a big ol bike ride

arizona is loving kicking my butt. the terrain here is insane, as if specifically designed to annihilate one's self-confidence, leg strength, and perhaps throw in a little cactus brutality for good measure.

we rode a total of 30 miles yesterday. beginning on lusciously flowy rocky goodness and kicking up into a soul crusher of a climb. it snaked along a ridge, filled with loose rock, tiny pebbles, cacti along every available surface, and aggressive sunshine. standing up to tackle this beast was not an option, as the traction is nonexistent with the sand and rock. one must simply put weight on the rear wheel and spin. i actually kind of enjoyed it. however, towards the top, features were on the unridable side for me, necessitating hikin a bike. when we topped out on the plateau, there was an older gent gabbering mike's ear off about football. as i pushed up, this butthead could not resist asking: "is your bike getting a nice walk?" i looked at my feet and muttered something about it being hard. of course, his rude comment fueled me to the top of the next ridge: was he BLIND? this was crazy to be riding bikes on! excuse me for not being superhuman, but my bike was enjoying plenty of actual riding. we took a snack break as mike explained it was the point of no return.

we rode. and rode. and rode. the descent was lunar: decomposed granite with dips and rock formations, but incredibly flowy and, minus points of feeling terribly exposed, almost relaxing. of course, i was riding like an idiot, braking erratically and spinning out on every turn, but my heart felt huge and glowing as mike and i reconvened at the bottom.

arizona, you are something.