Month: March 2011

preRA: Queen Creek

Posted on March 27, 2011May 29, 2011 by Rich

When the alarm bell went off Saturday morning, I just lay there in bed and stared at the ceiling. Friday’s ride had been a workout for me, and the idea of a spirited chug with the bike club around the foothills of Ahwatukee just did not appeal. However, I decided I’d like to do a little pedaling this weekend, so when Linda set off for golf this morning, I hopped onto the still-loaded Surly and set off south for Queen Creek. I’d always wanted to explore the passage down there, both by Ironwood Road and by Ellsworth Road, because they

preRA: Fountain Hills #1

Posted on March 25, 2011May 29, 2011 by Rich

Originally I had a multiday ride scheduled for this weekend, one over in California. Postponed due to 2 factors: 1) medium winds are forecast for the area (Salton Sea) for all three days of riding, and 2) no one will go on it with me <grin>. This ride was a nice surrogate. Jesse and I both loaded down our bikes and took off from our respective homes towards Fountain Hills. Both our routes took us about 35 miles, mine up around Saguaro Lake, his up around Dynamite and Rio Verde and down McDowell Mtn Rd. At the junction of Bush

preRA: South Mountain

Posted on March 20, 2011May 29, 2011 by Rich

Well, it’s March, and high time for working into final shape for our departure in May. In my way of thinking, this means doing a number of longer rides, i.e. 60 to 100+ miles, in order to build endurance and toughen the saddle. And it also means doing a number of rides that will simulate the daily routine, i.e. fully loaded and in the 50 or 60 mile range. Following last Saturday’s club ride, Gary and Frank discussed plans to do this conditioning ride, and so I ditched my own plan for a century and instead showed up Sunday morning

preRA: Planning

Posted on March 19, 2011May 29, 2011 by Rich

If you’re wondering what that RA2011 is to the right, it stands for Ride Across. Seven of us plan to make an attempt to ride across the North American continent during the summer of 2011. I guess it’s something on the bucket list for each one of us in one form or another. My riding partners will be Jack, Jesse, Gary, Frank, Roger, and Bill. Name: Jack and I originated the ride back in September last year and eventually started referring to it as “RA.” We liked the idea that it didn’t focus on the USA exclusively, since our route

CasaCopa Century – Revision 1

Posted on March 14, 2011February 25, 2015 by Rich

Jesse had mentioned to me that the roads around Maricopa might be good for a club ride someday, and so I designed this route as a possible alternative to the current Casa Grande Century. After riding it today, the results are in, for better and worse. The route needs some work, but this ride has some good potential. Jesse and I planned to ride it together, but Jesse’s lingering head cold flared up and in the end he decided to rest and repair. Since I rode it solo, there isn’t a whole lot of story here, but I will document

Rewards

Posted on March 8, 2011March 4, 2015 by Rich

I played golf the other day at Red Mountain Ranch Country Club. It is a tough course, one that some players describe as “a Pete Dye course, in his bitter years.” To compound the difficulty, the greens were playing fast (about 12), and the pins were placed in the very toughest positions on the greens, at the tops of peaks, on the sides of the steepest slopes, at the very front of a green with a big front drop-off, or buried behind water hazards. One of the holes was nearly unplayable. Any ball not in the cup would roll