Seven stitches

Rained 2 nights ago. Have a different leak from the exhaust fan. Have the sealant, need to obtain use of ladder to get up on roof. Today forecast is for rain all next week here in Sedona. I checked Phoenix forecast and they call just for chance of showers. Greater Phoenix is too big for me, no public land camping. Hang out here probably.

Ordered the rest of the bike parts yesterday:  new rear derailleur and larger dia seat post. I bought a fork up for the 20mm front axle. This is an adapter from the 20mm fork axle to the standard fork mount. I will concoct a method to hold the removed front wheel. I saw Dean today and he offered a viable solution. Traildoc sent me the name of a metal fabricator. Think the rack is covered. The new front wheel is a Chris King hub and DT-Swiss heavier rim stouter than present rim. Fork to be shipped 1/16 from backorder plus the new front derailleur. The frame ships on 1/22. Parts should come together last week of Jan.

Drove in to MBH as my trail head for my self guided ride from the bike shop. Long story to print a Sedona trail map per GPS on Topo map and carried in my map case attached to my handlebar. I was going to be riding in a boxed in area minimizing getting really lost. Rode ridge trail out & up. At the ridge crest i miss read the trail name sign and struggled up trail to Table top mtn. Trail was round rock strewn and prickly pear lines. No bike tracks, this trail can’t be enjoyably ridden. Pushed bike when i had to (most of the trail). Short distance to next intersection that revealed the blunder. No, Ridge trail continued down below. I rode down more of the trail than I did going up dodging the cactus. Today i wore no leg armor because I reasoned I would be riding mainstream trails and trail would be wide enough to stay out of cactus. My legs look like, well, they are cut up and I picked the big spines out. Corrected my mistake and continued down slope. At several of the spots where I walked I rerode to actually make it over or up. Some I just couldn’t do. There were 3 sketchy roll downs requiring a narrow line and sticking to it. I walked those also. I rode climbing Herkenham trail up and then wandered around above and in the various draws until I picked up a main trail and finally the pavement home. I believe the main trails are routed using 2 foot wire baskets filled w/ rocks. The more exciting adventurous trails just take off . As I said earlier I was boxed in by roads, I just needed to trend eastward to the exit and I’d be fine. The map helped a bit. One section dropped down a wash snaking in a ditch down to almost 26″ handlebar width. Found the trail heading home.

Jumped on pavement for 1 1/4 mile back to shop. Looking back between my legs I noticed my rear tire was low. I had slime tubes in both to prevent a flat. Stopped in bank parking lot. Shit, the front tire was flat out dead flat right now. 2 flats on slime tubes. The way a flat is repaired is to pump up the tube and spin the tire swishing the sealant around to the hole(s). I pumped w/ a small handpump and spun. Both dropped air but I managed to ride back to van. I pumped both up to 60lbs from riding pressure of 40lbs and spun the wheels again. The tires remained firm.

Needed a shower. Headed into Sedona to a tourist info stand to learn of available showers.  Before i could get out of the van Fixie Dave from Hurricane rode up. He was off on his own ride and heading back to the house where the OTE people are staying. I asked for a shower and he said sure, better do it now before the rest of the gang arrives to share the 1 shower in a 4 bed rental. I  got out of the shower as the gang arrived. Quentin was already in the hot tub. I chatted w/ him about his drivetrain selection. He still stays in his middle ring. Earlier in my ride I tried a section in baby chain ring and 4th largest cog as an experiment. Riding in baby chain ring is way easier to push, however a pedal revolution generates smaller forward inches and tends to spin out. A bigger gear allows a firm platform to push against while finissing a balance move. The middle ring requires more muscle. Jury is still out on gears.

Drove back out to desert campsite. use the heater on low at night as temps have been just below freezing. Feels good.

Watched Gonzaga basketball last night on web television.

This AM the rear tire is dead flat. Need a new one.

Temps climb nicely as the day moves on. I left about 10:00 AM for MBH and another go at trails I rode yesterday and maybe a bit more. The rear tire had a large prickly pear spine sticking outside the tire and thru both sides of tube. Sealant couldn’t seal the spine. Put the latex tube in. Bob worked on my shiftin a little to attempt to eliminate the overshifting of the chain into the spokes. He commented on how worn and loose my derailleur is. That’s what the new one is for.

Headed out same way as yesterday. I made the correct route on Ridge. I crossed the road @ the bottom and rode as I could remember and find from Sunday’s ride where I lost my courage. I learned that my courage is still lost when I found those sections. Gotta love walking my bike.

Made the up canyon trail again. This time I rode in baby chain ring and 4th largest gear. I had a higher spin w/ less energy but still a bit of meat to stand on. The front lofts easier. I rode slower w/ more finesse, therefore this choice won out. I need to do more double shifting to use this gear choice.

I managed to ride more than yesterday. I was getting stoked. Now the stitches part. The trail had some small rock steps on a maybe 12% gradient. Somewhere in it I stalled as in track stand going uphill. I tottered and looked to my left downhill into the brush. Shit! head first downhill clipped in. No way to protect myself. Just accept the fat that something is going to hurt at the least. Plants where like manzanita bushes w/ green and dead branches is what I could see. Branches snapped. I stopped head first still clipped in and impaled by branches. One had gone thru and thru in my shorts and was still attached to the plant. I was preventing me from falling further. I was sure my leg was skewered but I felt no pain no warm fluid when i felt it.  I struggled to pull myself uphill to get off the branch. I had no purchase. Finally I grabbed the branch stob & broke it off freeing myself. I scrambled back up to trail. My right forearm had a good surface wound that ran parallel to my arm. It was bleeding and looked like something was under the skin. Nothing was relly bleeding. I pulled my first aid kit from my pack and applied a bandage and wrapped my arm w/ roller gause after irrigating it w/ my hydration water. My forearm was streaked w/ blood but the wound was covered & not bleeding. My right cheek was scratched but not bleeding and my shorts leg had a big hole torn open . I was good to ride. I was about 10 mins riding from an Instant care but the day was great for riding which I did. It took me another hour to get back to Van at the shop. At the shop I asked Bob the wrench if he wanted to first aid me. He looked at my arm and said he thought something was still inside. OK, time for medical help. (Story: Jan 1 new insurance card in effect. I mail forwarded to Sedona and picked it up yesterday). It is the same clinic where I stopped previously to have my blood pressure tested. The same nurse was on duty and recognized me. I am still in my torn riding shorts and jersey. My bolld pressure is still the same low.

DR pokes and says numb him up and I’ll poke around. Several needle pricks and my forearm went dead. he found a splinter of good size. He started sewing, I asked him how many, he said I’ll count when finished. Seven he said.

My right cheek has just scratches that he didn’t attend to. I accepted a tetnus etc booster.

Quick stop @ Safeway for a frozen stove top meal. Ech. Don’t do that no more.

Back at same spot in desert.

Tomorrow I will drop down canyon and ride from Bike and Bean and then camp south of town. Sunday is last dry day for riding. Gottoa find ladder before Sunday night.

Stitches out in 1o days