Please send me any pictures you'd like to have added. I'm planning to convert this to more of a "slide show" format as soon as I have all the material to be displayed. Also, if you can identify any of the people that are not identified, please e-mail me at the address below. If you want a more detailed or original version of a photo (e.g., for printing), or if you want to contribute your pictures or make corrections, send me an e-mail at:
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[Click here for my pictures from the 2005 AIBR Ride]
[Click here for my pictures from the 2006 TRIRI Ride]
The 2007 AIBR route:
Brenda writes: Around Illinois Back Roads - 2007
This was the 27th year of AIBR and hopefully not the last. I however, will not be chairing the ride again. I really hope that someone will volunteer to keep this ride alive, if not next year in a future year.
This year we had 45 riders signed up for the ride. We had 4 early cancellations, so I expected 41 riders to show on Saturday. There were 3 riders that did not show up and I had the call from Gwen and Don, their car broke down in Michigan City, and they would not make it to the start. So, we started the week with 36 riders/workers. Gwen and Don were able to join us at Shabbona State Park, so we were now up to 38. Suzanne K (now M) only planned to ride home to Galena, and Neil H. had to be at work on Thursday. He left Galena on Tuesday, rode to Dixon, and then back to Morris on Wed, so we ended the week with 36 riders. Of course, Canada Bob rode from Mt. Carroll back to Morris on Thursday (two days in one, approximately 140 miles), picked up his truck and was back in Amboy in plenty of time for dinner. So the last day, we actually had 35 people on the ride.
The first day was hot as we headed to Shabbona campground, with a nice tail wind and a little bit of rain caught the last riders. We didn't mind it, it helped cool us down. We had the canopy set up, so riders huddled under it, got to know each other and then we were picked up by the church bus, and shuttled over to the church for a great pasta dinner. It rained most of the night and early into the morning. Some riders took off early, but most waited out the rain under the canopy while enjoying breakfast. One mishap today, Lee fell on wet tracks, hit his head pretty hard, but was able to complete the ride. He was very thankful he had his helmet on, and did have to buy a new one. Winds were out of the southwest, so as we headed north we had a nice tail wind. Unfortunately, most of the route was west, and we had rolling hills and rough roads. What does 5-H stand for? Here is what we came up with, hot, humid, hilly, horrible roads and head winds. We ended the day in Freeport.
Monday, off to Galena, I think I'll drive sag today, I had enough hills yesterday. I even beat Canada Bob to the church in Schlappville where we set up our sag stop. For those of you who don't know Canada Bob, he likes to leave at about 4 am, so we rarely see him on the route. He is from Canada and has lots of great stories. He also rides in boots, sometimes finds his own route, but always gets to the next spot. It rained again tonight, but was beautiful in the morning. Everyone enjoyed the chili we made for dinner and many walked the half mile to Culver's for ice cream.
Tuesday is our lay over day in Galena. Many riders took the day off from riding and enjoyed the sites of Galena. Some did their own route; ask Bob K and Mike B about the road names. Some went kayaking, ask Dale about his mishap, and others took a short 9 mile ride to Suzanne and John's, where we had a great lunch and dip in her new pool. Wednesday, we had a short (45 mile) day of riding, but two 15% grade hills to climb, Jesse swears there were more and that they were at least 20% grades. Of course, I was smart enough to drive sag again. The hill out of Galena was recently tar and chipped, as was the hill down. Many riders wanted to kill the person who invented tar and chip, but fortunately everyone used caution and no one went down. Most of us enjoyed Dairy Queen and then had a delightful dinner hosted by the booster club of the Mt. Carroll Middle School. Of course, it rained again at night, but many were sleeping indoors and the rest of us were snug and dry in our tents.
Thursday, we headed off to the Green River Campground outside of Amboy. We had a nice tail wind, and it wasn't to hot, so it was a great ride. Of course, we all stopped in at B.J.'s bike shop in Dixon, and picked up our wooden nickel for free ice cream in Amboy. a few riders, stopped to see the sites in Dixon, Regan home, library, etc. and then the wood carvings in Amboy. There were actually a few riders who understood that this was a tour. We had a wonderful catered dinner by Mary Kay from Streeter, and then a full breakfast by the campground the next morning.
Friday, most riders left early for the ride back to Morris, a hot shower and then headed home. Winds were out of the northwest, so a slight tail wind most of the day. Our last riders got in around 3:30, not like last year, when we had to wait until 5:30 for the Rat Pack to arrive. Thanks to everyone who helped make the ride a success and fun. Bob Kehoe, Suzanne Midlock, Gloria (her friend), Gordie Carder and Brenda for marking the route. Bob Applegate, Bruce Bishop and Dale Bormet for driving the truck. Bob Kehoe, Bruce and Brenda and Steve Alberico for driving sag and setting up the sag stops. Bruce for being the mechanic. Gerri and Bujo Waddell (from Texas) for the candy and homemade jams, and everyone else who pitched in to help as needed, turning on the coffee in the morning, setting up or taking down the canopy, etc.
All the pictures on this page are from the other riders. I didn't take my camera on this trip.
The following are some of Ken's shots.
Click on the image to see all of his great shots on his "SmugMug" AIBR Photos Page.
All the following pictures came from Maureen.
Maureen and Peter:
Maureen doing her thing:
At Suzanne's farm :
Wood carvings at Amboy from stumps of oaks damaged in a 1999 storm:
Tired riders at the end (Steve, Liz, Peter and Mo):
and Liz, Gary, Mo and Grover:
Well maybe Steve isn't so tired - his wheels are still spinning (I think he drove the truck):
The following pictures, taken at our Galena campground, are from David:
Under the tarp - click on the photo for names:
Bruce fixing Gary's bike with Chris watching:
In camp:
If you want a more detailed or original version of a photo (e.g., for printing), or if you want to contribute your pictures or make corrections, send me an e-mail at:
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