yesterday, i headed to the northwest for a 2 hour ride which was pretty educational.
there are bike paths on every road here. nobody honks at you, you don't get yelled at and i wasn't given the finger.... there are cyclists everywhere and the motorists have come to accept them as part of the community. it's amazing.
i've also learned that there really is no such thing as 'a flat' ride here...
my apartment is basically on the side of a mountain, so finishing off rides and runs will be pretty painful. almost all of the other roads (except right in the city) go up and down the sides of hills or mountains.
so far, i've only seen people on road bikes. makes sense with the terrain, but i need some outdoor saddle time on the orbea.
today, i was to put in a hour and a half EZ... but i just couldn't resist the temptation of mt. lemmon.
it took me 35 min. to ride to the mountain, so already i wasn't looking at too much more before i turned around.
the grade is not too aggressive, but constant. i was moving between my second to smallest and smallest gear and holding about 15 km/hour. it wasn't taking too much out of me, but i'm glad it wasn't much steeper... it was just constant and boy was it beautiful. i will be bringing my camera next time, however pictures will not likely do it any justice.
the climb is 25 miles from base to top (town called summerhaven). i made it to 5 miles before i turned around.
the ride down was intense! i was riding my breaks until three riders flew past me. i thought "if they can go fast so can i! so i jumped on and it was so much fun! glad i brought my arm warm!ers cause it got cool. --- oh yeah, forgot to mentioned i was in short sleeve and shorts today!
i have a long ride on thursday, i will climb to the top....if i can!
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