Saturday Quentin lead the shop ride @ Gooseberry. Crowds are thinning as only Tae and I showed up. Gooseberry mesa is right above where I camp @ upper JEM TH, the drive to get to the ride is like the Maine saying, “You can’t get there from here.” OK, it is a long drive around. The road up to the mesa is too rough for the van even though I managed to get it up and over the rough stuff back in ’09 during this odyssey. The ride is famous for its technical challenge w/o any downhills over 20 feet of descent. Kevin says the rock is fossilized volcanic ash. Morgan Harris and his brother created present trail system. Trick to riding on these mesas is avoiding traps that you can’t ride down or climb out of. Quentin and Tae rode everything until the Purple trail that is just absurdly tech. They were kind and waited for me as I walked a bunch. I just run out of gas right b4 the step up and bail on the questionable roll overs. And Sedona is next, riding doesn’t get any easier.
Patches of snow in the shade, breezy, sunny, warming to 54 degrees. December 17.
Back in Hurricane i hustled to sports bar to catch the end of the Zags game, customers in the 4 cars in the lot were watching football bowl games. I caught the end on my Android as I drove to Washington for a shower @ the rec center. Zags beat Arizona.
Sat is OTES 4 birthday and Q and DJ threw a party @ their house which is right next door to the shop. First off was a bike polo session on a darkened former school yard. I had sense to refrain from entering to eliminate my risk of hurting myself. I cheered as the only spectator watching 8 riders commanding their bikes towards the rolling whiffle ball then take a whack at it w/ a mallet. I made signature Waldorf salad.
Spent the night @ JEM TH. Woke up @ 3:30 just b4 graupel hit the van. I pulled on my wool poncho and a rain hat and stepped into the cold to put the rain cover over the bikes. False alarm as nothing else fell.
I felt beat from the tech rides and decided to take a day off and rested. I spent the day inside my home moving pictures from my laptop memory to a CD. Very time consuming. Another splendid sunset.
Tomorrow I have a morning appointment w/ AAMCO transmission to address shifting issues. The shift from 1st to 2nd is abrupt.