And it's back to the real world. We had a blast in Phoenix this past week. I got in quite a bit of riding and the kids were able to get in their share of fun as well.
On Sunday we planned on spending most of the day at South Mountain. Ryan and I were going to ride to the top and Christy and the two younger boys would tootle around the park on their bikes. It was a gorgeous day, about 83 degrees. Perfect riding weather with the exception of the wind, but at 83 degrees, who's complaining.
Ryan and I headed off from the car in the direction of the towers at the top. This is an 8 mile climb and is mostly uphill the entire way. Either Ryan is getting stronger or I'm getting older and slower, either way Ryan is becoming a very good rider. When I ride with Ry, the ride up usually takes about an hour and about 20 minutes to come back down. We made it to the top, took a few minutes to rest then headed back down. About 1.5 miles down, I come flying around this corner and see this little kid in the distance heading up. I thought, "how cool that this kid is riding up this",,,,,,,,,,,,"holy crap that's my kid". My 9 year old Coby was only a mile and a half from the top. How impressive is that?? Just as impressive, here comes my wife on her mountain bike pulling the trailer with Keevan inside. All the people passing her thought she was nuts and that she would never make it. Sure as heck though, everyone made it to the top.
I love climbing this mountain. There's just something about it that allows you to forget everything else going on in your life and focus solely on riding. Going up is can be brutal if youre riding hard. The burn in the legs, the burn in the lungs, the pounding heart.......it all makes getting to the top that much more worth it. Then of course the best part is going down. It's here that you think of nothing, but going as fast as you can without killing yourself. I had brought a helmut cam to video the ride down, but didn't take the time to connect it. I've written many times about living in the moment, well riding down a mountain at 40 mph forces you to live in that very moment. It's such an awesome feeling. Your mind is completely empty with the exception of how youre going to bank that next corner. There is no better feeling then surviving one corner and praying to survive the next::) .
On Sunday we planned on spending most of the day at South Mountain. Ryan and I were going to ride to the top and Christy and the two younger boys would tootle around the park on their bikes. It was a gorgeous day, about 83 degrees. Perfect riding weather with the exception of the wind, but at 83 degrees, who's complaining.
Ryan and I headed off from the car in the direction of the towers at the top. This is an 8 mile climb and is mostly uphill the entire way. Either Ryan is getting stronger or I'm getting older and slower, either way Ryan is becoming a very good rider. When I ride with Ry, the ride up usually takes about an hour and about 20 minutes to come back down. We made it to the top, took a few minutes to rest then headed back down. About 1.5 miles down, I come flying around this corner and see this little kid in the distance heading up. I thought, "how cool that this kid is riding up this",,,,,,,,,,,,"holy crap that's my kid". My 9 year old Coby was only a mile and a half from the top. How impressive is that?? Just as impressive, here comes my wife on her mountain bike pulling the trailer with Keevan inside. All the people passing her thought she was nuts and that she would never make it. Sure as heck though, everyone made it to the top.
I love climbing this mountain. There's just something about it that allows you to forget everything else going on in your life and focus solely on riding. Going up is can be brutal if youre riding hard. The burn in the legs, the burn in the lungs, the pounding heart.......it all makes getting to the top that much more worth it. Then of course the best part is going down. It's here that you think of nothing, but going as fast as you can without killing yourself. I had brought a helmut cam to video the ride down, but didn't take the time to connect it. I've written many times about living in the moment, well riding down a mountain at 40 mph forces you to live in that very moment. It's such an awesome feeling. Your mind is completely empty with the exception of how youre going to bank that next corner. There is no better feeling then surviving one corner and praying to survive the next::) .
Coby said his bike wasn't shifting so I took it for a brief ride. A tad on the small side
No I don't have a cigarette in my mouth, it's a See's Sucker.
Coby and Keev spent some good time racing in the parking lot.
Coby at the top of South Mountain
Christy, Keev, and Coby at the top
One of my favorite parts of the trip. Playing with Keev in pool. I spent 2 hours just catching Keev as he told me each time "That's Super Sar Daddy". He can't say the letter F yet.
He got braver the more he jumped.
It was a great time and a long needed break. The weather was gorgeous and we stayed pretty busy. Coming home was nice though. It's always nice to be back in your own living room with room to move around. Next stop will be Colorado in May. Time for the Ironhorse Bicycle Classic.
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