I don't know who gave him the shirt but, I saw your address on it so I thought you may get a kick out of it. I just returned from a trip to China and our guide Charles was wearing this shirt. I am a native Arizonan of 45 years and was tickled to see the AZ flag, in China of all places.

It's been a while since the last report, but thanks to Neal for leading the ride while I was out, even though I heard the group abandoned him. We had 28 riders and one Ocean Goddess this last Sunday take off for the towers of South Mountain. However, the only ocean that was found was Mr. Kirk and I sweating up the hill. We had several new riders with Ray, Robert, Tara, and Jim from out of state. All made their way up the mountain - great job, and most made it back - ok, I think everyone made it back. Breakfast was entertaining as usual, with the state of professional cycling and the Giro being entertaining topics. Just so you know, no riders of PMBC have been implicated or publicly confessed to doping, but there is an enquiry into Turkey Doping - stay tuned as this story unfolds!

Reminder - Starting in June (yes this Sunday) - we move to 6:30 AM. I would like to get feedback from the group in regards to having one Sunday a week starting at 6:00 (AM that is) during the summer for a longer route. Send me your thoughts - yes, no, or what the heck are you talking about?

Ride Schedule

6/3 - 6:30 AM - NOTICE NEW START TIME - Milk Run - Check out the flat east valley with mileage options of 36, 38, 40, or 44 miles. Breakfast at Wildflower at Chandler Mall.

6/10 - 6:30 AM - Tour de Scottsdale - See old Scottsdale with all flat miles of 40 or 44 miles. Breakfast at Einstein Bagels on Rural & Ray.

6/17 - 6:30 AM - We'll do the Around Mummy with the original added in for spice. Mileage options of 35, 40, or 50 miles, with the 50 mile having a lot of hills. Breakfast at Einstein's on Rural & Ray.

6/24 - We'll see the results of the feedback to determine when and what time we start.

Last, but certainly not least, the dates for the White Mountain Tour has been moved to July 21 & 22nd. This is the middle of the summer, and getting away to the mountains may be just what you need.

Hi All!

The price of gas apparently tempted a lot of people out of their cars today, with 92 riders turning out for our romp around town. The roll through the north end of Tempe gave us a couple of views of the ever evolving light rail construction. We had a lot of new riders, or at least new to our group riders, but with the help of the regulars (or would that be the irregulars?) we managed to keep everybody rolling around the course and all seemed to have a grand time. Breakfast chatter ranged from why cyclists shave their legs and not their arms (we did not come up with an answer to that one) to the goofiness of spending thousands of dollars to shave a few pounds off your bike equipment when you have lotsa spare pounds to shave off your body frame (we know the answer to that one).

Coming up...

Monday 5/28/07 7:00am Kiwanis Park. Come celebrate Memorial Day with us, with a holiday pedal. Pull on the oldest bike jersey you have (or at least the oldest one you can still tug on!)...team jerseys from the old days, clubs now defunct, and event rides that no longer exist. We'll head to AhwaFooty, with route options 24 miles with one gentle climb, or 35 miles with moderate climbing. Breakfast at Kasha's, southeast corner Elliot & Priest.

Saturday 6/2/07 6:30am Kiwanis Park. Note the time change! Our summer hours begin and we head to the northeast on the Tour de Mesa. Route options of 29 miles or 39 miles, no climbing. Breakfast at Einstein's, northwest corner McClintock & Guadalupe.

Saturday 6/9/07 6:30am Kiwanis Park. FREE FOOD! Time again for PMBC's quarterly membership breatkfast meeting. Our route heads to the south (Tour de Sue in reverse) and takes us to the Home Town Buffet (aka the Hog Trough) for lotsa eating and a brief club meeting. Route options 25 miles or 35 miles, no climbing. Breakfast is free to call PMBC members, $7 for non-members. Our jersey wrangler Kathy Mills will be in da house with our current stock of jerseys ($57 for short sleeves). Home Town is on the northwest corner of Warner & Evergreen in Chandler. If you are meeting us there instead of pedaling with the pack, aim for 8:30am.

