Oh, Boise!

August 25th, 2009 Posted in Tour

Thank you, Boise, for bringing the biggest crowd so far and raising the most money at any of the shows we’ve been at this year for Tour de Fat. What an amazing bike loving community you have! The whole afternoon was energetic and exciting, filled with people in fabulous costumes. We swam in the Payette River (as in mostly sitting stone still on one spot in the icy water: brr) after the show to cool off and admire Idaho’s incredible natural beauty.

And, dare I say it, we got three (yes, three) animal mascots for this stop of the tour. Maisy, Anya, and the big, black lab (sorry, girl, I’ll get your name) kept us company at our host house just outside of Boise. We stayed with some family of Seattle’s Jryde, who treated us just like family. When we weren’t trying to catch up on sleep or stare at the gorgeous, expansive landscape, we toured the garden, admiring their lavender and incredible veggie patch. On the side, they run Long Dog Lavender Farm. On the other side, they also love picking fresh berries and making huckleberry pancakes for a tired crew of girls in hot pink and black. Thank you Jon and Debi! While we’re on the subject of family and eating, we were lucky enough to pack in two family visit/food fests with Agent Sweetpea’s grandparents in Eastern Oregon, and we can’t express enough thanks for that as well!

While we were in town, Jryde and the Idaho Movie House set up an outdoor screening of Veer at sunset for Boise. It was really well received, and we were thrilled to be in attendance to watch the film with a whole different crowd of cyclists. After the film, we managed to somehow bump into the entire MarchFourth Marching Band making its way down the street to a club for a late-night party. Of course, we joined Boise in the parade and sneaked in one last dance in Idaho.

We’re back home, recovering from one-hour time difference jet lag and the hot, cloudless days east of the Cascades. Some girls are headed to Burning Man, others to toodle around town or travel around the Northwest for work or play. Next stop: Ft. Collins, CO, home of New Belgium Brewing!