Great Weekend Riding

We loaded up the van on Friday to head down to Phoenix for some warm weather riding. My wife went down to race her mountain bike at White Tanks and on Sunday I rode the Laveen Country Challenge. The best part of the weekend was the warm weather. It was a balmy 76 degrees. It's funny to see all the valley riders in their tights and long sleeve jerseys while us mountain folks are soaking up the sun in shorts and short sleeve jerseys.

The mountain bike race was impressive. Not being a mountain biker and not having gone to many races, it was a surprise to see so many racers. There were tons of riders of all different skill levels. My wife took second but I had to give her grief in that I thought she was sand bagging. She raced the beginner class and I think she needs to move up to the Sport class. Right now she's getting by with very little training but has the skills of someone way beyond a beginner. She's much better then she gives herself credit for. I think she'll step it up in her next race.

My ride was just that,,,,, A ride. Nothing competitive, but a really good workout with a bunch of other riders. The ride is put on by the Laveen Lions Club, and considering what they have to work with, it's a pretty fun ride. I've done it for the last 5 years and have a good time every year. It's just a great way to get out of the cold and enjoy the presence of about 300 other riders. I rode with Rick who is in the best shape he's ever been in. Usually I drop him within the first 20-30 miles but this year I think he was probably stronger than I was. Being a triathlete, he really hammers on the flats, but I can usually drop him on the climbs. Like I said though, I think he's in the best shape ever. I was truly impressed with how strong he rode. Not that I'm some powerhouse or anything, but he kicked butt today. We were fortunate to find a super fast pace line and hung with them for almost the entire way. It's always nice to find a good safe group to ride with. When everyone takes their turn at the front, it can make for some pretty fast times without one person having to kill themselves to keep the pace up.

They also have a 15 and 30 mile ride as well. Our original plan was for me to do the 62 miler and my wife and boys to ride the 15 miler. Our 8 year old would have no problem with 15 miles but our 5 year old......no way. So we borrowed a bike trailer from a friend with the plan of my wife pulling our youngest. We'll as we unloaded the bikes (about 30 minutes before the 62mile ride started), we realized we were missing a piece of the trailer. The very important part that connects the trailer to the quick release on the bike. So my wife, having 1 hour before their ride started, made a quick trip to Wal-Mart for a cheap little bike for our 5 year old to ride. They ended up making their own route (safer) and got in about 5 miles of family cruisin. Actually that's the farthest our little guy has ever ridden. All in all, it was a great weekend. I wish I had more pictures but to no avail.

We're back home now in the 45 degree weather. I'm hoping I can keep up the long mile riding for now. It sure was nice to ride some of the cobwebs out today.