Thursday, June 25, 2009

My First Taco Ride

Tonight Roxanne and I did our first Taco Ride. Basically the Taco Ride, if you don't know, is a weekly, Thursday night ride from Council Bluffs, Iowa to Mineola, Iowa where hundreds of cyclists gather to eat cheap tacos and drink cheap beer. The ride is 10 miles down the Wabash Trace, a crushed limestone trail that was once a rail line. You can learn more about the Taco Ride at http://tacoride.com/.

Earlier this week, Brady suggested that we go. He had never been either, so it was a new experience for all of us. Brady rode from downtown Omaha, and Roxanne and I brought our bikes to Lake Manawa and rode on in from there. We've been cycling for about a year and this was the first time that we have loaded our bikes up to drive somewhere for a ride. We had to run some errands after the ride, so having the truck was necessary, otherwise we may have ridden the entire time. I hope that doesn't sound like bike snobbery!

The ride was a lot of fun. The heat was made bearable by the wonderful canopy of trees shading the trail. The trail was in great condition, and the company was awesome.

I brought my trail camera. I must have had some setting off because many snaps turned out blurry, but I'll include them here, anyway.

Brady arrives at the trail head on his mountain bike.



Roxanne on the trail.



Brady's cruising.



Scott and Roxanne, a bit blurry.


It's crowded inside the Mineola Steak House. There's a wait to get a table inside.



It's crowded outside the Mineola Steak House. No open tables here, either, but there's room to sit along the walls and fences.


Small fries on a big plate. Another option for vegetarians.


I don't remember his name, but the guy in red shorts is a city planner. It's nice to have city planners who are also cyclists. He's got our back.




The Taco Ride is really something special. I urge all Omaha metro area cyclists to get on a bike, any bike except the ones with the skinniest road tires, and give it a try.

3 comments:

brady said...

Nice write up Scott. That was a good time with you and Roxanne - you guys make quite the cycling couple.

To the uninitiated of the greater Omaha area: if you have access to a bicycle and are free on Thursday evenings, this is the epitome of wholesome goodness on two wheels. With country-fresh air (minus the pig feed lot near Dumfries), a beautiful canopy lined route, a crushed limestone trail beneath and ice cold Fat Tires awaiting in Minneala, I ask you, is this Heaven?

(No, it's Iowa.)

See you on soon on a Thursday night Taco ride.

brady said...

Here's the one-way route from Downtown Omaha, leaving Union Pacific Headquarters at 15th and Douglas.

brady said...

And one more thing.

Good ideas:
1) Bug spray
2) Clear lens eye glasses
3) At least one bottle
4) Bike light
5) Cash or Credit Cards (all but American Express accepted at Minneola Steak House)
6) Knickers made from drapes and a copy of the lyrics to the Sound of Music soundtrack