I went to a garden party: Ya can't please everyone...so ya gotta please yourself!

Juxtaposition—

Definition: an act or instance of placing close together or side by side, especially for comparison or contrast. In composition, the placing of verbal elements side by side, leaving it up to the reader to establish connections and impose a meaning. These verbal elements (words, clauses, sentences) may be drawn from different sources and juxtaposed to form a literary collage. (Source: Wikipedia)

Buying a salad at a burger joint. Mixing beer with tequila.  When Kentucky Fried Chicken sold pizza. When middle-aged people get drunk at weddings and try to dance like the young people.  Guys that get “tipsy” from drinking apple cider. Stout women adorned with flowery tattoos on their puffy ankles. People who kill wild animals because they love nature. Mountain bike courses that do not require mountain bikes. When a gas station has a Subway and a DQ under the same roof. Once proud dogs that are forced into silly bouffant haircuts.  Racing on snowshoes when its faster if you don’t have snowshoes on. Big tough Harley riders that ride motorized tricycles.

My muse comes with the thought that there is something to the old adage that “one cannot have his cake and eat it (too).”  This idea stems from my experiences at the recent Rusty Ride 100 miler over at Crosby-Ironton.  Trying to please everyone is a difficult proposition that in the end is probably impossible.  The course was composed of four approximate twenty-five mile laps.  With each lap, the apparent concept was to uniquely provide a cycling experience composed of all five of the current popular modes of bicycle racing in the Midwest. Namely; endurance racing, gravel road racing, road racing, cyclocross, and mountain bike racing.  To achieve such an ambitious end, each lap was composed of basically three separate and juxtaposed segments- all of about the same length. Segment one consisted of basic flat asphalt (and a little gravel).  The kind of tarmac, which a fast and strong flatland roadie would appreciate.  Segment two was a winding, fast curving, and somewhat rolling grass pathway that meandered through pretty wild flowers.  Segment two would cater to a fast and skilled cyclocross rider. Segment three was composed of a tightly cornered and fun, albeit moderate aspect of the Cuyuna Mountain Bike Trail system.  Here a good rider was treated to a sampling of some decent terrain. 

It was a tough thing to pull off and while I enjoyed the Cuyuna part, I languished on the tarmac and simply endured the grass pathway. Perhaps others enjoyed the other aspects. The undeniable fact of the matter is that to win such a race one has to truly be a well-rounded rider.  Kudos to Mr. Larry Sauber for a top notch effort and the win. On the many (and unique) "two-way traffic sections" in which riders flew by each other, he always looked very strong. 
Note: They had run out of the promised free indie beer when I finished...which made me very sad indeed.  In fact I was inconsolable.  My therapist feels it will take some time to heal.