Tid bits

We have had it so easy this spring with the weather. Cool mornings giving way to gentle breezes and mild temps even by the end of the ride. Don't let that lull you into forgetting how to ride in the inferno of our summer heat. To answer a question posed by a visitor this morning, yes, the club rides all summer. Some of us ride daily (commuting) at the peak of the afternoon heat. We can because we have learned to respect the weather. If you are going to ride with us thru the summer on Saturday mornings, start hydrating on Friday. When you get up Saturday morning, your body has been without water for 8 hours (or less... depending on your style of Friday night), drink before you head out the door. Your body needs fuel to process all of the water you'll be chugging... eat before you ride, have a snackie during the ride or drink enhanced beverages (that would be sport drinks, not beer). If your drinks got hot, stop and get ice at any of the billions of convenience stores we pass. Keep the sun off your skin (which helps keep your body temp down), either by slathering yourself in sun protection goo or by wearing long sleeves. When you stop at regroups or flat tire clinics, find shade. Stay cool, grasshoppers.

Ride safe

Hi All!

Our Armed Forces Day romp to South Mountain brought out 85 riders, including an astounding number with military background. (And for them, in case you didn't get the message this morning, thank you for serving!) The tailwind assisted romp over to the park was a hoot, except for those who worked at clearing the glass and thorns from Baseline Rd by picking it up with their tires. Everybody did S Mt in their own style, before heading back into the same wind, which unfortunately had not shifted direction. Arrival at Kasha's brought us the welcome news that their spiffy new Gelato counter was up and churning out an excellent selection of delish product. For the benefit of our new members, our unofficial club motto is "We ride to eat!"

Coming up...

Saturday 5/26/07 7:00am Kiwanis Park. The St. Francis Loop takes on a figure eight to the north, with route options of 26 miles or 36 miles, both with moderate climbing. Breakfast at Brueggers, northwest corner Mill & 11th.

Monday 5/28/07 7:00am Kiwanis Park. A holiday romp, come celebrate Memorial Day with us. Pull outa the back of the closet or bottom of your drawer the oldest bike jersey you have (or at least the oldest one you can still tug on!). Team jerseys from the old days, clubs now defunct, and event rides that no longer exist. We'll head to AhwaFooty, with route options 24 miles with one gentle climb, or 35 miles with moderate climbing. Breakfast at Kasha's, southeast corner Elliot & Priest.

Saturday 6/2/07 6:30am Kiwanis Park. Note the time change! We switch to our summer hours and head to the northeast on the Tour de Mesa. Route options of 29 miles or 39 miles, no climbing. Breakfast at Einstein's, northwest corner McClintock & Guadalupe.

Tid bits

One of the primo benefits of our club is our website (thanks Terry!). Pop in there every now and then for up to the minute updates on things, such as the fact that the date for the White Mountain Tour in July has been changed. If you were going to miss out because of a scheduling conflict, now is your chance to jump in.

Ah, the power of the pen... or is that the power of the keyboard? An exuberant thank you goes out to Pat's Cyclery in Mesa (who we just happen to have a link to our website!). After reading our sad story from last weekend about demolished pumps, the store donated to PMBC two brandy new Wrench Force pumps! How cool is that? Now, let's see, what else do we need for the club that we can commiserate about which will then magically appear next week??

Ride safe

Hi All!

Thanks to Ron Waller for leading the home team last Saturday. He advises we had 66 riders on a windy but beautiful morning. On that same day we had a road trip crew of 14 cyclists proudly flaunting our rising sun jerseys in the Cinco de Mayo 150 from Irvine to Delmar CA, so we're going to consider the official helmet count for the day as 80.

Today we had 78 well hydrated pedalers turn out at the park for our romp to Mummy. The threat of 100+ degrees by late morning prompted a quick roll around the routes, or at least it was for those who kept their chains and various bike components attached to their bikes. Both out bound and on the return we mixed it up a bit with athletes of various levels participating in a triathalon in the lake area. (You would think on a hot day they would do the swim last, huh?) And a sure sign of summer, at breakfast we said ta-ta for now to our own SatCycling Capistrano swallow, Roger Simmons.

Coming up...

Saturday 5/19/07 7:00am Kiwanis Park. Don your red/white/blue and join us for our salute to Armed Forces Day. Our active or retired members of the US military will be leading us out of the park. We'll roll over to South Mountain Park, with route options of 28 miles with one gentle climb, 40 miles with moderate climbing, or 42 miles with a whole lota climbing. Breakfast at Kasha's, southeast corner of Elliot & 56th St.

Saturday 5/26/07 7:00am Kiwanis Park. The St. Francis Loop takes on a figure eight to the north, with route options of 26 miles or 36 miles, both with moderate climbing. Breakfast at Brueggers, northwest corner Mill & 11th.

