I just got off a plane to a weather forecast of a possible blizzard, freezing rain, snow and rain. Now I know that is the norm for South Dakota, but after spending a few days in Phoenix, 80 degrees, and a few days in Las Vegas, 65-70 degrees, it is a bit hard to take. Kay and I just returned from visiting her parents in Phoenix and meeting up with our kids in Las Vegas. I will not go into all the details of the trip, but I would like to fill you in on our time spend mountain biking in Red Rock Canyon right out side Las Vegas. The
day was perfect, about 68 degrees, no wind and bright blue skies. Our guide for the day, John, picked us up at the New York New York Hotel loaded with all the equipment we needed. Cannaondale Rushes, gloves, helmets and water. It was about a fifteen to twenty minute drive to the trail head where we unloaded, got the bikes fitted and were given some basic instructions on how to survive the trip. He told us about the terrain we would encounter as well as the dangers associated with the cactus which grow adjacent to the trails. He assured us he carried pliers to pull out and needles we might come in contact with. So of we wen
t. It took some time to get the feel of the bike underneath. The feel of the sand, the rocks and the washed out cracks and groves in the trail. We didn't go far though before we came to our first real test, a ten to fifteen foot drop into a dry creek bed and back up the other side. The trail was ruff and covered with loose rocks some the size of my fist. The path twisted and turn very rapidly and we learned a valuable lesson right away. Don't fight the bike let is go, let it handle the rocks and the bump. Once up the other side we were all pretty proud of ourselves. We were up for anything. On we went zig zagging across the dessert. Down cliffs and up rocks slopes. Dodging cactus and huge boulders in the middle of the trail. We stopped fairly often to enjoy the views and to chat about the next section and what to expect. It was a perfect day for riding. After two and a h
alf hours of pitting ourselves against mother natures creation we made or last pit stop. John gave us two option for the last leg of the ride. One that was almost all up hill and one that was up hill. Well being the wimps we were we chose the almost up hill path. It was the toughest part of the ride. One because we were getting tired and on because much of the trial was up hill on very loose rock. Your back tires was spinning on the rocks, but to stop peddling was not an option. There was no way you would get started again. The last leg was tuff and when we saw the van waiting for us it was encouraging. We had made it and no fatalities. Oh we had a few cuts, scrapes and such, but nothing that required and real first aid, something the guide said we could be proud of. All in all it was a great experience. I must say there were couple of times I saw my life flash before my eyes as I transcended some of the more torturous stretches of dessert. Would I do it again...in a minute. We all had a great time and had experienced something new. A new adventure.
I just got off a plane to a weather forecast of a possible blizzard, freezing rain, snow and rain. Now I know that is the norm for South Dakota, but after spending a few days in Phoenix, 80 degrees, and a few days in Las Vegas, 65-70 degrees, it is a bit hard to take. Kay and I just returned from visiting her parents in Phoenix and meeting up with our kids in Las Vegas. I will not go into all the details of the trip, but I would like to fill you in on our time spend mountain biking in Red Rock Canyon right out side Las Vegas. The 
day was perfect, about 68 degrees, no wind and bright blue skies. Our guide for the day, John, picked us up at the New York New York Hotel loaded with all the equipment we needed. Cannaondale Rushes, gloves, helmets and water. It was about a fifteen to twenty minute drive to the trail head where we unloaded, got the bikes fitted and were given some basic instructions on how to survive the trip. He told us about the terrain we would encounter as well as the dangers associated with the cactus which grow adjacent to the trails. He assured us he carried pliers to pull out and needles we might come in contact with. So of we wen
t. It took some time to get the feel of the bike underneath. The feel of the sand, the rocks and the washed out cracks and groves in the trail. We didn't go far though before we came to our first real test, a ten to fifteen foot drop into a dry creek bed and back up the other side. The trail was ruff and covered with loose rocks some the size of my fist. The path twisted and turn very rapidly and we learned a valuable lesson right away. Don't fight the bike let is go, let it handle the rocks and the bump. Once up the other side we were all pretty proud of ourselves. We were up for anything. On we went zig zagging across the dessert. Down cliffs and up rocks slopes. Dodging cactus and huge boulders in the middle of the trail. We stopped fairly often to enjoy the views and to chat about the next section and what to expect. It was a perfect day for riding. After two and a h
alf hours of pitting ourselves against mother natures creation we made or last pit stop. John gave us two option for the last leg of the ride. One that was almost all up hill and one that was up hill. Well being the wimps we were we chose the almost up hill path. It was the toughest part of the ride. One because we were getting tired and on because much of the trial was up hill on very loose rock. Your back tires was spinning on the rocks, but to stop peddling was not an option. There was no way you would get started again. The last leg was tuff and when we saw the van waiting for us it was encouraging. We had made it and no fatalities. Oh we had a few cuts, scrapes and such, but nothing that required and real first aid, something the guide said we could be proud of. All in all it was a great experience. I must say there were couple of times I saw my life flash before my eyes as I transcended some of the more torturous stretches of dessert. Would I do it again...in a minute. We all had a great time and had experienced something new. A new adventure.
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