We had 27 riders tackle south mountain today. I'm not sure who was first up since I was bringing up the rear. Breakfast was entertaining as usual, with our Pres telling stories and for once no one fell asleep! Ok, he had that coming.

NOTICE - Starting next week we change the start time to 7:00 AM - I just heard Carter moan!

Ride Schedule

4/6 - 7:00AM - NOTICE new start time - Milk Run, let's see what kind of road construction we can find. All flat miles with options of 30, 32, 38, 42, & 48 miles. Breakfast at Wildflower at the Chandler Mall.

4/13 - 7:00 AM - Tour de Lindsay - mileage options of 40 or 54 miles - flat- breakfast at Bogies Clubhouse at Ken McDonald Golf Course - Rural & Guadalupe.

4/20 - 7:00 AM - Sacaton - since we didn't do it when it was windy the other week and I've confirmed that the wind won't blow for Gene. Mileage options of 35, 42, 52, 58, & 60 miles w/ 50 & 60 mile routes having some gentle climbs. Breakfast at Wildflower in the Chandler Mall.

4/27 - 7:00 AM - Germann/Hunt Loop - an old flat route. Mileage options of 33 or 42 miles, breakfast at Wildflower at Chandler Mall.

Lastly - If you have not yet sent in your club clothing order, now is the moment. Today is the last day to mail in order forms at the discounted cost.

Hi All!

The MS event going on today in the lovely burg of Florence reduced our home herd to 66 exuberant riders. We got rolling, with the usual chaos this particular route brings us when the advanced riders split off from the moderates about a block into the course. Once we got that sorted out, we were off like a flock of capons. (A bet was on the line there, to see if that word could be worked into the ride report today.) A bit of construction on Rio Salado, the Dragon Boat Races, and the Tempe Fine Arts Festival added a few adventurous moments to the romp. Part of the group detoured to see if the giant bunny plaza was still squirting (it is) and a few tossed in a brief hike, just to double up on their sports for the morning. At breakfast we said so long for now to our favorite snowbirds, the Rocklands. Silly people, they're leaving town just when the weather is starting to get "interesting".

Coming up...

Saturday 4/5/08 7:00am Kiwanis Park. Note the time change, and a route change! Due to a conflict with the Tour de Phoenix course, we are switching routes to Mummy Mountain. Original route, with options of options of 27 miles with moderate climbing or 40 miles with some bonus climbs. Breakfast at USEgg, southwest corner College & Baseline.

Saturday 4/12/08 7:00am Kiwanis Park. Now that the TdP is over, we'll head back out on the McKellips Loop to see if the river has receded. Route options 28 miles or 37 miles, one gentle climb. Breakfast at Einsteins, northwest corner Guadalupe & McClintock.

Saturday 4/19/08 7:00am Kiwanis Park. Before it gets too dang hot to go there, we'll head to South Mountain. Route options 27 miles with a bit of gentle climbing, 40 miles with moderate climbing, or 42 miles with lotsa climbing (and hopefully no flying motorcycles.) Breakfast at AZ Bread Co, southeast corner Elliot & Kyrene.

Tid bits

Thanks to our PMBC members that appeared for the tour of the Metro Light Rail facility this afternoon. For those that didn't attend, you missed a great opportunity to see the behind the scenes workings of an incredibly complex system. Even for the nay-sayers in the group, they couldn't help but be impressed by the astounding engineering aspects of the project. And yes, cyclists were factored into the mix, not only in the cars but at the stations and on the roads that interact with the rail line. If you build it, people (and cyclists) will come.

If you have not yet sent in your club clothing order, now is the moment. Today is the last day to mail in order forms at the discounted cost.

And speaking of our team colors, if you are participating in Tour de Phoenix next Saturday, wear your club jersey. It makes it easier to find a familiar wheel to steal a draft off of in the masses.

Ride safe

Hi All!

With some of our riders off seeking gold in the Mining Country ride, our home team was reduced to 62 cyclists this morning. We rolled over to Ahwatukee, just in time to sneak thru as the pre-parade entry in the local Easter event. After romping around and over (and over again) the foothills, we managed to slip by the parade again on the way back out. Breakfast chatter ranged from hope that our MS-150ers do us proud next weekend, to wishing Bry the best of luck in his quest to complete 200 miles in one day next weekend in Solvang. (Wonder which of them will have the tenderest butt afterwards?)

Coming up...

