Date: 9/3/2012
Who: Michelle and myself
Distance: about 30 miles
Time: 5 hours
Weather: partly cloudy, warm

Today we rented a 2-person tandem mountain bike, nicknamed the “Black Pearl”, from Criterium bike shop. We rode north on the Greenway trail toward Monument. A marathon was underway on the Greenway trail, so for the first hour or so we passed many runners going in the opposite direction. On the Air Force Academy grounds I saw a black bear about 100 yards away. It was on the other side of a ravine, walking away from our location. We also saw lots of groundhogs and a falcon. To our surprise, the Town of Monument was having a festival. We parked and locked up the bike, and enjoyed browsing around the booths. We also went in for some lunch at the Coffee Cup Cafe. I would recommend it! For dessert we had chocolate-covered strawberries and bananas on a kabob stick from one of the festival vendors.

This ride followed the long BLUE line from the bike shop to Monument:

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Date: 8/26/2012
Distance: 43 miles
Time: 4.4 hours
Weather: sunny, warm

This might have been one of my longest bike rides ever. I started near downtown Colorado Springs and rode north on the Greenway Trail almost to Monument, and then back. I made a minor adjustment to my bicycle seat this morning, and all day my butt did NOT hurt! I wish I had figured that one out sooner. My leg muscles, arms, and wrists are sore, but buttocks are a-ok. Bike-riding has another benefit–I can ride without aggravating injuries which I am dealing with in my left foot and right ankle.

This ride followed the long BLUE line:

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Date: 8/11/2012
Distance: 17 miles
Time: 2.5 hours
Weather: sunny, warm

I rode Gold Camp Road south from the 4-way parking lot in N. Cheyenne Canyon to the junction of Gold Camp and Old Stage Road. It was 2 hours of moderate uphill, followed by 30 minutes of easy fun downhill. The weather was sunny and warm, not too hot. My legs were up for more riding, but my butt was the first thing to start hurting. Hiking does nothing to prepare your butt for bike-riding!

Ready for a day of fun:

This ride followed the GREEN line:

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