Six Sandies set off at an unspeakable hour to carry judges for the cycling portion of the SRI TRI.
Sam E, the Cat Hearder, JoeJoe, Munchkin, M2 Sensei, and Bobby B met up at 5:30 AM and headed out to Pensacola Beach for the 27th Annual Santa Rosa Island Triathlon. While waiting for the cycling portion of the race to start, Sir Robert stopped by to wish everyone well and swap stories of past races.
This year there was only one judge to carry, and M2 Sensei on his Goldwing was the lucky selectee. JoeJoe and Munchkin set out on their H-D's while Bobby B took the last draftbusting decoy on a beautiful FZ1 on loan from M2 Sensei. Sam E and the Cat Hearder went across the street to stake out a view of the race and Sir Robert headed back to the crowds to cheer on the participants. The four Sandies riding with the cyclist did three to four loops through the course. We did our best to keep everyone honest and the results for each cyclist ranked. Meanwhile three Sandies were working hard to get triathlon t-shirts.
Officials tried dodging at every twist and turn. The cycling portion of the race had ended and it looked like we (again) going home empty handed. Just when the growls of our stomachs was about to force us to leave, several grey and orange shirts suddenly appear. Thanks for the perseverance of out three most senior members of the club, we were able to ride away with t-shirts to prove we were there.
Since there were so many other things going on Saturday afternoon, the group split up to head back. Most members were making their way to GTD to eventually sign up for the 3rd Annual Breast Cancer Ride while a few others had to get back to their families. A good time was had, and we are thankful that the 2023 SRI Tri is in the books with no known incidents or oopsies.
Some great pictures by JoeJoe
Some of The Sandies at The Emerald Coast Brest Cancer Ride
