This date is the earliest the annual the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance is performed, a folk dance each Wakes Monday in the village of Abbots Bromley in Staffordshire, England. It is performed by ten dancers accompanied by an accordionist and a youth with a triangle. Six of the dancers carry reindeer horns. The others take the roles of a hobby horse, Maid Marian, a fool, and a youth with a bow and arrow. The performers dance around the parish all day, starting at the parish church where the horns are stored. The origin of the dance is unknown. The earliest written record of a hobby-horse performance at Abbots Bromley dates to 1532, and the first mention of the reindeer horns is from 1686. Radiocarbon dating shows at least one of the horns in the church dates to the eleventh century, though it is unknown how or when they came to Staffordshire or became associated with the dance. Many explanations of the meaning of the dance have been proposed, and it is commonly interpreted as a pagan ritual, but there is no evidence for any of them. Wakes Week now starts the first Sunday after September 4, so the earliest date of Wakes Monday is September 6. Originally a religious celebration or feast, the tradition of the Wakes Week developed into a secular holiday, particularly in North West England during the Industrial Revolution. Each locality nominated a Wakes Week when the local industries closed for a week for maintenance, and many families took a trip during that time. The tradition has now disappeared in most of the UK due to the decline of industry and schools objecting to the holidays at exam times. Credit: https://w.wiki/FGAF A short ride today, but a good workout. I stayed last night at Sugarloaf Ridge State Park Campground in Sonoma County. The campground is an 3.5-mile, 800-foot climb from the state highway, so this morning I took the opportunity to ride down to the highway, a few miles back and forth, the 360-foot climb up to Mount Hood Regional Park, and then back up to Sugarloaf Ridge in time to shower before the noon checkout time. It was misty at the campground when I left, and still when I got back. I rode up to Sugarloaf one other time, almost exactly 7 years ago, as part of a 70-mile loop from Santa Rosa to Petaluma. That time, I climbed to Sugarloaf in 27 minutes, 2 minutes faster than today. https://ridewithgps.com/trips/27699738