Some times you just have to do it

This is something I have to remember.  Often lately I find myself thinking about riding, about how I should head out towards Red Rock canyon and put in some miles.  Of course I usually have these thoughts while not in a position to actually go out and ride.  I have these thoughts while I'm working away at my desk in the office, or while getting ready for bed in the evenings, but rarely do I think this when I have the time and opportunity to actually ride.

Yesterday was an exception.  It was President's Day and since where I work treats this as a holiday I was sitting at home and it occurred to me, as I am reading cycling journals on CrazyGuyOnABike.com, that I shouldn't be thinking about riding, I should be riding.  Reading how Bill Saint Onge rode the northern reaches of Quebec and Labrador last summer, or how the Genner Family is touring all of South America as a family, have really inspired me to, in the words of Freddy Mercury "Get on my bike and ride!" So I got into my riding gear, threw a Powerade into the bottle holder and headed out.  There was a light breeze and the temp were close to 60 degrees a beautiful day for a ride.

I took the long way out to Blue Diamond road and then started uphill towards Red Rock Canyon.  It was a work out, let me tell you.Only saw one or two other cyclists on Blue Diamond Road, but once I got to Highway 159 and made the turn towards Red Rock Canyon that changed.  Many other cyclists were out enjoying the weather.

I crossed the cattle guard and headed toward the gypsum mine and the steeper climb there.  Of course i decided to drop into my middle ring and dropped my chain.  It reminded me that I've had issues with the front derailleur since they replace the crank for me last year.  I just can't seem to get it adjusted right. I suspect the rings are slightly closer together than the Suntour were and that is why the index shifting is off.  Going to have to take it and see if a professional can improve things for me.

Anyway I got the chain back on in short order and made it past the mine and continued on past Blue Diamond itself.  Just as I approached the road into Blue Diamond a group of about 20 riders come out and headed towards Red Rock Canyon in front of me.  It took only a couple of minutes for them to disappear ahead of me.

At just over 10 miles into the ride I stopped.  It appeared that the road headed slightly down hill ahead of me and I decided that the downhill would be nice, but the uphill coming back would be a bit more work than I was ready for, so I made the decision to head back home.

Now the advantage to my route is that it is pretty much up hill all the way out until I turn around, which makes it downhill all the way home.  This is the pay off for all of the hard work.  I rode 10.28 miles in 1:13 to get to the turn around point.  I made it the 8.3 miles back home in just 31 minutes.  It might have been quicker were it not for the headwind of about 10 miles an hour.

Here is the map of my ride:

Once I got home I thought about the ride and how much I enjoyed being out there.