen for the day are planned for the 2013 ETR Thursday rides. Team Wells, still working back to full fitness following Influenza, chose to use the shorter 27-mile loop which is also one of the ETR Thursday rides. The route has only two challenges, and they are crossing Route 22, which can be dicey when traffic is heavy. Other than the two crossings, the roads are low-traffic secondary roads with some grades, but nothing too challenging. In fact the return on Lamington Road, which is an uphill on the outbound portion, is a fantastic rolling downhill on the return. (Team Wells hit 36.7 mph on that section.) There were more than a few single bicyclists out as well, but Team Wells didn't manage to catch any "rabbits" today. As our fitness builds back we'll start catching them.
A lot of you missed a great ride. The good news is that we have a lot of weekends ahead with the promise of improving weather to entice you to come out and ride with your fellow DOGS members. Finally, if the DOGS don't have the ride you have always wanted, that is because you haven't offered it to the club members. So, dust off those cue sheets, or make it a leader-led ride – Road, Trail or Mountain single-track. We have members who will participate. They are just waiting for your addition to the calendar.
Linda & George Wells
Leaders – Doubles Of the Garden State (DOGS)