DM and SB Training Ride: Dodging Coyotes on South Mountain

Scotty and I set out at the crack of dawn this morning to conquer South Mountain before work... We were out on the road around 5:40 this morning and started our climb to the summit. The weather was beautiful. Light clouds, a cool breeze... You can't ask for better than that in Phoenix in the Summer!

South Mountain just after the first major climb, turning toward the second climb

In the last mile or so to the summit, we encountered a HUGE coyote... This thing was all CHUPACABRA - A lot larger than the other coyotes I've seen on the mountain recently. He ducked into the brush pretty quickly and Scotty didn't get a good look at him, but I kept my eyes peeled on the way back down. I wasn't going to be breakfast and Kerry Castillo can tell you that Dan Maxey will kick a coyote in the face!

We did see lots of other wildlife: Lizards, road runners, rabbits, quail... One LONELY millipede.

Approaching the DREADED final half mile up to the TV towers

Whenever I ride up with someone, I try to get photos at the summit! We both got great shots this morning! I really like the shot of Scotty! He looks like he's standing as tall as the TV towers!

In conclusion, we had a GREAT ride. What a way to kick off a Friday!!!

DM Solo Training Ride: Up South Mountain for Kerry Castillo!

Kerry Castillo is one of the most amazing people I know. Kerry is one of the incredibly dedicated Cyclist Representatives at the LA Gay and Lesbian Center. I got to spend a few hours with Kerry last weekend training to be an AIDS LifeCycle Training Ride Leader so that I can "officially" take our new Phoenix recruits out on the road and make sure they are properly trained for the BIG RIDE.

The first stretch of the road. The sky was BEAUTIFUL!

If it weren't enough that Kerry works for AIDS LifeCycle, this year she has committed to join all of the cyclists on the ride in fundraising! She's going to be asking for contributions from friends and family just like the rest of us. I'm so incredibly proud of her for doing this. I was even more proud to be one of her first supporters!

A view of the TV towers at the summit of South Mountain

That wasn't enough, though. So I dedicated Wednesday morning's climb to the summit of South Mountain to Kerry Castillo. 

So, Kerry... These 1,500 feet of climb were for YOU!

I love you, Wonder Woman. You're amazing.

DM Training in Los Angeles: Baby Dragon 180 Training Ride at Malaga Cove and 67 miles with Leo

Last weekend, I drove out to Los Angeles for a few days chock-full of Baby Dragon and AIDS LifeCycle fun! I was so looking forward to getting out of Phoenix - the HOT SANDBOX - for a long weekend for training rides, ALC Training Ride Leader certification, and time with some of my very favorite people in LA.

I drove out Friday afternoon and evening and had some time to hang out with Julie Friday night. We had to go to bed at a decent hour as we both had training rides Saturday morning - her's with Team Ventura and mine with the Baby Dragon 180 crew.

Saturday morning I drove down to Culver City to meet the gang. Eric Kamm and I were the first ones there and I had a great time getting to know Eric, who I had only met on Facebook, while we waited for the others. We had a great ride along Bologna Creek, Malaga Cove, the beach, and Palos Verdes. It was a gorgeous day and I had so much fun in the company of the baby dragons. The hill climbs were actually fun and very little work after so much training on South Mountain! We got in about 45 miles of beautiful Southern California. I was in heaven. And it was so good to spend some time with J.R., Scotticus, Jackie, Veronica, Eric, and Justin.

Geeking out at the sight of the Pacific Ocean... We don't have water in Phoenix.

With Justin and J.R. on a Baby Dragon 180 Training Ride

After the ride, I dropped off a trunk full of clothes I had gathered from friends and my closet at the Jeff Griffith Youth Center. Several of the clients of the Center came out to help carry bags in... The look of excitement on their faces was enough to make the whole weekend worth it. I was so happy that I could bring some clothes out to them and I am so happy to be riding for them in the Baby Dragon 180 Ride in September.

The Jeff Griffith Youth Center in Los Angeles

Sunday, I had a full day of training to be certified as a Training Ride Leader for AIDS LifeCycle. I'm not going to dwell on this much, but it was great to be among some amazing people for the whole day! Enough said.

Monday morning Leo and I went on a GREAT 67 mile ride across Los Angeles. We started in Highland Park and rode through Silver Lake, Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, and up to Malibu... Then back. It was such a beautiful day and a great ride. Leo and I kept a very brisk pace. At one point we were asked if we were training for a triathlon. That was nice.

Leo on the Pacific Coast Highway

Dancing with sheep at the Malibu Country Mart

Leo riding in LA... It was his birthday!

Great weekend with amazing friends! I can't wait for my next visit!

DM Solo Training Ride: South Mountain San Juan Sucker Punch

The entrance to the Mountain Preserves and South Mountain Park

I wasn't going to ride this morning since I'll be spending six hours in the car today driving out to Los Angeles for Baby Dragon 180 training rides and AIDS LifeCycle Training Ride Leader certification... But I only got in one other morning ride this week and wanted to try to get in another.

