Long Weekend Rides

November 27-30, 2008. I baked apple pies for the Thanksgiving festivities which meant I left the house late around 10 am. Everyone else on a bike seemed to be hightailing home as I was pedaling upstream. It was an excellent feast. The eldest sister brought three delectable veggie dishes: beans and cucumbers, papaya/mango salsa and broccoli mix. The youngest sister prepared the sweet potatoes and pumpkin pies. The turkey was juicy, moist and hot.

View to the south on Thanksgiving:


View to the north on Thanksgiving:



Friday was a rest day. Chatted with Montana relatives. Took in the James Bond movie, Quantum of Solace.

Saturday. Rode "Fork plus Four". It was a quiet ride for a Saturday. I dressed warmly as the early morning temperature was 46F. But it warmed up. I did meet an eight legged friend on the road. It was shoo-ed off the road after the photos. I didn't want to see a splat when I came back.



The storm left snow on Mt Baldy:




Sunday. Much warmer it was 54F early and warmed quickly to 57F. On the road the temperature ramped up to a warm 79F. Road to the Maintenance Shed. Bike riding and socializing. Good to see old buddies and I met someone new on the road, John of Claremont. He referees AYSO soccer games.

November pictures

Here are some panoramas from November 22, 2008. It was warm and I did 34.5 miles or fork plus six miles.

Pre Turkey Tuesday

Rushing home from Santa Ana/Irvine on Tuesday to get my daughter from UCI to a dental appointment the sky was filled with perfect overhead clouds. It looked heavenly and it was surprising warm. I still wore long sleeves and brought a warm jacket for the downhill ride.

Here is the view from the first saddle into Glendora.



The vehicular traffic was certainly different on a week day afternoon versus the weekends. More car traffic. No motorcycles. More teenagers.

Cheers from a mountain bike ramp atop a hill alerted me to one of the attractions. Coming down the mountain I managed to be behind the slowest hunter in a white truck. I caught the truck three times.

Beauty of the weekend

The beauty of the mountain is equaled by the dangerous wilderness it belies. Respect for the road, respect for the centerline, respect for the physical laws of nature are imperative for those who wish to survive another day to enjoy the curves, enjoy the scenery, and enjoy the wildlife.

There are different groups of recreational users of the road and the forest. Motorcyclists, hunters, runners, hikers, skate boarders, mountain and road bikers. Rarely do they intermingle but today on my way up the first climb by the ranger station a motorcyclists in an orange down vest with a wide frame stopped me. I recognized her first by vest and then by her large ass, it was my sister atop her newly acquired Honda Shadow Aero.




She told me not to tell mom and dad. sigh. I told her to ride slow. The rescue workers recently pulled off a woman motorcyclist off the mountain.

SGVTribune -- 10/18/2008

GLENDORA - A woman was flown to an area trauma center in critical condition Saturday after her motorcycle drove off the road in the Glendora foothills, officials said.

The crash occurred about 10:15 a.m. on Glendora Mountain Road, just north of Big Dalton Canyon Road, according to CHP logs.

The injured woman was identified as Kathleen McGraw, 37, of San Dimas, CHP Sgt. Jesse Holguin said.

She was conscious and able to speak when taken to the hospital, Los Angeles County Fire Department Firefighter and Paramedic Bill Hailey said.

The 2008 Suzuki motorcycle flew about 100 feet off the roadway, he said.

A rope was lowered from a helicopter to lift McGraw from the roadside, Hailey added.

No other vehicles were involved in the crash, officials said. The cause remained under investigation.

It was a long week and the need to escape the ugliness of the work week was greatly rewarded this weekend.




Saturday: Fork plus seven miles
Sunday: Maintenance Shed
People: Sister, Cathy, Jason, Tammy
Updated 2008.12.29