11 February 2008

Another good find.

From the front door of HPV, we spotted a bit more of a bike path, we had to follow it, so far it had been good for us. And guess what we found, but an old velodrome, from an era long ago, almost ready to fall to the weeds and grasses surrounding it. It must have beautiful in it’s day, with the remnants of an old stand surrounding it, just wasting away to the elements. There was a nice bit of artwork just been painted on the lockup, it was sweet, a nice bit of work by some local artists. It looked pretty fresh, as there was no other tags or paint on it yet, I recorded it for history, while the boys had a bit of a blast around the track.

The wicked paint job on the old bike shed.

An era of racing, long passed on, but only if those bleachers could talk, what stories they would tell.

How long have you been here? Nice work.

The mural on the lockup said established in 1916, and from the looks of things, the current track had been laid in the seventies, probably covering what they rode on before that. It was a nice end to a morning of new beginnings, and seeing the end of the line for a few more bikes, that never made it back into a garage. I hear from the lads, the track still gets used a bit by the local club. A training session for kids, twice a week keeps the track alive, at least for a few more years yet. And for the odd messenger meetings and fixie fiends, to show who is the coolest on the day. I just hope the encroaching subdivision does not claim it too soon. As it looks like it could make it to 100 years old, easy.

Scooters bike looking the part, as some of the older club members look on.


And the winner is, cycling, cause it's still better than walking.

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