So, I trucked myself out to South Mountain this morning, but when I got there I decided to do a different route today. Instead of riding the Summit Road, I split to the West and rode the San Juan Road. San Juan rolls through some of the foothills of South Mountain in the direction of Estrella Mountain, ending at a beautiful overlook of downtown Phoenix and Piestewa Peak.

Decisions, decisions... Summit or San Juan?

I hadn't done San Juan in awhile and sort of forgot what the terrain was like. It's about 6 or so miles one way... And when you set out on the San Juan stretch from the main road, it's a lot of downhill. So I was picking up like 30-35 mph without trying, rolling along sort of forgetting that I was turning around and riding back up all of this. That's why I call this the San Juan Sucker Punch. The scenery is SO beautiful on San Juan. You get a totally different view of things... The western end of South Mountain, the foothills, the flats of the Gila River Indian Community, and majestic Estrella Mountain to the West. The view is so pretty that you forget that you have to turn around and ride back up!

The view heading West along the San Juan Road

The ride back "up" isn't so bad, really... There's about 700-800 feet of climb over the final six miles. It's just not as fun as the ride out!

A view of the sun over the summit of South Mountain and the TV towers from San Juan Road

So, anyway... Great ride this morning. Looking forward to getting in some training rides in California this weekend and will be sure to post everything here! Happy Friday!

Welcoming Our NEWEST Team Members!

Throughout the past few weeks, ALC Team PHX has nearly tripled in size! We want to take a moment to recognize our newest members and welcome them to the AIDS LifeCycle community!

Alex Gannon

Tracy Geiger

Shannon Sesterhenn

Cynthia Snapp

Ian Christiansen

Adam Pinti

They're all writing their segments for the "Meet the Team" page. Check back soon for more!

WELCOME!

DM Solo Training Ride: Another Morning on the Mountain

So, I used to put off South Mountain... Like REALLY put off South Mountain. And I still do a little, but bear with me.

When we start talking about the hills on AIDS LifeCycle, I tell all of our new cyclists that if you can handle South Mountain, you can easily conquer any of the big hills on the ride - Quadbuster, Evil Twins, ANY ALC hill. So as I've trained with Tyler and Scott for the past two AIDS LifeCycle rides, I've always said something along the lines of, "We really need to make sure that we get South Mountain in at least once a month."

But really, we usually only get South Mountain in a couple times.

The sun rising over South Mountain

South Mountain isn't so fierce that it just can't be climbed... Really, it's not that bad. But it's no picnic, either. Why go climb 1,500+ feet over 7.5 miles on South Mountain when you could take a leisurely ride on the Greenbelt, through Fountain Hills and down the beautiful Beeline Highway? South Mountain just doesn't exactly scream "RIDE ME!" most mornings.

Maybe my perspective on climbing this mountain has changed. I don't know. I have climbed South Mountain three times in the last week and a half... And I'm kind of beginning to love it. The mountain and I are developing a sort of kinship or familiarity. The mountain is a lot more interesting in the morning: coyotes, quail, HUNDREDS of millipedes (a little gross, but they cross the road at their own peril), roadrunners, cactus wrens, and rabbits. You don't see all these things later in the day when there are more hikers and cars around.

One of my FAVORITE views of Phoenix, nestled between two parts of South Mountain

And the views of metro Phoenix - a city that sometimes just can't help how ugly it is - from the ride up and back down South Mountain are breathtaking. The sharp ridge line drops into rolling foot hills and out into the flat land of the valley. You can see all of the surrounding mountain ranges, sometimes with great clarity and for a long distance.

Anyway, I could swoon over South Mountain for a long time right now and you'd all stop reading the blog. So I'll stop.

I had a GREAT ride this morning. I meant to get up the past two mornings to ride South Mountain and it just didn't happen. We were reunited this morning and it was glorious, although a little warmer than prior mornings. I made it from the front gate to the summit and back in an hour, so pretty good on time. There weren't very many people out on the road jogging and cycling today... The mountain and I had a lot of alone time, so I'm happy.

And when it did come time to drive in to work this morning, as I rounded a turn on AZ-51 and saw South Mountain rise on the horizon it made the whole thing worthwhile.

DM Solo Training Ride: South Mountain Morning

Three times in the last week, I've popped out of bed (ok, I wasn't quite so excited) and hit the road for an early morning ride. There's just nothing quite like getting in a good, brisk ride before starting the rest of the day.

Today, I rode South Mountain... Before work.

I didn't quite have time to get in my full "35 Miles and a Mountain" route, so I drove to South Mountain and rode from the park's entrance to the summit and back. The ride is about 16 miles round trip - with over 1,500 feet of climbing. It was such a nice morning for a ride. Lots of cloud cover, not too hot, and a cool breeze blowing between the mountains. There were a handful of other cyclists and joggers on the road, but the Summit Road was pretty quiet.

So quiet, in fact, that a lot of the wildlife was out and about, including a couple coyotes prowling the middle of the road. I've seen a handful of coyotes since I've been in Arizona, but it was so cool to see a couple up close on the mountain.

