Morning Evening Rides

Four Peaks as the misty morning burns off.

I got two rides in on Saturday plus I got a floor mounted bike rack built so my wife can get the bikes out occasionally.  It was a very productive day.  I missed the Brumbys because I woke up late but still managed to get 40 miles in out on the wet roads.  It stopped raining right as I got out of the garage.

 Fountain Hills

Mountains are shrouded in mist and bicycle tires hiss slightly as they kick water up off of the road.  It's a cool morning but the windvest is soon discarded as the hills come.  The bike will need cleaning but that is a small toll compared to the beauty of a cool wet morning in the desert.  I can't give it all I have got as strength will need to be saved for the evening ride with the kids,  especially if we use the trail a bike.

 Microwave tower above Las Sendas

Still,  I elect to throw a climb to the top of Las Sendas in to clock me in at 1800 feet of climbing and take the ride up to 40 miles.  I'm late.  Fortunately it's not a morning where anyone cares about that.  My wife is off on errands and the kids are glued to the computer watching tv.  I am glad I took the extra time.

Your's truly.



After a busy day, as night falls, my boys remind me of my promise to ride.  My daughter decides to accompany my wife going out to help my Mom with her shopping.  It's just me and the boys.  Surprisingly there are long stretches where I felt like I was taking a nice leisurely ride at a comfortable pace.  Not a slow pace,  a comfortable pace... for me.  For an 8 year old that's a pretty good pace.  I think the boys are getting stronger.  I keep telling them night riding gets really cool when you get out of the city and up on the hill.  Sadly we don't have time, but we do get a bit of darkness and views of the city lights heading down McKellips.  After a dinner at Sonic it is a really cold ride home.  Next time we'll bring wind breakers.

Midnight Mountain Mists

Thought I'd throw this picture up from Thursday night.  Missed my ride in the morning by sleeping in, so after the kids were down, I snuck out for a misty midnight snack.  Climbed up the back of Las Sendas to Hawes and snapped a picture and then came home.  I love riding late at night, when all the cars are tucked in for their long winter naps with visions of fuzzy dice dancing in their heads.  When the roads are bare and open for a lone cyclist to ride in smooth silence along good asphalt above the lights of the city that sleeps around 10:30 or a little after.

Breakfast Ride with Two Wheel Jones

The Sun is up on the Superstitions

 Saturday would be my first group ride in many months.  It was the Two Wheel Jones holiday breakfast ride (they are a local bike shop and serve one incredible breakfast).  I got out of the house late but managed to get there right at 7.  I had to gather up some of my stuff before I left the house and pump up my tires with the pump that my kids broke the gauge on (finger checking tends to underfill I find but it's better than overfilling).

The route first went up to the shadows of the Flat Iron (Westernmost peak in the Superstition mountains). 

Then down into the rollers descending into Apache Jct. and also to the rest stop at the notorious "Dash In"  gas station on the Apache Trail.

The middle hill

There are three out and back hills that go up to the Goldfield mountains that the route follows to get the climbing up to just shy of 1000'.  A lot of folks turned around before the top to stay with the pack.  I had no pretensions of holding the pack at this point so I climbed them all.

 Yours truly in front of Usery Mountain

In the end,  they were still just setting up breakfast when I got there.  I sat for a minute under one of the heaters and had a breakfast burrito.  Then I stuffed a cinamon roll in my jersey pocket and headed home so my wife could get her day started.  I guess I am not much of Socializer.