I made it to East Beach later today (11/15/06), got to ride a bit, and enjoyed a good session and seeing a lot of friends.

The session ended on a down note, however. While driving off after dark, I slowed down because there was a raccoon in the road. It was already too late for him, however. He was in his death throes because he had just been hit by the car ahead of me.

I am not pointing fingers at anyone--up to that moment, I was not thinking about watching for animals. It had not even occurred to me to be a concern. Obviously, I know better now, and so should the rest of us.

Given that Fort DeSoto is a park and we are often the last park users leaving, let’s all try to slow it down a bit and keep our eyes open when leaving Fort DeSoto, particularly at dusk or later, so that the other raccoons and wild animals who live there have a better chance of avoiding harm should they wander in front of our exiting vehicles. Thanks, everybody, and good luck to those who are racing tomorrow.