A rose by any other name...

So this dude named William once wrote a little play. In this story he coined a phrase about how the essence of a person or thing doesn't change because of the label you use to identify it. Anyway, the reason we bring it up is that Team Satisfied contemplated this concept on our most recent training ride.

While we know that most of our faithful readers (oh, we know- you were playing "next blog" roulette ...) probably remember that Team Satisfied is not just a bunch of pretty faces, our newest fans don't so we'll remind you- we aren't just a bunch of pretty faces. Anyway back to the story...

On this particular evening the Satisfied contingent of Sparkle, Sugar and Sunshine were training at a place called the Take Down Bar & Grill engaging in some lively repartee with some friendly Y chromosome carriers also enjoying a refreshing adult beverage. Inevitably they desired to know our names. After introductions were made it was the reaction of these cute-as-puppies guys with unbelievable names like "John" and "Dan" that made us think... Would they still have found us fascinating if we'd had names like "Sara" or "Jennifer" or even something as exotic as "Tiffany"? Would they still have been as yummy to look at if they had given us their real names? Do these guys have any idea who Shakespeare is? Do we care?

The point here is- ah, who are we kidding- we don't need one, we spend a week of vacation time each year riding our bikes across the state, the long way...

So until next time, keep hitting that next blog button!

Rider off.

And we're back...

In the 51 weeks preceeding the next year's ride most teams split their time between reliving the great moments of the last ride and preparing for the next one. Team Satisfied is no different. Right now we are busy getting our support vehicle outfitted as well as getting our undercarriages saddle-ready. Although this year will be the first that most of us have riden together under our new team colors we all have several years experience.

So how do we get to the start and back from the end of this ride you ask? How do you carry your stuff? Well....while the organizers of the ride have this system where you can have them haul your tent and your bag in a semi trailer from town to town they don't offer shuttles from your house to the start of the ride. Therefore it was necessary for resourceful teams to create systems that could haul both riders and equipment. And what exactly did these teams do? They provided a home for retired school buses- that's what. Check out this website to get an idea of what we're talking about:
">http://www.geocities.com/rdtindsm/buslist.html

While someday Team Satisfied hopes to have a beautiful bus of their very own, right now we are most satisfied with our support vehicle: a 2004 Chevrolet 3/4 ton crew cab pulling a 16ft H&H V-nose trailer. Coming soon is a picture of our chariot but until then think- COOOOOL.

THE INTERESTING PART OF THIS BLOG FOR THE DRUNKS IN THE CROWD:
Per our other pre-ride goal of undercarriage readiness, Team Satisfied has discovered that from our base in the heart of Cyclone country, there are wonderful 20-30 mile rides in all directions from home. We have been quite satisfied to explore the life of the small town bar/grille/legion as we see fit.

Recent highlights:

• The Main Street Bar & Grill located just 9 miles to the east on the original Lincoln Highway. These riders found great bliss in the chill of the draft Coors Light and the friendly waitress. Who can beat Tots with complimentary cheese AND ranch?
• The Open Flame, although only 4 miles north, provides a great little stop when coming back from a ride up county line road. If you are in the mood for a burn-your-own-steak this is the place for you. Team Satisfied was impressed with the authentic gen-u-ine vynaaaaal bar rail.

Ok, ok, you're right. We didn't mention much about the actual bike riding but come on- there's 4 scenarios:

• Corn on right, Corn on left
• Corn on right, Beans on left
• Beans on right, Beans on left
• Beans on right, Corn on left

You get the picture right? It probably should be noted however, that since we started to ride together, Team Satisfied has seen the corn go from mid-calf to almost-tall-enough to provide "pop-a-squat" coverage... a most satisfing development since sometimes nature calls after leaving a adult beverage vendor.

Be good kids.

Rider off.

Hello, my name is...

In a land not so far away from anywhere but in a state of mind few can find, there is an event called the Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa. A truly unique event, RAGBRAI attracts over 10,000 people every July to experience the best the world has to offer in social bike riding. Although most people in the world can't understand why anybody would want to peddle 500 miles across Iowa at the hottest part of the summer, the brave that do have found Nirvana.

On this wonderful journey of county highways and small towns, people form alliances and groups to assist with the logistics of such an undertaking. While most of these groups adopt a "Team" moniker, there is nothing to win on this ride.

So with this in mind, we'd like to introduce you to our RAGBRAI team- Team Satisfied.

Admit it, now that you know our name, you want to know who we are don't you? Well, who we are is really a question for the ages isn't it? But since we brought it up in the first place, how about a lil' sumthin' sumthin' to keep you reading?

Team Satisfied is made up of a group women old enough to know the score but young enough to still look good in bike shorts (and as anybody who's seen a pair of ultra drylette shortys knows- that's tough) and one very laid back guy. We all happen to be good looking, smart, and arguably funny. The good news for everybody else out there is that we all happen to be single right now too!

We ride with one guiding philosophy in mind: Satisfaction. (Grab your hip waders kids cause this is where it gets deep…) Think about this one for a minute- since we are already taking advantage of this opportunity to live in this subculture called RAGBRAI, why don’t we just embrace and champion what all people want to admit! We want to be SATSIFIED! Everywhere and at all times!

HEY! Get your mind out of the gutter! Before you go thinking that we are a shallow bunch of people just after some hibbidy dibbity let us expand your minds! We are after the pursuit of a higher level of satisfaction, one that encompasses all aspects of our lives-from spiritual to physical, logical to emotional. To help you grasp what we're talkin' about Willis, here's a short, and certainly non-comprehesive, list of what satisfies us:

-Cold Beer
-Bike shorts that don’t bind
-Short lines at kybos
-Cold Beer
-Flat camping sites
-Good jokes
-Long walks on the beach (wait- that's from our personal ad)
-Did we mention cold Beer?

Well, you know we could go on and on but this is, after all, just our first meeting- we'll be back to let you get to know us better. And since were pretty happy with what we've gotten down today, (you could say we're pretty satisfied with it) we'll sign off now and catch up with you later.

Rider Off.