Mornings...

Since summer has fully ensconced us in its grip of heat, humidity and long days, it's often necessary for us Phoenix riders to get out early to avoid the wilting temperatures. A four o'clock alarm isn't unheard of and allows one to put in a good 40-mile road loop or 20-mile dirt ride and to enjoy the lack of traffic. While still dark, it isn't long before the sun begins it upward arc and lights up the rocky hills around the Valley with saguaro cactus casting long shadows. The quail and dove are out in force, taking advantage of the cooler morning before they hunker down and seek shade. The desert hare drag races the rider along small stretches of road before beginning their zig-zag escape, often at danger to themselves.

The network of canals can provide a slightly cooler alternative to many of the major streets as well as the MUT's that lightly lace the valley. It's often on these canals, trails and paths that we see other riders on the same pre-work mission. We also encounter joggers, runners and dog walkers. As creatures of habit, we often see the same folks at the same time. Our courses and routes laid out, typically because we know how long they should take and how much time we have before our first meetings at work and many of us begin our work day, the fun put to rest until our next ride.

5/24/2009 Free Weekend at the Grand Canyon

Since Julie and I were so close to the Canyon and she had never been before, I took her to see the "Big Hole". She was duly impressed.

We visited Yavapai Pt., Mather Pt. and Grandview as well as Grand Canyon Village. Saw some deer and a large elk with fuzzy antlers and all. No pics of that, though.

5/23/2009 CABRA Ride to the Canyon

From CABRA-2009

Julie and I arrived in Flagstaff on Friday night to crash with Dave. Had a couple of beers and relaxed in the hot tub for a few before heading off to get some needed sleep prior to the big day.

A bit bleary-eyed but eager and with some rain still falling, we drove over to the Pay-n-Take where we would start the ride. The other riders were slowly trickling in so we had time for a breakfast burrito (which would give me heartburn all the way up Snowbowl Road). After all the riders arrived, we departed around 7:15 through town and on the MUT and the Ft. Valley Trail(s) to Snowbowl Road where the climb began in earnest. Sucking wind, I spun my way up as I was passed by a couple of groups of riders but I made it up to the turn-off onto the AZ Trail. Some great vistas and nice singletrack kept me company as I would see very few riders for the next 35 miles or so due to a wrong turn and requirement to double back on some newly cut trail (that's gonna be some good stuff!). Back on trail proper, I rode with Corey for a bit until we met up again with Scott (the organizer of the ride), Gnome, Tim, Melanie, Deanne and Annie(?) and we began our drop into Babbitt Ranch.

Last time through this section it was raining on me and Yuri, but this time it was warm, and the trail was thoroughly dry and rocky as hell. Next time I will not ride a rigid fork. After a few miles of that, I met up with the SAG support where Dave B. took care of bikes as well as provided food and beer. That Modelo hit the spot. I continued on north and up and out of the Ranch, passing and getting passed by Gnome as we rode our rides. At this point, I wasn't going to push too hard as I had lost some time (and about 6-ish miles on the "detour" I took) and really, there were a lot of miles to go.

We finally got back into the pines and on fire roads. The tailwind that we enjoyed across some of Babbitt hit us head-on and made for some demoralizing moments. At one point I think Gnome kept passing and dropping back was he was sick of me complaining about how bad I felt at one point right before Moqui Stage stop. Since I didn't take a map and was using my GPS, I missed a turn or two and ended up adding another 6-7 miles to my ride. Gnome took a nap while I added to my time and we met up again at where the road converged where we finished on to Tusayan (missing another turn) and heading the next 2 miles or so south to the Ten-X Campground.

At the end of the day, I finished just under 96 miles with 9h 20m moving time and 10h 20m of total time. It was a challenging day but well worth it.

Scott Miller and his crew made sure we had all the food, beer and tunes at the campground. Breakfast burritos and coffee had us starting our day. Quite a few people were still partying up until 1:30 or so and you could tell who they were either by absence or appearance.

From CABRA-2009

Arizona Trail 5/23 - 5/28

What follows is long winded so pictures can be found here.



You can see Yuri's account and pictures here.

Yuri wanted to complete the final section of the AZ Trail and I was again happy to ride along. This was my third segment (still need to do Mexico to Tucson) and a good one it was.

The forecasts had us seeing rain throughout our travel time and locations but seeing as we had most of the necessary gear and more importantly the vacation window, it was a moot point.

Saturday had us waking up around 5am at Gnome's after a good time at the Pay-n-Take the night before. A brief stop for fuel and food and we were AZ/UT border bound. The drive up was mostly rainy and cloudy but once we hit Vermillion Cliffs Road, most of the rain had stopped although there was still heavy cloud cover.

Our ride proceeded with some soft and loamy singletrack which made the going fairly slow. Factor in the amount of climbing and it was a long day on the bike with the intermittent rain and hailstorms. It rained, it hailed and stormed pretty heavily our first night near Jacob Lake but we survived the day/night and woke the next morning to some wet gear but eager to be on our way to the North Rim.

The trail again mostly had us ascending but the trail was in fine shape until we hit the trail closure at FR205 to Crane Lake. We took the road at this point as there was no real desire to get a ticket even if the chance of that was relatively low. The climbing on the road was bearable up to the point of being passed by large groups of Harley riders out for a Memorial Day jaunt. It's arguable that we did the right thing as we were hit by a fast-moving thunderstorm that produced a harsh crosswind and rain. We had arranged to meet our support driver Melissa just south of the DeMotte Campground and after making some coffee she showed shortly thereafter with our Backcountry Permit for the Grand Canyon. (note- I had forgot the one I obtained a few months prior; it was for the wrong days anyway)

The evening was interrupted by a guy running up asking us to call the Forest Service. Apparently our cell phones get a much better signal that his out in that area (WTF?). He literally added fuel to his already burning fire by pouring gasoline out of a jerry can. We helped him contain it a bit and dumped some water to quench the flames. Cooler heads prevailed and Yuri refrained from hitting the "911" button on the SPOT.

