Back from Hiatus

Greetings All,
Well, between work, vacation, and all the work from coming back from vacation, riding and blogging have taken a back seat. But now after a lovely 21 mile spin this morning, I can give you an update. We had a lovely trip down to Arizona making a large loop to Tucson, then north to the high plateau exploring Flagstaff for a few days. Then north through Zion National Park to Cedar City where we enjoyed two days of the Shakespeare Festival. www.bard.org.

In riding news, I have decided to sign up for the Cache Valley Century on August 26th. http://www.cvveloists.org/century.htm This should give me a good focus goal to work towards for the next 45 days or so.

On this morning's ride, I caught up with a fella riding a nice Rans V-Rex. First 'Bent I've seen in a long time on any of my rides. We had a nice few miles together as I was on the inward leg, and he was heading out for 50. Wish I had would have had time to just continue along with him. He is also expecting to ride Cache Valley, so we might be able to pace each other.

Here are a few pics from our desert adventure. Enjoy!


The spectacular view from the 18th tee at Arizona National.
http://www.arizonanationalgolfclub.com/


The Lowell telescope in Flagstaff. The planet
Pluto was discovered using this telescope.


The Vermillion Cliffs, just west of Page, Arizona.


Zion National Park

Antelope by Mountain Top?

Hi all,
A pleasant surprise in the mailbox today! I won a door prize at last week's Antelope by Moonlight ride! What a great way to end the day. Fun mail! Not bills!

And what did I win? A pass to ride the gondola/tram to the top of the mountain at Snowbasin Ski and Mountain Bike Resort, and then a free lunch on top of the mountain at The Needles Restaurant. Pretty cool, huh?

Check them out here: http://www.snowbasin.com./index_s.asp

Anyways, no riding this week as my work schedule overran me everyday.

More news and adventures next week.

Jim

Antelope By Moonlight

Hi All,
Well, the 13th Annual Antelope By Moonlight Ride was a grand success! Labled: The Curse of the 13th Ride, a pirate theme emerged coincident with the opening of "Dead Man's Chest." So, lots of folks in pirate garb having fun riding their bikes in the middle of the night. I counted 7 recumbent bikes this year, including two Bacchetta Aeros! Note the picture below of the Pirate rider showing of his fine bike. Nearly 800 riders came out, including families, Boy Scouts, kids, teenagers, parents towing trailers, serious cyclists, and just casual riders that enjoyed the warm evening. Please enjoy a few photographs. We were treated to a lovely sunset too! I experimented with some timelapse photography during the ride, and got some interesting results. I brought my small 8 inch tripod, would set it on the road, set the shutter release timer and then an 8 second exposure. On one frame (see below) the neon spoke lights of a passing rider made for an interesting effect.


One of a pair of Cycle Genius Bikes


This is a Bilenky. The couple that rides it has
over 10,000 miles touring on it!


No comment needed: Nice fella, Lovely bike.


Rookie timelapse experimentation!



Total mileage for the ride: 24 miles
Max speed on the big downhill: 40 mph (I blew past a ton of riders!)
Average speed: 17 mph

This week is a 6 day work week complete with 4 swing shifts, so probably some morning rides, and I will skip the ride commuting for the week, as I don't ride home from work at 11:00 PM!

Happy riding, all. Hope you are enjoying the summer and having enjoyable time outdoors.

Jim

Attack of the Utah Caterpillars!

Hi All,
Sorry for the delay in posting, it's been a busy time. Along with all the usual busy parts of life such as family, work, Emmaus, cycling, and a host of other fun, we have been overrun with Caterpillars. Yes, that's true! Just hum along with me" Dum Dum Dum, Dah de Dah, Dah de Dah... (Darth Vader music) and you get the idea. As the 375 of them sat on my kitchen counter, poised for world domination, I wondered, can anyone save us?







In other news, this week brings a new month and new riding challenges. Friday brings the 2006 Antelope Island By Moonlight ride. I attended in 2004 and had a great time riding to the Garr Fielding Ranch on Antelope Island. I tried to ride in 2005 but went on the wrong evening, and all I got for my trouble was eaten alive by mosquitos! Hopefully this year my vain attempts at night photography will net some results for a future blog. For now, enjoy the links and old photos from the island. http://www.davisareacvb.com/attractions/antelopeislandfacts.htm





And lastly, be sure to check my new link on the right tab for Bill Cook's journal of riding across the USA on his Barcroft Bike. As owner, Boss, and Chief Flunky of Barcroft Bikes, Bill is a new friend who built and designed the Little Red Bike. The Adventure Cycling Group has had great adventures so far, along with tragedy. Please bookmark the link and enjoy the Journal.

http://www.washingtonbureau.typepad.com/bikeblog/

Hope you all have a SAFE and happy riding month.

jim