The month of November has come and gone and with it brought several rides that will become great memories for those who ventured out in the dark of the morning in chilly temps. Big Man, once again decided to wear his birthday one-piecer and convinced a couple of other dummies to ride on Nov 1st. No matter how fast they rode laps around Sugarhouse Park, it didn't get any warmer, so they decided to stop at the new Starbucks on 1300 East and warm their souls. Queen of Wraps was brave enough to come out on an early Saturday and introduced a "Secret Path" to help in the efforts of making a loop over Suncrest. Joey Wood hosted a tour of the Pluralsight corp office, where the riders filled their stomachs and pockets with treats. And last but not least, Prez has informed the group that unless it's in the 40s, I'll see you in the Spring.
So once again, we pause to ask, "How many times will we ride outside in Dec, Feb & Mar?" AND we also stop to give THANKS!
"Before we ask for our needs, we take stock of what we have.
Before anything we may pray for, we give thanks:
That we can ride,
That the day is ours to ride,
That our family, friends and neighbors can join us,
Whatever we may ask for let us first be mindful of what we have,
What we have can be taken away.
If we should ask, let us ask for what cannot be bought or sold:
"The Fall riding season forces one to STOP to take a picture or two.
For some, that's all they want to do." - Big Man
"Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting
and autumn a mosaic of them all." - Stanley Horowitz
With the amount of moisture this season, the Fall colors were more vibrant than last year and made for many great picture opportunities. Even the native wild life wanted to get in on the action. As you hang up the shorts and pull out the long pants, remember that there is never bad weather, just bad gear and as long as it's dry, KEEP RIDING!
However, some do have a temperature tolerance and when it gets below 23 degrees they start yelling, OMAHA, OMAHA, which means they want to call an audible and change the route. Last Saturday, Big Man was determined to Color the Canyons and had planned an EPIC, three canyon ride, Big Cottonwood, Millcreek, and Emigration, going part way up the first two canyons. The group started out with six riders and ended with one. Big Man was finally able to drink from his frozen water bottle as he started to ride the third canyon and when all was said and done, YES, it was an EPIC ride. (Has anyone seen the frozen popsicles, Prez and KOT?)
YIPPY SKIPPY
You know it's a little chilly when your water bottle freezes
The 2019 season finale is once again in the history books. All the training, climbing, singing, chatter and new kits paid BIG dividends for many. There were a couple of PCRs that had to bow out last minute, which created a MAJOR void in the pace-line. However, those that did ride found stronger, better looking riders to help them endure 200+ miles, 3 states, in 1 day. (Read More) Two of the seasoned riders, Dr. V (19 yrs) and Prez (7 yrs), thought they should lead the 60+ yr. old riders to Preston, ID and as you will see below were picked up by the local news. Big Man was quick to text everyone when he saw this picture wondering, who did the photo-shop. He didn't remember Prez pulling AT ALL!
KOT and Mr. T were part a three man relay and are still confused why their time was slower than Prez's, who rode the whole 200+ miles by himself??? It was a first experience for Mr. T and he chose wisely to ride LEG 5, which is the prettiest and easiest leg, from Apline to Teton Village. How are you part of a relay of three and only have to ride one leg???? He was requested several times to keep the pace below 20 mph. You would have thought he was in a race.
The younger legs, Mighty Morgan and Big Wake Nelson never stopped to say hi to the "geezers", but they sure had nice NEW kits. Those young guys are always trying to make a fashion statement.
Big Man requested in advance to STOP and take a picture on the Snake River bridge as they came into Teton Village, which was SPECTACULAR. However, the NEW guy, Mr. T, thought he would give a lesson to a few on how to clean a vacuum. Let's just say, it was good he had extra energy or he might have gotten lost.
As the four geezers approached the finish line, Big Man had a dress rehearsal to make sure everyone was in their proper place, with the proper arm lifted to make for a FANTASTIC FINISH! YIPPY SKIPPY
Remember, it's not how fast you start, but how strong you finish!
"How do you like our NEW kits?"
Need we say anything more?
"The key to a good vacuum is to clean it often"
Two Best Pics of the Day
FANTASTIC FINISH
Recovery Beverages are a MUST!
Just a little light reading for some of you for next year's guide
July is finally here along with the HEAT, which gives all of us a good reason to ride the canyons we are so fortunate to have close by. When Brigham Young saw this valley for the first time and said, "This Is The Right Place", was he talking to all of us bike addicts, mountain and road? YES!
Since the last post there have been many highlights:
Black Knight came out of retirement to prove he hasn't lost his touch in winning the downhill stages of the Peoa Loop. (However, he's much slower on the uphill stages)
GQ has a new kit and is looking good as ever
Sexy Legs has a new pony that Big Man wants to lick, it looks SOO delicious
Mr. T has committed to ride in a relay for LOTOJA, if you call riding the last leg from Alpine 1/3, on a three person team
MBA/DQ continues to prove that KOM is his last name (for now) and has introduced a NEW Wednesday 5:30AM, meet at the Zoo and ride to little or BIGl. This week 13 showed up.. SWEET!
KOT now knows what they meant when they said, "these mountains will make you cry" Crusher in the Tushar
Queen of Wrap goes to Kansas and learns the hard way, that the roads are really not flat Dirty Kanza ("way harder than LOTOJA")
Hope all of you will continue to ride SAFE and ENJOY the beautiful Utah canyons. They are SPECTACULAR!
YIPPY SKIPPY
Always be recruiting for the PCRs
GQ is getting faster in making repairs
He has a flat every time he rides with Big Man
Some days you finish your ride and swear you're getting younger, and then there are those days you wonder can I do this again.
Saturday rides for the PCRs are all about "ADVENTURECISE", and last week's route, sponsored by MBA, lived up to this motto.
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the
things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the
bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.
Explore, Dream, Discover.- Mark Twain
Jobs fill your pockets, but adventures fill your
soul – Jaime Lyn Beatty
We live in a wonderful world that is full of
beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures that we can have
if only we seek them with our eyes open. – Jawaharla Nehru
Adventure is worthwhile in itself – Amelia
Earhart
Life is an adventure, it’s not a package tour –
Eckhart Tolle
If happiness is the goal – and it should be,
then adventures should be top priority – Richard Branson
Pick any of the above quotes and make them apart of your DNA. There was one rider that was NOT going to miss out on this adventurecise, even though he forgot his cleats. So like a true trooper, Prez. rode 70 miles in his fancy blue sneakers. There were times when he fell behind the pace-line, but he was bound and determined to ride to the finish line and retrieve the fritters that he had ordered from a NOT too happy cashier. Some people just wake-up on the wrong side of the bed.
MBA learned that "sponsoring" a route is totally different than "leading" a route and decided to ride solo for a period of time, while the rest of the group tried to figure out where the leader had gone. Leading these riders is always a challenge when their are squirrels in sight.
YIPPY SKIPPY
Let the ADVENTURECISE begin
"What, you don't like my BLUE shoes with my RED outfit?"
Squirrel, Squirrel, Squirrel
Could we PLEASE get a group shot?
Bald Mtn, it might be until July
What kind of birds are these?
This is WHY we take a few minutes to get out of the city... :-)
