jimmuller 

A quick follow-up to my note from yesterday: I was fascinated that someone riding long distances would be using a vintage Raleigh almost as old as mine so I wrote up a thread about it in the C&V forum and got some interesting replies. It appears that the woman I spoke to in Bedford was Emily O'Brien, apparently well-known for some long rides (like Paris-Brest-Paris) on that bike. There can't be too many women doing that on a blue '74 Raleigh Pro, and the pictures I found online were pretty accurate to my day-old-and-fading recollection. Her bike is, or at least was, equipped as a fixie, a detail I didn't even notice. I also learned that these long-distance runs are not really competitions as I wrote above. (I wouldn't know, never having experienced anything like that, and I obviously mis-heard her in all the excitement buzzing around.) Well, it was a fascinating conversation, a totally unexpected pleasure near the end of a good day of riding. Ms. O'Brien, if you read this, thank you.