Since 2007, this date has been celebrated as Meänmaa Flag Day. Meänmaa means "Our Land" in Meänkieli, a Finnic language spoken in the northernmost part of Sweden, particulary in the Torbe River Vally at the border of Sweden and Finland. The tradition was started by the association Meänmaan Tinkerit and was made an official Swedish holiday in 2015. On July 15, 2017, a group of around 70 people from both sides of the border gathered on the bridge between Ylitornio and Aavasaksa. They carried flags both from Övertorneå on the Swedish side and Aavasaksa on the Finnish side. The groups met in the middle of the bridge, where a symbolic border stone was dropped from the bridge into the river as a sign of cross-border cooperation. Afterwards, a song in Meänkieli called "The River has Always Been" was sung. I was glad to ride today with friends from the Santa Cruz Cycling Club. I had planned to join the A ride, but I switched to the B ride because I needed to be back at New Brighton State Beach by 2 pm to grab tonight's campsite from the waiting list. I got a beautiful, shady site near the showers! The B ride included lots of roads (and climbs) I remember, like Valencia and Day Valley. And the sudden transition from Freedom to Hames, where years ago I saw a rider fall because they couldn't get into a lower gear quick enough. But today went great! Overcast and cool almost the whole time, perfect. It was great to meet up with Judy Isvan and ride with her for a bit. But I arrived late at the start, so I wasn't ready when the B riders departed. It took most of the route to catch up with her and two Debs on the levee. They were stopped to consider what to do about a feral dog that had nipped Deb W on the ankle. We took photos of the dogs, and Deb left a message for animal control after an hour on hold. I met Deb at the finish, and she was doing OK. Tomorrow, I'm planning to drive to the East Bay to join the Valley Spokesmen for their weekly evening Mount Diablo practice ride. I don't know how far I get. I might try to get a campsite at Live Oak Campground and ride down to the start of the practice ride in Danville, then back up to Live Oak, 1,200 feet in 5.8 miles. Or maybe I'll leave the van at the start.