The Day I Rode with Robin Williams (Sort Of)

Quick Take

I signed up for a famous Austin century ride expecting sunshine. Instead, I got cold wind, pouring rain, and one of the strangest “celebrity” moments of my life — a short conversation with a rider who turned out to be Robin Williams.

I rode in the Ride for the Roses in Austin, Texas on October 26, 2003.

The day before the ride felt like the kind of weather cyclists brag about later: blue sky, calm air, and that “this is going to be perfect” feeling when you pick up your registration packet.

But the next morning? Completely different.

That morning hit like a slap

Cold. Windy. Overcast. The kind of weather where you question every decision that led you to standing in a parking lot at 7:30 AM dressed like a human rain barrel.

The ride was supposed to roll out at 8:00 AM… but we didn’t move. We just stood there shivering in our gear, waiting.

Why? Because Lance Armstrong was the special guest, and the crowd wasn’t leaving until he showed up. It was a Livestrong event, and at that point in time, Lance was the biggest name in cycling. He’d just won his 5th straight Tour de France. People weren’t just excited — they were starstruck.

About 30 minutes late, Armstrong finally arrived and the ride started. A full 100 miles lay ahead… and the weather already felt like it wanted to win.

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Twenty Miles In, I Was Already Mentally Toast

Somewhere around mile 20, I was grinding straight into a rain-soaked headwind. The rain wasn’t “refreshing.” It wasn’t “a little drizzle.” It was the kind of wet that finds your bones.

I was cold, discouraged, and doing that internal bargaining cyclists do when things get ugly:

“If it eases up in the next five miles, I’ll keep going.”
“If it gets worse, I’ll quit at the next stop.”
“If I can just warm up somehow…”

That’s when another rider pulled up beside me. We were riding shoulder-to-shoulder in the storm like two wet dogs pretending we were fine.

I turned my head and said:

“This isn’t too fun, is it?”

He didn’t laugh.

He didn’t even look at me in a friendly way. He kept his head down to dodge the rain being driven straight into our faces, and he said—quietly:

“There’s nothing funny about this.”

Then he stood on the pedals and pulled away… and just like that, he was gone.

A few seconds later it hit me.

Wait… I know that face.

The rider I’d just tried to joke with — in the middle of a miserable storm — was Robin Williams.

He was known to be a supporter of Livestrong and a friend of Lance’s. And there I was, tossing a half-joke at one of the funniest men alive… and he couldn’t even crack a smile because the conditions were that brutal.

The Jacket for Days That Test You

That cold, rainy ride taught me a simple truth: if your gear fails, your mood fails right after it. A lightweight, packable rain jacket that keeps you dry, warm, and visible is worth its weight in gold when the skies open up.

See the Rain Jacket on Amazon

I Never Saw Him Again… and the Ride Got Worse

I never crossed paths with him after that moment. I still wonder if he finished. A lot of riders didn’t.

The rain turned into a real downpour. Roads flooded in places. People started quitting. The kind of quitting that isn’t dramatic — it’s just survival: “I’m done. I’m cold. I’m not having fun. I’m going back.”

But I kept going.

I finished the full 100 miles — wet, cold, exhausted… and proud. Not because it was heroic. Because it was hard, and I didn’t fold.

And now when somebody asks if I’ve ever met a celebrity, I can honestly say:
“Well… I rode with Robin Williams. Sort of.”

🚴‍♂️ Still pedaling,
The Old Guy Bicycle Blog

From the same ride…

Read my story from the very same event: It’s how I beat Lance Armstrong

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