Comments on: Looking Around

By: wing-nut

wing-nut — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 13:05:07 +0000

It’s not just the scenery but the people you get to meet too. On one of my routes I’ve noticed some kids playing in front of a dilapidated old trailer. One day the boy was riding his WalMart bike as I approached. He made a sprint to match my speed and I slowed, then made a fake and slow sprint letting him win when he decided the race was long enough. I told him thanks and went on. Now whenever I pass, he is cheering me on and saying hello. I love that section.

I’ve done the same with a dog I call champ, but after egging him on I never let champ win. A dog behind the rear wheel is much better than one at the front. Besides, after champ has chased me off his territory he is strutting his stuff all the way back to the house.

By: judi

judi — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 21:36:09 +0000

Fatty – you have some beautiful land in Utah. In Ohio? Not so much.

By: MAJ Mike

MAJ Mike — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:44:22 +0000

BellaCroix, I looked up that story. That’s awful! My father has MS, and I would like 5 minutes alone in a room with that cruel, b!tch.

I intended to do the MS 150 this year in honor of my dad, but the Army had other plans. Next year…

By: Rocky

Rocky — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:02:39 +0000

Okay. So out on a ride last night with a bunch of kids from church I was forced into a situation of having to wait for more than an hour (long story whose details are of no consequence here). I have never had an hour on a mountain bike ride just to look around me. After finding all of the things that I could jump off of (including a picnic table) and after studying the black widow spider in the corner of the men’s restroom, I went up to the top of the nearby hill to look around. It was near sunset and the once billowy white clouds had now transformed into a stunning array of orange, pink, blue and purple with dark gray shadows in their folds. The air was cooler and calm. The evening was so bright that those same clouds, soaking in all of the few remaining moments of the sun’s warm embrace, cast a greedy shadow on the mountains some 30 miles to the east. Their outline was clear on the mountainside. I have never seen anything quite like it – brilliant sun rays illuminating the mountain in the perfect outline of the clouds as a cutout. Even the buzzing bugs seemed to stop for a few minutes to take it all in. Slowly, the sun dimmed the lights on the clouds and on the earth all around – the show came to its inevitable quiet end. I believe the locals call that time the witching hour. It was bewitching – for a few minutes -I was under its spell.

By: Caloi Rider

Caloi Rider — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 14:34:05 +0000

I was on the road bike this morning, and I got to looking around at the area. When my mom was here a few weeks ago, she kept saying, “It’s never looked this green here before.” This morning it really sunk in. The mountains in the distance were hiding in blue rainclouds. I could hear the wind shuffling through the tall grass and the potato fields. The canals are filled to the brim with fast-moving water. Everything is green and lushâ€”nothing like the desert we’re used to.

I can’t wait to get some time to head up into the hills with the mountain bike and see how it is up there.

By: Jennebelle

Jennebelle — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 14:20:08 +0000

Does anyone know anything like the Livestrong Challenge that is in Canada?

By: Bluenoser

Bluenoser — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 13:43:25 +0000

Just go for the full kit. Pink is fine. It’s like the old joke; What do you know when you see 40 elephants coming over the hill wearing pink sweaters? They’re on the same team.

All together now. Groan.

Also about the stopping and looking around. bikesgonewild has a place they stop called God’s Knob. Pretty hard to beat that one. Only in Northern Cal.

-B

By: DubaiMTBer

DubaiMTBer — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 09:36:41 +0000

Hey Fatty
We mostly stop and look at the view out of necessity rather than the view. Not much to see out in this part of the world, but the mountains does have their own unique beauty. The desert climate and rocky mountain terrain create their own set of challenges not found elsewhere in the word. Great fun though! Stop and smell the fresh air!!

By: RockLobster

RockLobster — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 04:34:13 +0000

I think the long sleeve jersey (with full zip) is a great idea. I would also like to see a new color incorporated. While the pink is pretty cool to me, I get enough crap from my non-cycling friends for wearing spandex without the added crap for wearing pink…but I would love to see green or blue in the jerseys. Just something different from my orange and black attire. I can’t wear orange and black every ride, you know. A windvest would be a must have, as well.

By: Dill

Dill — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 23:53:48 +0000

Yup, stopping to admire the view generally makes a ride for me. It can also be a great way to take a break! Biking the Canadian Rockies really made me appreciate both the views and the breaks last summer. Now I always try to stop and admire.
Glad you had a good ride!