Saturday 3/29/08 7:30am Kiwanis Park. The St. Francis Loop takes us on a figure eight route up thru Tempe. Route options 26 miles or 36 miles, both with moderate climbing. Breakfast at IHOP, southwest corner College & Apache.

Saturday 4/5/08 7:00am Kiwanis Park. Note the time change! We'll head back out on the McKellips Loop to see if the river has receded. Route options 28 miles or 37 miles, one gentle climb. Breakfast at Einsteins, northwest corner Guadalupe & McClintock.

Saturday 4/12/08 7:00am Kiwanis Park. Mummy Mountain, original route, with options of options of 27 miles with moderate climbing or 40 miles with some bonus climbs. Breakfast at IHOP, southwest corner College & Apache.

Tid bits

Phoenix Metro Bicycle Club, along with all cyclists in the valley, have been invited to an open house (kinda like "Bicycle Show and Tell") at the new metro light rail facility just a few miles from our Tempe start point. Next Saturday (March 29th) after our morning ride, join us there at noon. Location is 605 S. 48th Street. From Washington, go south on 48th St, turn left into the facility. Tell the guard you are there for the Open House for Bicyclists. The plan is to film the use of the light rail vehicles by cyclists, including loading and unloading bikes on the internal racks. This is an early chance for us to see and touch our new way of getting around the valley that was built to carry people, including cyclists. There is also a rumor that there may be free refreshments at this event, which is a reason for us to go anywhere.

Ride safe

Hi All!

We had 83 cyclists roll outa Kiwanis Park this morning, in search of large quantities of food. We picked up a few more along the way, and were joined by our Sun Lakes herd and our street-clothes division (a rapidly growing section of the club) at the restaurant. A couple of our brand new members were present, Alana and Ryan, who both shunned the buffet, opting for liquid diet (very trendy) while staying tucked in their baby carriers. Huge thanks to prez Ron Waller for presenting an entertaining floor show while the crowd consumed way more fuel than we burned on the ride.

Coming up...

Saturday 3/22/08 7:30am Kiwanis Park. The Ahwafooty route takes us over to the foothills of Ahwatukee. Route options 24 miles with one gentle climb or 35 miles with moderate climbing. Breakfast a AZ Bread Co, southeast corner Elliot & Kyrene.

Saturday 3/29/08 7:30am Kiwanis Park. The St. Francis Loop takes us on a figure eight route up thru Tempe. Route options 26 miles or 36 miles, both with moderate climbing. Breakfast at IHOP, southwest corner College & Apache.

Saturday 4/5/08 7:00am Kiwanis Park. Note the time change! We'll head back out on the McKellips Loop to see if the river has receded. Route options 28 miles or 37 miles, one gentle climb. Breakfast at Einsteins, northwest corner Guadalupe & McClintock.

Tid bits

We have many new riders coming into the group, as always every spring. Some are new to cycling entirely. Some are transitioning from the dark side (mountain biking). A question was raised this morning, that has as many answers as we have experienced riders. What do you need to carry with you when you ride? Those new to cycling are sometimes over-whelmed by the variety of gear and gizmos offered at their LBS (local bike store). Those coming from off road riding, who are used to taking luggage-style packs, are stunned by the small size of road bike seat bags.

Bare minimum:

• Hydration. Bottles or back-pack (Camelback-type system), which ever works best for you.
• Tire changing supplies. One tube and a patch kit (if you like to live on the wild side), or two tubes, and tire "irons" (small hand tool that helps you get your tire off and on the rim).
• Air. Either a pump or CO2 gun and a couple of cartridges.
• ID. Something that tells somebody else who you are, your emergency contact info, medical issues, insurance info.

From there, the list goes on and on, with each rider having their own priorities. Cellphone. Snacks. Cash and/or plastic. Multi-tool. Tire boot. Hand wipes. Small first aid kit. Chain breaker. Folding tire. Torque wrench. Just kidding on that last one, but its always amazing what some riders carry! Your leader's all time favorites actually seen appearing in the middle of a club ride... once a call was put out for a small bit of duct tape (which many riders carry a tad) and an entire new full size roll appeared from someone's bag and, at a regroup, a young guy pulling from his rear jersey pocket an unwrapped piece of pizza, that had been carefully chewed down to perfect pocket shape for later consumption.

Ride safe

Hi All!

