25 January 2009 - 19:51Riding Arizona

So my first ride of 2009 was a lot of fun. We needed something pretty easy and mellow to get the legs woken up. We were directed to a trail called Fantasy Island, a series of directional interconnected loops. The terrain was mostly flat, but all singletrack, about 15 miles worth.

The trail undulated and twisted over the land, and was so flowy, you could ride it flat out. There were a couple of cool washes to ride in and out of, and a very fun halfpipe, reminiscent of the Kingdom’s infamous Sidewinder trail. 

The weather was a bit iffy however, dark clouds were approaching, and we did get rained on. I was very surprised to see puddles on the ground. I was also very surprised at how big the rabbits are out here. Holy crap! This one was the size of a small dog, easily standing about 24″ high. Hopefully these guys aren’t carnivorous….

We were out for about and hour, when we ran into a guy named Bob, who joined up with us for a loop. He said we were kicking up a good tempo, and had a blast following us through the scrub at high speed. We parted ways when we went out to check out a new loop called Christmas Tree. All in all, the experience was awesome, despite my bringing a few souvenirs with me.

The vegetation out here does not like people.

After our ride we got some cocktails at the Kon Tiki bar on Broadway, where we had big VooDoo cocktails, and some Monkeys and Birds on a Stick (terriaky beef and chicken skewers). We ate dinner at a place called the Hungry Fox, which was right next door. Picture your grandmothers kitchen, with every surface painted some shade of butter, with a whole bunch of crap hanging from every square inch on the walls. It was here that we decided that just because it’s “home made” doesn’t make it any good.

Fully loaded up on carbs, we went on to the Bay Horse Tavern for the pre ride meeting and cheap PBRs. It was going to be a long day on Saturday….