Same Road, Different Direction

2:27 / 21.7 miles

I asked a friend that's lived here for 15 years where a certain road went if I turned to the right.  I've already gone left on that road on a previous ride.  He said it went waaaaaaay out to the base of the mountains off in the distance.  Sounded good to me!

It's usually getting warm by the time I leave around 0530, bu today there was still a cool morning breeze.  I love it when that happens!

I rode a few miles until I reached an intersection and turned right to see what I'd find.  The shoulder of the road was pretty wide, but it  had a several spots with sand/gravel, pieces of asphalt and some broken glass.

After about 6 miles it turned into perfectly smooth blacktop!  I love it when that happens!

Unfortunately, just a little further down the road, I saw another one of these;

(Click on pic to enlarge)

This is the second time I've seen one of these. 

To say it ticks me off, would be an understatement.

After 4 more miles, the road turned VERY rough and bumpy.  It looked like that for as far as I could see, so I decided to turn around and head back.

Instead of going back the same way, I turned onto a side road I've been on a couple of other times.

While cruising down the road, I noticed there was a dirt road running parallel to the paved road I was on.

I've always liked heading down new roads, so I cut over and this is what the road looked like;

This road was hard packed dirt/sand.  It was pretty smooth and was a nice change of pace from the paved roads.  It was also closer to the trees which provided me with more shade.

After less than a mile, I saw another path on the right and decided to check it out;

I only went a block or so and then the hard packed dirt/sand became not so hard and not so packed!

My tires were spinning, but going nowhere.  I got off the trike and walked down the road and around the corner.  The road went way out into the desert.  I'll let someone with a dirt bike or a dune buggy explore that one.

I got back on the paved road and headed for home.

By 0800 it is usually very warm, but it looks like today might be a little cooler than it has been.

I'm going to try to ride Monday thru Saturday this week.

So stay tuned!

THE END

Happy 4th of July!

God Bless America!  Support Our Troops!

Taking a day off from riding, but I'll be back on the road tomorrow!

Same Distance, Faster Time!

Back on June 9th, I did my first long ride on my trike.  It was 21.8 miles and the trip took 3 hours and 40 minutes.

Today, I decided to do the same route again to see if I could improve my time.  After a couple weeks of nothing but hot weather with no clouds and no breeze, this morning had a lot of clouds and a nice, strong breeze.  It was going to be a good ride!

The road I was on is a combination of slight inclines and flats on the way out.  So that means on the way back there will be slight DEclines and flats!

I had a strong headwind going out, so I was really looking forward to turning around and enjoying a strong tailwind.

Since it's Saturday, there was hardly any traffic on the road.  However, there were 3 rabbit roadkills.

If you have roadkill, you have buzzards.  They look like big hawks when they're flying, but when they land, you can see that ugly read head.

The highest speed I could get up to was only 9 mph going out.  BUT, I was going to have a tailwind when I turned around, so that was okay.

After an hour and 27 minutes I made it to the end of the road.  Now I could enjoy those slight declines and that strong tailwind.

Or so I thought.

At the EXACT time I was turning around, the wind STOPPED!  COMPLETELY!  No breeze AT ALL!

Dagnabbit!

Oh well.  I still had the declines to enjoy.  I shifted gears and started spinning the pedals and was picking up speed.

I was able to reach a top speed of 18 mph!  If God wasn't going to give me a breeze, I'll just generate my own!

During the trip, as usual, I saw a lot of dogs.  Most were fenced in, but a few came out on the road and chased me, but it was just for a short distance.  None of them seemed agressive.  They just like to chase moving objects.

But a Pit Bull did manage to scare me a little.  I was cruising along when I suddenly saw a 50 pound black Pit Bull on the side of the road.  He was staring right at me and had a really mean snarl on his face!

My fear lasted about one second as I soon realized this dog was as dead as a doornail.  He was laying on his right side and his legs were straight and stiff as a board.  His eyes were wide open and it looks like he died in mid-growl.  I didn't notice any bodily damage, so I assume he must've just got smacked by a car and knocked to the side of the road.  It was pretty strange the way he was just staring at me.

I was going to stop and take a picture, but does anyone really want to see a photo of a dead dog?

I kept on cruising and was home in no time..

So, how much faster was I this time compared to the last time, you ask?

The last time was 3 hours and 40 minutes and today's time was 2 hours and 19 minutes.

That's 1 hour and 21 minutes faster! 

Since I've done this same route before, I only took one picture, today.  If you forgot what the trip looks like, go back to the June 9th entry of this blog.

I pulled off onto a side road to take a break and this is some of the "natural" desert scenery I saw.

