What is the Pantani Ride?

The deep, bothered, very fringe of the internet is where the magic is, and lucky for you, that's exactly where you've arrived.  This also happens to be where all of your questions regarding the upcoming Pantani Ride will be addressed with a maximum of vagueness and a minimum of actual substance, which will be frustrating for both of us, but somehow, we'll all come away from this slightly more content than how we started - which, as a metaphor for the Pantani Ride, I find very strong.

So let's get to it.  For starters, What Is The Pantani Ride?

This year, just like last year, just like most years before that one, I'm pretty much unable to say more, better, or clearer things than what I've said in the past.  Indeed, my best years of writing, riding, and existence on this planet are all well behind me.  But the beauty of the blog world is that you can always go back.  So let's do that:

The Pantani Ride is THIS.

It's also this.
And it's been this, this, this, this, and also this once or twice.  

For but a single person every year (and only one such person since 2011), it is this:

For others, it is really just a whole lot of this:


For the exclusive few, it is this:


And the very first time, it was just two of us, and a lot of this:


So that clears it up, right?

Possibly not.  But assuming you're comfortable with that level of obscurity, you'll be just fine.
If not, and if clicking all of those links, and the links that they link to, and the links beyond that which may have taken you over the very edge of the great flat planet that is internet, and you're still not sure, I'll just say this:

It's a bike ride.
Except for the potentially substantial amount of time when, depending on your tolerance for 25% gravel climbs, it's a bike hike.
And it all starts at 11 AM on Sunday, February 15th from out here at the Rancho Relaxo.
Where is that exactly?  Look, life - this thing we're all doing right now - requires you to find your own way sometimes, and this is one of those times.  But I hope you'll be here.

Coming up next time, I'll see if I can address more than one deep, very bothered, existential question about the fatbike category, or the possibility of a route change, or the current rapidly developing state of fitness that my brother is whipping himself into, or my prediction for an upset this year.

So stay tuned.  Or actually - tune out, go pedal something steep and hurty, and then tune back in.

Keep looking up up up.