Again, we were up early and eager to start our hike from the North Rim down to Phantom Ranch where we would later meet Melissa and Randy who both would be coming down from the South Kaibab Trail. The hike down was something to behold. The Canyon is a contradiction when deep inside; you can sense the vastness as your mind knows its immensity and yet you see very little of it while on the trail. Reaching Phantom Ranch had us opting for a couple cans of Tecate while picking our camp for the night. The soak in Bright Angel Creek was a very welcome treat to us both. Melissa showed up with a few more beers in her pack which were promptly consumed. We followed up the evening meet and greet with a ranger giving a talk about a book "Death in the Grand Canyon." After a bit of death, we headed off to the canteen for a couple more beers as hiking is thirsty work.

It was around 5am when I awoke with the sky lighting up with Randy, Melissa and Yuri stirring about. Randy rode from Flagstaff and then hiked down the previous evening. Hardcore. We readied for our hike out up the Bright Angel Trail. It is longer but not as steep as the South Kaibab. It too was a great hike as the views were amazing and the trail decent except for the mule crap. I made it up to the last remaining 2 miles or so when I started to get light-headed. Yuri continued on I finished the last of my water. I completely underestimated how much I had and what I would need as the temperature rose as did the elevation. My mistake had me stopping every 1/4 mile or so and taking a small sip while I rested in the shade. It wasn't long before I was out of water and trudging my way slowly up the trail as I saw fresh faces of families out for a day stroll, often in flip flops and a small 8oz bottle of water between the five of them. Up and out I finally went to see Yuri taking a photo of one very thirsty and somewhat pissed-off me. Hydration was the first thing on my mind followed by a snack. Both were accomplished post-haste. We later met with Randy and Melissa for a beer at the Bright Angel Lodge. We continued on to a food resupply and were summarily left just south of Grandview Lookout on the South Rim from where we would begin the next day.

The singletrack from Grandview was something I did not expect. Except for the trail grenades (pinecones) and some fallen trees, the 'track was swoopy and skinny. It was our longest day in the saddle, pushing to within 25 miles or so of Flagstaff. We descended into the valley where Babbit Ranch sits, filtering water along the way at various stops. Nothing like using cattle troughs for quenching one's thirst. The drop to Babbitt Ranch was fairly fast if a bit windy. It was at this point that we crossed paths with a large number of other riders. Turns out they were Boy Scouts. Not sure if they were trying to earn a badge or what but it's a good thing they had a couple of SAG vehicles following. The climb out of Babbitt Ranch started out OK but ended up becoming something of a slog with the mud and rain. Some walking and bike cleaning was a necessity. We were still OK on water and decided to camp out near the next source which we did. It was a great view of the north face of the San Francisco Peaks and for the second time during our ride, a clear sky even if the temperature was a bit on the cold side.

Our final day on the trail started out much slower than the previous ones. Yuri and I both waited for sun up before emerging from our bags for coffee and food. My bag was a bit wet on top from condensation. Bags and clothes out to dry I went back to the tank to filter more water, which wasn't really needed but was welcome anyway. On our bikes it was a steep climb up and over the shoulder of the Peaks. We apparently missed a turn on our downhill bomb towards Flagstaff. A brief stint on the road and we headed back north to connect with the Ft. Valley trail system. We finished up the trail proper by popping out at the Schultz Creek Trailhead and then into Flagstaff for a pizza and a pint at Beaver Street Brewery.

Thanks to Yuri, Dave, Melissa, Randy, Pay-n-Take and most especially to my wife Julie for tolerating my absence.

Coachella 2009. We went the following weekend to Coachella. Mediocre line-up but some good showings...

San Francisco 4-10-2009

Went to a show at Slim's in San Francisco. Supposed to leave by 7-ish PM and arrive 9-ish PM. No such luck. We ended up hangin' out for a good 4 hours in Sky Harbor's Terminal 2. Not the best place to be stuck but since we had already dropped the car at long-term off airport parking, we figured we'd waste as much time getting the shuttle, getting the car, going home, chillin' for 1/2 hour, driving back to the parking lot, shuttle back to terminal, security, etc...You see where I'm going right?

Anyway, finally got in around 2am on Saturday. The Intercontinental hooked us up with a top-floor view of the city. Ordered in some room service and slept in late. We'd typically be all the place but we were kind of tired. Met up with Barry and John (fresh in from the UK) for some drinks and late lunch. Headed back to the hotel to nap a bit and get ready for the show.

The Soft Pack (formerly The Muslims), White Lies and Friendly Fires did not disappoint. Neither did the old(er) German couple hanging out next to us on the dinner floor.

Bars on Bikes

An impromptu ride through downtown Phoenix. Started at The Turf, moved to the Roosevelt and up to George and Dragon with a stop at a small art fair.

Still in Hollywood...

Went to Hollywoodland to visit Billy D. and check out a show his paintings were part of; The Bukowski Fest.

We ended up doing the typical Hollywood thing, bars and breakfasting with stars.

It was good.

We rode some bikes. A couple of Tucsonians made their way north for some new 'track for all of us. The Black Canyon Trail system is one to explore. We rode from Black Canyon City to the current northern extension and back. Yeti and I bailed back on Maggie Mine Rd. due to time constraints but damn, that is some sweet trail.