There were more tires and other trash all over the place.  Pretty sad, but some folks just don't care.

That's it.  That's all.  The End. 

Honey-Do is DONE!

I've been alternating my early mornings between cycling and painting the new storage shed in our backyard.  This morning I finished the shed.  

Now I can get in more riding time!

But, this isn't just a storage shed...

...It's Jolly Roger's House!

It was too hot to go riding by the time I finished the shed, so I just took these pix to post out here in case someone dropped by to check the blog.

That's All Folks!

Cruising The Side Roads

1:48 / 12.9

Since it's getting a lot warmer a lot sooner, I'll be limiting my rides to about 2 hours each morning.

I went a few streets over and just road up and down several side roads I've never been on.

Took a few pix and a short break halfway through the trip. 

Nothing too exciting, but it was fun.

Riding a trike is the easiest and most fun method of self-propulsion I've ever tried. 

I highly suggest you go out and get yourself one!

Yours Truly

Not much to photograph today, so I took a pic of myself.

Check out the new headlight on my helmet.

I'ts pretty bright and the flashing light should make me more noticeable to the drivers.

Just because I get up at 4:30 to go riding doesn't mean I have to like it!

This is my "Mr. Grumpy Pants" face.

Jolly Roger taking a break at the end of a dead-end road.

Looking for breakfast

This buzzard was sitting on top of a telephone pole, so I stopped to get a picture.

A short distance down the road was a fresh roadkill rabbit. 

 On the way back, Mr. Buzzard was chowing down.

Better the rabbit instead of me!

Eat or be eaten!

This sign was on the telephone pole the bird was sitting on.

I wasn't sure if it was electrically related or reminding me the bird could eat me as easy as I could eat him.  Actually it would be easier for him since he wouldn't have to cook me!

I like long, smooth roads!

THE END

Trying To Stay Cool

1:28 / 11.6 miles

I got on the road at 0530 and rode around the neighborhood and got home before it started getting too blasted hot.

After getting dehydrated last week, I made sure to drink a lot of water and Gatorade.  Of course, if you drink more, you have to make more "pit stops."  It makes it real easy to find a secluded spot when you have no choice!  It's not like there's a rest room on every corner out here in the desert, ya know?

I was approaching a ranch that was all fenced off with several dogs in the yard.  When they saw me, they came charging up to the fence and followed me along the fence line, barking all the way.

When I saw the gate across the driveway was closed, I just laughed at them as I rode past.

BUT...

Right past that property was a big, empty field with  shrubbery along the road.  There was a big hole in the shrubbery right after I passed the gate.  And through that hole came bounding out a BIG, Black Lab!

I was right in front of him when he jumped out and I thought he was going to land in my lap.  I just yelled at him and kept pedaling.  He looked like a big, happy puppy, and didn't look too scary, but he sure did startle me.

I went down a few new roads and saw lots of other dogs.  Most of them were fenced in and the dogs that weren't just stood and stared as I went by.

Nothing real exciting and only a couple of pictures, but it was some good exercise.

It's getting hotter a lot earlier, so I'll be lucky if I can get in an hour or so each morning until Summer is over and it cools off.  Riding in 100+ degree heat is NOT my idea of fun.

Arizona Guard Dog

What are you looking at?

This is the end.

A Long, HOT Ride!

I thought I'd try doing a Half-Century Ride (50 miles) this morning, but things didn't work out exactly as planned.

After having a big cheese omelet for breakfast, I left around 0530 and was going to combine two shorter trips I've already done into one bigger ride and then add on a few more twists and turns. 

It was overcast and cloudy with a nice cool breeze.  A perfect day for a long ride! 

Or so I thought.

After getting out on the main road, I was riding past a convenience store.  I thought it might be a good idea to stop and get something to eat for later, since I was going to be on the road for several hours.

Or so I thought.

When I was locking up my trike, two guys came out of the store and were looking at my trike. 
One of them said "That looks like a lot of fun."  I said "Yeah, and it's pretty comfortable, too."

I picked up an energy drink and some trail mix and got back on the road.

I drank the energy drink while cruising down the shoulder for a few miles.  A guy on a racing bike approached from the other direction, and as we passed, I waved to him.  At first I thought he was ignoring me, but then I noticed he was staring at me like he had never seen a recumbent trike before.
He slowly raised his hand and waved back like he was staring at a two-headed monster or something.

In order to conserve energy for the longer trip, or so I thought, I decided I would just take it slow and easy and wouldn't be doing any sprinting like I do once or twice while out on a ride.

I rode for about 90 minutes and pulled into a local park to use the restroom at the ballpark.
I was unlocking my trike and was getting ready to leave when a County Cleanup Crew came in to clean the park.  It was a couple County workers and a couple County inmates wearing their orange clothes.