The quiet time offered an excellent opportunity to enjoy the stunning views of the valley and the desert. I'm going to try to do this early morning riding thing a couple times a week... At least until the temperature comes back down again.

DM Solo Training Ride: Central Phoenix/Downtown/Capitol

 Choppy panoramic shot of the Arizona State Capitol and legislative chambers

I got out this morning for my first ride on my NEW new bike! Great ride. Rode from my apartment in Central Phoenix to downtown and cut West to the State Capitol. Between the Federal Courthouse and the Capitol, there were PLENTY of news crews and cameras out. The networks all have little tent studios set up in front of the Capitol building. It was kind of crazy. From the Capitol, I headed back toward Central Avenue, then South to Rio Salado Park. The park is usually pretty quiet, so I was able to pick up some speed along the river on the trail. It was great!

Lots of wildlife out this early... Rabbits, wetlands birds, and I THINK I saw a wild ferret (yes, they're rare, but there is a species of wild ferrets in Arizona).

On my way back through downtown, I wasn't really happy with my distance, so I tacked on another trip to the Capitol and back before heading home.

I got in 19 miles and burned TWICE the calories I would have burned in the same amount of time at the gym. Awesome!

DM Solo Training Ride: 35 Miles and a Mountain

One of the things I love about living in Phoenix is that we've got a GREAT place to work on mountain road training and climbing - South Mountain Park. When I was visiting Arizona to visit Arizona State University, the first ride I did (on a subpar rental bike) was South Mountain. The road offers over 1,500 feet of climb over the course of 7.5 miles. Anyone who's done the ride knows that the last half mile or so is a real bitch.

Me on my first ever climb of South Mountain in October 2007

So every now and then, I've got to honor this killer hill by climbing it - just because it's there.

Tyler can tell you that I always set a goal of riding South Mountain once a month while I train for AIDS LifeCycle each year. Tyler can also tell you that I'm really bad about actually holding to that. Every now and then though, I just want to get out and do it. This morning was one such morning.

I set out from home around 5:30am and pedaled South along 3rd Street, eventually cutting over to Central Avenue just below downtown. Central Avenue is relatively flat until you get to the Rio Salado, at which point there is a modest incline heading in toward the mountain. Central Avenue runs right into the park and the park road begins to pitch and drop through the rolling foothills. At the intersection of the San Juan road (another good route for rolling foothills and short climbs), the road makes a sharp turn to the left where cyclists begin the first real climb - a consistent climb up the Northern face of South Mountain. As you climb this first section and look off to the left, you can see how high you've moved above the entrance to the park and everything below is getting tinier and tinier still.

Around a few bends, you hit a welcome flat that gives a great view of Ahwatukee to the South. There are often lots of hikers and runners in this area, where several of the park trails converge. And then you climb again!

Over the top of the second long climb, there's a great series of rolling hills that are a great deal of fun after the climbing. A turn away from the lookout takes you back toward the TV towers on a road that winds along the ridge of the Mountain... And then, through the final gate to the TV towers, the curving road takes a slightly steeper pitch - over one hill down a little and then up, up, up. The road hugs the side of the mountain around bends and curves just below the towers. The final half mile can be a little tough, but once you pass the final access point for the tv towers, you come over the top of the mountain with a brilliant view to the South and West including Ahwatukee, the Gila River Reservation, and Estrella Mountain. It's beautiful... Then a little baby climb up to the parking lot.

The summit of South Mountain, the TV towers, and some of the Ride for Semper Fi cyclists

I rode a good part of the way up with a large group of cyclists training for The Ride for Semper Fi - a ride in October from Scottsdale to San Diego in October. Sounds like a great adventure. They'll need to train on South Mountain if they expect to cross the mountains in Southern California between here and San Diego!!!

 Me looking fierce on top of South Mountain. I wore the same jersey I wore my first time!

It was a great ride up, but it was getting hot, so I only rode around in circles long enough to hydrate and hit the road back down the mountain and home. I had such a great time!

DM & TG Training Ride: Tracy's First Training Ride

Training has begun for AIDS LifeCycle 10!

Today I completed a 51 mile ride in the oppressive Phoenix heat. I started in Central Phoenix at 5:30am and rode to Tempe to pick up Tracy for her first training ride. There was quite a bit of cloud cover this morning when I left the apartment, but the sunrise managed to show itself on the horizon - with the sun blaring brightly above the Superstitions as I crossed the Mill Avenue Bridge into Tempe.

Tracy and I rode from her apartment, down Rural Road to Tempe Town Lake, caught a lap around the lake and set out to the north on the Greenbelt. We rode as far as Chaparral and turned around to repeat the route. The cloud cover was burning off on our way back into Tempe, which meant I was going to ride home to Phoenix fully exposed to the sun - which also meant it was getting hotter and hotter by the minute.

I tried to keep a quick pace on the route back home - 17-22mph. On my way along Washington, I saw a sign displaying the temperature as 108' F. On the final stretch into downtown, I was starting to feel the effects of riding so hard in the heat, but pushed on the remaining few miles to home to hydrate and CRASH!

Great ride. Very proud of Tracy this morning!