It is always bittersweet to embark on these
cycling adventures for I Care I Cure.
Glenn loves to bike, I love to travel
and we both loved our nephew, Ian,
and dedicate this ride to his memory.
After months of preparations, we are finally on the road again!
We arrived in Phoenix on Friday and were picked up at the airport by
our Buick salesman who helped us lease our new SAG vehicle
in Arizona so that we could avoid renting an SUV here! Great
timing for the need for a new lease! Thanks to Erez and
Brett from Van Buick for helping to orchestrate this!
We decided that it might be helpful if Glenn did a few miles on Saturday to cut down the trip today. I drove him to Tempe and he pedaled the 17.5 miles back to our hotel. This plan was not without drama! About 1 mile into the ride, Glenn discovered that the battery for his electronic gear changer was missing. This meant that he had to do this ride in one gear. Not an issue yesterday because the terrain was flat but that battery was a necessity to continue. Since Glenn's bike is a few years old, the gear changing mechanism is obsolete and the battery is not readily available. After we retraced all of the mornings steps, we were in panic mode. Enter Evan Green, a family member with biking community connections in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area. Amazingly, they found a new battery at a bike shop and we were relieved and stress free after that! Thanks, Evan and Paul! Bike equipment crisis was averted! Hope its the only one on this trip!
New day, New SAG vehicle, New ride for I Care I Cure!
Glenn took off from Tempe yesterday at sunrise to ride the
17.5 miles back to our Scottsdale hotel. We celebrated the rest of
the day with family for Lauren's bat mitzvah! Congrats to all!
The scenery in this area is stunning....This was my view at
breakfast after I dropped Glenn off in Tempe.
The stats for yesterday's quick ride:
Notice that the elevation only changed 210 feet....good thing!
We woke to this beautiful sunrise today!
We are hopeful that this is a good
omen for this adventure!
Glenn took off from the same point as yesterday, heading south and
east this time. Notice his new logo cycling jersey!
A photo of me in my "cheerleader - SAG supporter" shirt!
You'll notice that there are few photos of me that are not
selfies since I spend many hours on my own each day!
Thanks to Sharon and Joe, Glenn's sister and brother-in-law, (below)
for seeing me off and getting a non-selfie photo as I set off to meet up with Glenn!
Couldn't convince them to ride along with me!
First sign that we are in a desert area!
More about this special cactus later in the blog
My drive-by shootings.....not much traffic today so it was
possible to stop right on the road to take these shots!
The next few are Glenn's photos from the road.
He has a much more "up close and personal" opportunity than I
do in the car! The scenery was magnificent today!
Cell service was remarkably good on this road :)
Usually palm trees mean vacation to us but this one
has double meaning. Can't have enough cell service
when we do these rides. Nothing worse than not being
able to communicate with each other on the road!
The saguaro cactus (Carnegiea gigantea) is one of the defining plants of the Sonoran Desert. These plants are large, tree-like columnar cacti that develop branches (or arms) as they age, although some never grow arms. These arms generally bend upward and can number over 25. Saguaros are covered with protective spines, white flowers in the late spring, and red fruit in summer.
The segment today was from Phoenix/Scottsdale to Globe, AZ.
Globe is located in the heart of Arizona's magnificent Tonto National Forest and is surrounded by some of the most spectacular mountain vistas in the Southwest. It has a colorful history, punctuated by mining discoveries and is supposedly named for a globe-shaped piece of pure silver found nearby. The mining and ranching economic base is still a major factor in the city's economy.
Cacti everywhere!
Entrance to Devil's Canyon Tunnel
Devil's Canyon is noted for its sharp ridges, rock strata and cathedral-like tower formations that illustrate the enormous geological pressures exerted on the region. The mineral wealth of the area is credited mainly to these forces. The Queen Creek Gorge, Bridge and Tunnel can be seen on a drive through the canyon.
While you see Glenn dismount from his bike here, you miss the next scene which was his utter exhaustion. After doing two long inclines in 92+ temps, his body could not go on. Thankfully, he decided to hop in the car with me and call it quits for today. I'm proud that he realized his limits this afternoon....after all, this is the first day of MANY!
Glenn's code for today's ride is W-E-T!
Wind - Temperature - Elevation were his enemies!
Today's stats!
Comparing yestersday's ascent of 210 feet to today's 2876 feet, its no wonder that today was a much more difficult day. I guess we'll have to replace those calories at dinner tonight. About 3/4 of the restaurants here in Globe are Mexican cuisine. I have a feeling that will be the case for the next few weeks! Anyone have a favorite dish to recommend?
Pre-dinner nap! After all, it all starts again tomorrow morning.
No worries, he'll be fine!
Tomorrow we head to Safford, AZ which is about a
72 miles ride. We hear that the terrain is a little less mountainous
which will be appreciated if its hot again. Weather.com has
promised us cooler temps as the days go on!
We are so happy to have you all on this journey with us.
Thanks for your support, love and good wishes!
Be in touch when you can and watch for trivia games soon!
Not an hour goes by, on these rides, that we don't think about our nephew, Ian, and his battle with leukemia. It is so important that there be a change in the approach to treatments for childhood cancers. Our donations go directly to research facilities that are working on targeted therapies that are more humane and less toxic to our kids. This devastating disease has touched so many of our lives.
We decided to do this crazy journey to make a difference!