Monday 5/28/07 7:00am Kiwanis Park. A holiday romp and your last ride day to sleep in before our summer hours kick in! Come celebrate Memorial Day with us, on a ride in memory of rides and riders gone by. Pull outa the back of the closet or bottom of your drawer the oldest bike jersey you have (or at least the oldest one you can still tug on!). Team jerseys from the old days, clubs now defunct, and event rides that no longer exist. We'll head to AhwaFooty, because the return route on Liberty is a road some of us have been riding for over 15 years. Route options 24 miles with one gentle climb, or 35 miles with moderate climbing. Breakfast at Kasha's, southeast corner Elliot & Priest.

Tid bits

Here's an interesting and some what astounding bit of trivia. We have 437 riders on our SatCycling email list! If everybody turns out to ride with us on the same day, we're definitely going to run short of maps. That number is a lot larger than the total membership of Phoenix Metro Bicycle Club, and we would like to narrow that gap a bit. Some of you have been sitting in the draft for a long time, and it's time to help pull the line. There is no fee for our Saturday morning romps, because PMBC's membership dues cover our expenses such as insurance, map production, replacing club pumps (which we demolish on a regular basis), paying your ride leader's huge salary, etc. SatCycling is open to all riders, but if you are popping in on a regular basis, it's time to join the herd officially. Head to the website, print off a membership form, add $15, and pop it in the mail or bring it the next Saturday morning you are out with us.

Ride safe

Bicyclists, tots in strollers, in-line skaters, wheelchair users, horseback riders, walkers, hikers, etc, get to call the roadways of South Mountain Park their own during these events! The Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department is sponsoring Silent Sunday, which will close the park's main Central Avenue-access roads to motor vehicles from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. The park roads will be reserved for the entire day for all non-motorized recreational activities!

Visitors will also be able to enjoy free park ranger programs and hikes from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the South Mountain Environmental Education Center.

The goals of Silent Sunday are to promote awareness of alternative modes of transportation and recreation, and to give the Park/Preserve a day of rest from motor vehicle traffic. All park roads past the main gatehouse at the Central Avenue entrance will be closed to motor vehicles during the event. Free public parking will be available near the parks' main entrance at 10919 S. Central Avenue, Phoenix.

Only the roadways accessible from the preserve's Central Avenue entrance will be closed during the event. All other trailhead access points, including Pima Canyon, Desert Foothills, Beverly Canyon, and Mormon Trail, will remain open to vehicles.

Please find the attached Silent Sunday flyer (MS Word document), which lists all of the event dates for 2007. We hope to see you at South Mountain Park/Preserve!

Visit us on the web at: http://phoenix.gov/PARKS/hikesoth.html.

Best regards,

Rebecca Smart
Park Ranger II
City of Phoenix Parks & Recreation Department
South Mountain Environmental Education Center
Phone: (602) 534-6327
FAX: (602) 534-6330

(2007 Silent Sunday event dates are: April 22, May 27, June 24, July 22, August 26, September 23, October 28, November 18, and December 23.)

We had 28 riders for the post Cinco de Mayo ride to Lehi. We even were graced with the presence of the one quarter wonder Carter - glad you were able to make it. No one showed up smelling like tequila, so it must have been a mild night. Our group started fast, with the jokes that is. There was a question on whether Roger was starting his own 501C organization. Then Ron and Barry where talking about attaching bike fronts and rears and embarrassing everyone - had to be there. Dr. Mike thought he had the king of the hill on Brown, only to figure out the false flat and Alex smiling and saying it wasn't over. However, Dr. Mike got the last word in saying, "yes it was!". Our man Pete won the sprint over Extension, and doing his best to prop his team colors, zipping up his jersey and pointing to the sky as he crossed the apex of the hill - my hero!!!

Ride Schedule

5/13 - 7:00AM - Around the mountain - All 50 flat miles, with breakfast at Noshies' - old Atlanta Bread Company on Elliot & 56th St.

5/20 - 7:00AM - Tour de Usery Pass - How about some extra miles with some climbing. For those up to it, 60+ miles with some climbing over Usery Pass or 35 miles with no climbing and 45 with moderate climbing. Breakfast/lunch at either Einstein's or Quiznos on NW corner of McClintock & Guadalupe.

5/27 - 7:00AM - Change in plans - Go to South Mountain and enjoy another car free day on the hill. Mileage options of 35, 40 or 45 miles with a lot of climbing on the last two options. Breakfast TBD.