Roy G Biv

There was a vast rainbow of wildflowers out this morning.  A chill was in the air but not enough to matter,  just enough to lower water consumption.  The desert on all sides was speckled yellow with blossoming brittle brush as I climbed my way over the pass and began to count colors.  Speeding down to the Bush highway the yellow was joined by purple.  What were the purple flowers you ask?  Well I'll tell you....I don't know,  but they were sure pretty to ride alongside as I climbed up the hills of the Bush highway.   After Saguaro lake some very bright fuchsia shaded flowers started popping up here and there as well as some Orange flowers mixed in.  At this point I thought I had seen a lot of color but by the time I had climbed up the Beeline Highway to Sycamore Creek and come back I would find some beautiful cobalt blue flowers to round out our rainbow once I saw the red indian paintbrushes.

It was an absolutely gorgeous day to take a ride out amid the hills and wildflowers.   I woke up late so I missed the Brumby's and the Two Wheel Jones crew but figured I'd do some hills and went back up the Bush Highway to the Beeline and then over to Sycamore Creek and back.  Almost halfway to Payson.   There were a lot of cyclists out but I didn't get to chat anyone up.  Spent most of the ride alone with my thoughts,  the flowers,  the sun,  and the blue blue sky.

Incidentally, the latest news,  I have added another bike to the stable.   I managed to swap a bike I wasn't using with the bike I lent my father  in law many years ago that's been left out in the elements since then.  Why would I want a rusting old 80's era frame?  Well,  for one thing the rust wasn't too bad and mostly on the lugs where a little rust can be afforded.  Two,  those old frames didn't have straight drop outs,  they slanted a little.  Not a full horizontal slot mind you but still a slant giving a fella about 1/2 an inch or so of tensioning room if this said fella managed to take off the back brake, removed the shifters, derailleurs, and rear wheel,  and bolted a fixed gear wheel on.  Yeah it looks a bit ghetto but then again I am not in it to look like a hipster.  I am in it to train the leg muscles for the Grand Canyon hiking I will do later this year.

How will that work you say?  Well, I don't have trouble hiking out of the canyon thanks to those splendid quads cycling gives me but the muscles that slow me down when hiking into the canyon scream bloody murder the next day.  So if pedalling forward strengthens climbing muscles,  maybe, back pedalling to brake on a fixie will work the others.  As of Friday I can say that I am pretty sure I had the same sore muscles from riding the fixed gear as I did in the Canyon so I think the proof of concept is there.  Well see how it pans out.  In the meantime, riding fixed is a blast.