Scavenger hunt! New jerseys! And 2010 Rider of the Year!!

I woke up on Saturday, September 17, 2011 with several Timbers’ Army chants still rattling around in my brain and a touch dehydrated from last night’s game winning IPAs. To my surprise I heard the pitter-patter of rain coming down outside and thought, “Oh well, I guess this year we will have to get wet to win the 2^nd Annual Beermongers Scavenger Hunt.” Alissa and I rode down to the Mongers to meet up with our teammates, Bill and Steph. Together we were going to be known as the BATS or STABistas. Competing teams arrived and around 11:15am, after a quick pint, we grabbed our bag of clues and dashed out into the rain to devise our strategy.

Some teams rode off within a few minutes and we thought it was vital for us to get moving too. We managed to snatch-up the first couple of clues pretty quickly but upon leaving Hopwerks Urban Brewery (SE Powell) the front tire of Bill’s bike simply came off. Sheesh! We used an Allen wrench to fit it back on. While we were there several other teams came by and after exchanging some pleasantries we all headed south. As the hunt continued teams hauled ass around PDX, obeying all traffic signs, signals and laws, while collecting clues. The organizers had devised an excellent set of clues that required us to think, be timely, and ride like the Pineapple Express!

Our team stood out in front of Jeld-Wen field for a photo acknowledging our future victory with a snort from Bill’s bike flask. We had kept ahead of the competition and we had some easy clues to pick up on the way back to SE Division. Finding out the ‘barrel aged beer of the day’ at the Hair of the Dog proved to be an obstacle. We were out front at 1:15pm but they do not open until 2pm. Even after several phone calls they never answered the phone and our chances slipped away. I will not patronize this pub for a while as they blew our chances for 1^st place. On our return to the Beermongers I sprung a flat and as my back tire slide out I came crashing down to the ground. Ouch! We limped into the Beermongers first but that position was not guaranteed, due to the employees at Hair of the Dog.

Over the next hour other teams returned and the organizers started tally the scores. Around 5:30pm the final awards were given out and the Fears for Beers team had snatched up the Nick Wagner designed and etched trophy. Plus, they rolled out with a wheel-barrel full of beers. The BANKsters, last year’s champs, came in second which left the other three teams saying, “We got this next year for sure.” Congrats to Fears for Beers, the BANKsters and everyone who participated. It was lots of fun!!!

The fun did not stop there. Following the Scavenger Hunt award ceremony the Beermongers Cycle Club (BmCC) presented the 2010 Rider of the Year Award to Kim Matheson for here superb racing during the 2010 cross season. This award was quite overdue but as my mom always said, “Its better late than never.” Congrats Kim!!! The award will be given out every year and a picture of the winner will be framed on the wall of the Beermongers for eternity.

Lastly with more BmCCers now in the room we handed out the 2011 gear. Folks were excited about the jersey design, thanks Jason Miranda and Jason Halsey, and I am sure we will all ride with pride during 2011. Many thanks to our sponsors: Adapt Training, Sustainable NW Woods, Nathan Poole Chiropractic, and GreenHammer. We cannot do all this without your support, thanks!

As the evening went on we proudly wore our new gear, drank some beers and talked about the upcoming season with much anticipation.

Bikes, beers and bad weather!