Big Mel can't shift The Beast.

Visiting The Godfather and family for Christmas. Hopped out of the BigMelonCycling.com van with Mucho Grande (my helmet) on my head and jumped on the tandem with The Godfather.

The Godfather has a Trek tandem (very nice new bike, Big Mel doesn't know the model and I don't lose any sleep over the fact that I don't know the model; could be a 2006, or 2007 also, beats me). Anyway, this bike is the only piece of biking gear that weighs more than my melon.

This was the first time on the tandem since the Tour de Donut in July (finished first in our category ... Big Mel riding a tandem with The Godfather, but finished last among the tandems. You going to argue about it with The Godfather?!? He's not the Stoker for nothin'; ran over a fish riding along the Fox River and didn't even flinch.)

For some reason riding the Tandem around the neighborhood is a pain in the opposite end of the melon (seed ejector?? na.). It started raining while we were riding, so Big Mel wasn't going as fast downhill as I normally would and you can't keep momentum on The Beast up the hill anyway, so it was a hard ride (even for only 2 miles). Big Mel kept complaining about getting the gears tuned up; The Godfather kept complaining about getting my ability to shift 'tuned up'. Big Mel can't argue with The Godfather, I have my back to him as long as the bike is moving. Hey, at least the chain didn't break or even fall off, so how bad could it have been. There is still time to get the shifting down before The Big Ride '08!!

When we got back (and Big Mel stopped laughing) Big Mel stopped sweating and panting after about a half hour. Good Ride!!

I think I drank water out of a glass that my dog drank out of. Big Mel hates that.