We had 74 riders appear to greet the sun (which was a no show) today. The group rolled out to the east, into a gentle but chilly headwind. The pack gradually spread out, some picking up the pace with the theory in mind that if they rode harder they would warm up, while others held with the thought that a lower speed would give them less wind chill. (The debate was still going by breakfast, so we apparently never sorted it out.) Traffic in general was busier in the area than normal, possibly brought to us courtesy of the spring training game to be held today at Hohokam Stadium. The cultural portion of our romp was complete with the roll thru downtown Mesa, checking out the art sculptures, though the giant pink chair was strangely empty.

Coming up...

Saturday 3/15/08 7:30am Kiwains Park. FREE FOOD!! Our first quarterly club breakfast/meeting of the year. Gathering place is the Home Town Buffet in Chandler, northwest corner of Warner & Evergreen. Ride there with SatCycling, on a route to the east with options of 25 miles or 35 miles, no climbing. Or meet us at the restaurant at about 9:30am. Breakfast is free to all PMBC members, $8 for non-members.

Saturday 3/22/08 7:30am Kiwanis Park. The Ahwafooty route takes us over to the foothills of Ahwatukee. Route options 24 miles with one gentle climb or 35 miles with moderate climbing. Breakfast a AZ Bread Co, southeast corner Elliot & Kyrene.

Saturday 3/29/08 7:30am Kiwanis Park. The St. Francis Loop takes us on a figure eight route up thru Tempe. Route options 26 miles or 36 miles, both with moderate climbing. Breakfast at IHOP, southwest corner College & Apache.

Tid bits

We have an event ride coming up in a couple of weeks, the Mining Country Century, and you haven't registered yet. The day is going to arrive, your friends will be off romping thru the hills outside Superior, munching on a great lunch, all without you because you didn't sign up. Go now to the club's website. We even have a fun new route to reach the site, at www.pmbcaz.org, and register for the ride on Saturday March 22nd.

While you are dithering about on the website, check out the next generation of PMBC jerseys! The final draft of the art is posted, complete with our cool new logo. Note that you are being encouraged to actually ORDER a jersey if you would like one. This may be a new concept for some of you, but we're hoping you'll roll with it. If you are unsure of sizing, next Saturday (March 15th) at the membership breakfast meeting, we will have a "fit kit" (samples of the jerseys) to help you select sizing. You'll probably want to try them on before you stuff yourself silly at the buffet.

Ride safe

Hi All!

We had 66 riders sign in for our wildflower seeking ride this morning, which appeared to be quite a few less than the large herd that flowed out of the parking lot at our departure time. The tailwind assisted roll over to S Mt was a hoot, and then slowing down for the elevation gain gave us lots of time to look around for flowers. The hills there were astoundingly green, mixed with lots of yellow, blue, and purple bursting forth. Was an absolutely gorgeous day. The roll back through the construction on Baseline left us to ponder if the canal path back might be a better choice until the road work is done.

Coming up...

Saturday 3/8/08 7:30am Kiwanis Park. The Tour de Mesa takes us to the northeast, with route options of 29 miles or 39 miles, no climbing. Breakfast at Einstein's, northwest corner Guadalupe & McClintock.

Saturday 3/15/08 7:30am Kiwains Park. FREE FOOD!! It's time for our first quarterly club breakfast/meeting of the year. Gathering place is the Home Town Buffet in Chandler, northeast corner Warner & Evergreen. Ride there with SatCycling, on a route to the south with options of 25 miles or 35 miles, no climbing. Or meet us at the restaurant at about 9:30am. Breakfast is free to all PMBC members, $8 for non-members. If you have not yet joined our illustrious group, click here for information on joining Phoenix Metro Bicycle Club. Print off a form, zing it along with a check to our Tempe post box, and you are set to eat to your heart's discontent with the rest of us at this event.

Saturday 3/22/08 7:30am Kiwanis Park. The Ahwafooty route takes us over to the foothills in Ahwatukee. Route options 24 miles with one gentle climb or 35 miles with moderate climbing. Breakfast a AZ Bread Co, southeast corner Elliot & Kyrene.

Tid bits

The number of unofficial riders (people who did not sign in) this morning leads us to a reminder again about the importance of signing in to every club ride you join us on. PMBC provides minor accident insurance when you join our romps, but it only applies if you have signed in for that day's adventure. You may have great confidence in your riding ability, have excellent bike handling skills, never plan to crash, etc... but sometimes things just happen in cycling. Like flying motorcycles. It's always an adventure.

Ride safe