Dan to Beersheba bike trip

The UMJC bike trip started at Tel Dan in the north, and ended this morning at Tel Beer Sheva, here in the south.  I had promised to meet them at the park, so I got going earlier than usual and walked the dog around 0730.  My friend lives by a neighborhood center, where there are usually lots of cabs available, so I went there instead of calling.  Many of the cabs on the street were busy taking people to work or somewhere, but finally a cab pulled up.  I said that I needed to go to the Tel Beer Sheva Park (אני צריכה לנסוע לפארק תל באר שבע), and he waved me off.  The next cab did the same thing.  And then there weren't any for a few minutes.  I was getting ready to call one of the cab companies, when a few cabs pulled up.  I thought I'd try again, and this cabbie was happy for the fare.  We confirmed that I wanted to go to the park (there is an Arab town named Tel Sheva), exchanged greetings (בוקר טוב, בוקר אור), and entered the traffic.  I had only a vague idea of where it was.  The cab ride was only NIS45.  A bargain.  I arrived at 0815.  It turns out that I could have taken an intercity bus to Tel Sheva - there's a stop right at the park entrance.  Good to know.

The team was supposed arrive at 1100, but I didn't want to miss them, so I was there early.  And properly equipped:  hat, sunscreen, layered clothing, camera, water, snacks (apricots and halvah), and my Kindle book on my phone.  Found a good part of a stone wall to sit on and read my book.  Time passed, and I've got to say that it was a busier national park than I would have thought.  Eight tour buses arrived between 0815 and 1030.  Wow.

I put my book down at 1030 and started actively watching for the bike group.  I hoped to grab some action photos of their last km on their trip.  Sure enough, I caught sight of them at 1120 (my camera is not on DST).  Here are a couple from the sequence:

Am I ready for Sports Illustrated??  I'm really pleased that the long-distance shot turned out.

I served as a videographer for their medal presentation, and caught a ride back to Beer Sheva with one of the drivers.  Then I was pooped.