One of the inmates said he liked my "bike".  I told him not to use it to try to escape.  He just laughed and said he had 2.5 months left on his sentence, so he wasn't going to escape.  As I went back on the bike path, I saw another inmate getting out of the truck.  He just stared at me just like the guy on the bike had done earlier.

After coming to the end of the bike path, I decided to start riding down some new roads as I continued on my long road trip.

Or so I thought.

During the trip, I would pull over whenever I was lucky enough to find a large shade tree on those long, flat, desert country roads.

I pulled under a big shade tree and decided it was time for some more water and that trail mix.  As I was sitting there, I could hear several birds in the tree chirping and singing.

After a while it dawned on me...Birds ABOVE and me BELOW equals the possibility of me getting hit with a load of bird poo!  I finished the trail mix and continued on my long road trip.

Or so I thought.

A few miles later, I noticed my sunscreen was wearing off because my shins started to feel like a giant chicken leg that was in the oven and they just changed the setting from BAKE to FRY!

They say "Discretion is the better part of valor" and it was at this point I decided it would be a good idea to cut the trip short and head for home since I didn't have any more sunscreen with me.

I was about 9 miles from home, so I reluctantly turned and headed that way.  A mile or so later, I saw a horse ranch with a beautiful paint horse in the pasture.

My wife, Alice, loves paint horses and use to have one for several years.  The horse ranch had a shaded, tree-lined driveway, so I pulled over under a tree and took a few pictures to post out here.

I kept drinking water as I pedaled down what is now a road out in sun with no shade for the rest of the trip.

Except for feeling a little sunburned on my legs, I felt pretty good.  I pulled in our driveway and rode around back to put my trike in the storage shed.

Usually, the end of my little road trips are pretty uneventful.

Or so I thought.

When I got off my trike, I started feeling pretty woozy.  I put the trike in the shed and headed for the back door of our home.  I knocked on the door and heard my wife coming to unlock it.

I had to sit down on the back steps in the shade because I felt like I was going to pass out.

Besides having a slight case of sunburn, I was also suffering from heatstroke.

I scared the crap out of my wife!  I was sitting on the steps with my head in my hands.  I wanted to stand up to go into the house, but I was feeling too dizzy.

I could hear my wife above and behind me and she was tugging on my shoulder and quietly calling my name.

As it turns out,  I was nearly passed out and she was yanking on my t-shirt to keep me from falling off the steps. She said she was screaming for help at the top of her lungs.  She also said my eyes were rolled back in my head and all she could see were the whites of my eyes.

We live in the country, and she said none of our neighbors heard her or even looked out their windows.

After a few minutes, I was able to stand up and get inside to the cool AC and my favorite recliner.
I drank a big glass of iced tea and a couple Diet Pepsi's.

I'm definitely getting better sunscreen and drinking more water from now on!
I'll wait until Fall before attempting those long rides in the Arizona sun.

Except for feeling like my sunscreen was wearing off, I felt fine right up until I got off my trike.
The heatstroke hit me like a ton of bricks! And I know all about hydrating, sunscreen, etc after having Uncle Sam beat it into my head for 20 years.  I checked my blood pressure and it was all good.

Be careful out there and don't think it can't happen to you. It can!

As for me, I'm taking a few days off from riding and will be enjoying the AC for a while.

I'll also limit my riding time between 5 - 9 a.m. After that, it OBVIOUSLY gets too dang hot to be out riding.  I'll wait until the cooler Fall weather gets here before trying another long ride.

A short while after getting in the house, my wife informed me it was 107 degrees in the shade! 
It wasn't even Noon, yet!

It heated up a lot faster today than it normally does.  I really wanted to do a Half-Century Ride today.

Or so I thought.

BTW, my trip lasted for 3:46 and I went 30 miles.

Rest Stop For Non-Recumbent Riders

This has to be a rest stop for those folks that ride mountain bikes and road bikes.

Recumbent bikes and trikes already come with a comfy seat to sit on!

Warning Sign

Hey Bubba, if you El Eato El Spicey Burrito, you will El Paso Gas!

Long Road To Nowhere

I like old trucks, so I went across the road to take this picture.

I was on the dirt shoulder of the road.

When I got back on the road, I started hearing a "thumping" sound on the left tire.

I thought it was just a piece of gravel stuck in the tread.

It turned out to be about a dozen thorns imbedded in the tire.

Each thorn was about 1/4 inch long.

I pulled each one out and had no punctures to the inner tube!

They say the Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires with thorn-resistant tubes are pretty good.

I think I just proved it!

Pretty Paint Horse