Montreal

TOURING THE COMMUTE

Bikes everywhere. This is like Amsterdam, Paris, or Copenhagen. In the city there are bikeways, I'll call them, paralleling the portion of the street allowing motorized vehicles, which I'll call motorways (not to be confused with the British use of that term). The bikeways are separated by physical barrier from the motorways, except at intersectons, where all ways (Pedestrian, Bike, Motor) blend to negotiate the individual needs of the traveller. The intersections are well designed and the users educated, so that conflicts of direction and purpose arise rarely and resolve quickly. (See "delayed turn" below.) There is general respect among the user categories (walkers, bikers, drivers). Motorists typically accept they are dangerous to the other participants and yield accordingly. And bikers in turn show deference and respect to the walkers. But nobody has patience for the slow and confused tourist - they are on business, what do these gawkers think happens in a city on a weekday? I was passed abruptly and somewhat rudely only by other cyclists, likely showing disdain for the tourist clogging their bikeway for a purpose less worthy than their work-a-day transportation. I didn't mind. I knew they were right and entitled to be proud of their city.

My impression of motorists: resigned tolerance. Not even Pepe' LePew could fail to preceive that if these bikers were all in cars, nobody would be getting anywhere. The motorist is forced by simple and un-ignorable logic to be thankful for so many cyclists.

Not every urban street has the seperated bikeways and pedways. Of course, bikers and walkers are allowed there too, but you are expected to be competent: silly inattention or otherwise failing to get on with business will not get you run over, but it will get you a well-deserved horn and a "come ON" look: Please, the multiuse roadway is for going somewhere efficiently.

Sightings

1. Cyclist with kayak on trailer, heading for the St Lawrence.
2. Group of Hasidic Jews in a rented peddle car, racing a pigeon. Though each of the seven peddled furiously, the pigeon won.
3. The best-designed bike trailer I've ever seen for goods transport: very light weight, but with about 3x10 feet of flatbed load surface and considerable structural strength engineered using lightweight struts.
4. About 30% helmet use - better than evident in videos of Europe, but less than in the US.
   

Using the Bixis

The term bixi is from bike + taxi. Three thousand bixis are in three hundred stations all around and in the city. The stations lock the bikes by the front wheel. To rent:

1. Insert credit card (no cash), agree to contract, and get an unlock number (valid for 2 minutes).


2. Use the unlock number to unlock a bike.


3. Ride.

Cost: There is a one-time fee of $5.00 (per 24 hours), plus: first 30 minutes: free, second 30 minutes: $1.50, 3rd: $1.50, fourth or more $6.00. (This may not be quite correct, but my best interpretation of the French iconography.) But you can park the bike in any empty slot anywhere in town and the clock stops. (I'm pretty sure it starts over for the next session within that 24 hour period.) The next time within the 24 hour period, just insert the same credit card, get an unlock number, remove a bike, and go again. The $5.00 daily charge is not repeated. It appears that if you keep the sessions under 30 minutes you ride free for 24 hours, once the $5.00 is paid. I will know for sure when I get my mastercard bill.

The whole thing is designed to allow you to do about the city and not have to worry about your bike at all. When you want to take a break or walk about, just put the bike in a stand. When ready to ride again, get another one out.

All the bikes are identical, with calibrated adjustable seatposts so you can quickly set it up for your needs. The ride position is decidedly upright. There are three gears, selected with a grip-shift-like device and interval hub transmission. The low gear will get you up any of Montreal's hills with ease, and the high is good for decent speed on flats. Speaking of flats, the tires are robust and fat, but still presumably flattable. I suppose you just insert the flatted bike and get another. I don't know how to let the service crew know about it, though.

There's a staff of bike service people who maintain the bikes. (Hey, wrenches - ever dream of a bike job with health care and retirement benefits? Apply to City of Montreal.) Each bike has a GPS chip embedded in a secret location, in case you were to forget to return it. Plus, your credit card is on file. Kind of like car rental, more trouble to steal than it's worth.

The bixi is quite rideable for business or tourism activity. Beats the hell out of walking or driving.

Delayed Turn

One innovation in traffic engineering is the delayed turn for motorists. First of all, there's no turn on red, period. And there is a delay in permitted turns, controlled by a forward-only green arrow that becomes open green after about 5 seconds. This is a very subtle innovation. It gives the bikers and walkers a jump on the green before anyone is allowed to turn into their path. It really works well, and goes a long way toward preventing the right-turning motorist x straight-ahead cyclist/pedestrian conflict.

6-Gap Users Guide

A DESCRIPTION OF THE RIDE The course consists of an "approach" from Dahlonega followed by six climbs with some rolling hills between the gaps. Each climb culminates at a "gap", or mountain pass. The climb is named for the gap. There are refreshment stops at each gap and an extra one about half way up Hogpen (gap 4). (There may be more, but you won't need them.) The approach is rolling, with some very sharp (but short) hills. It's roughly comparable to a loop around the Havana Hills race course in Gadsden county. You want to be very careful with your energy on these first few miles. It is easy to get caught up in the moment and push hard enough to effectively ruin the rest of the ride before you even get to the first climb. Forget the group - ride your own pace and get warmed up. You absolutely have to ride your own ride on the climbs anyway. Keep in mind: a ride like 6-gap is more about energy management than anything else. You have only so much, and you're going to need a lot of it on the latter part of the ride.

Gap 1: Neels This is a seven mile climb of moderate grade. Use it to get your legs and CV system running well and to get the feel of what it's like to go up hill for an hour. Watch your energy output rate (preferably with a heart rate monitor) and keep it moderate. There will be plenty of opportunity to push harder later in the ride, should you find the workout inadequate. The descent from Neels is fast but straight enough to be relatively safe, with good pavement. (For the 3-gap folks, the left turn to Wolfpen Gap is easy to fly by if you are not looking for it.) 

Gap 2: Jacks After some fairly good Havana-hills-like rolling terrain, this climb goes for about 3 miles at a moderate+ grade. This is where you get the experience of making a long climb that is not the first long climb... The descent from Jacks is long and moderate - let it fly. Beautiful scenery and lots of free miles on this one. It takes you all the way to the start of the climb to Unicoi Gap, no hilly stuff in between: just descend and start the next climb.

Gap 3: Unicoi Unicoi is about 3 miles of moderate++ climbing. The main problem with Unicoi is that it is unshaded and can be very hot facing into the sun. The descent from Unicoi is great. While the climb is relatively short, the descent is over 10 miles all the way into Helen. The grade is steep enough to be fun, but the pavement is good and the curves are well banked so again this is not particularly dangerous. There may be a lot of traffic, the only "down side". But the roadway is wide enough to accommodate autos and bikes in most places. Stay aware of the traffic behind you. At 1445 ft above sea level, Helen is the lowest elevation on 6-gap, thus explaining why the descent is so long. (Dahlonega is 1880 ft.) And you WILL pay a price... 

Gap 4: Hogpen This is the big one. Seven miles at a steep grade, averaging around 7% but with some sections well above that. There are also a couple of false summits. There's a rest stop at mile 4, with 3 to go. (The mile markers on the highway actually correspond to miles on this climb.) Try to skip the intermediate rest stop. If the weather is hot, though, you may need to just get some fluid here. The descent from Hogpen is dangerous. It is very steep. There are sharp blind curves at the end of steep strait sections. The pavement is bad: old chip-seal, broken in places, and loose gravel possible anywhere. The road is narrow, and the camber of the turns is not adequate. The grade is such that speeds in excess of 50 mph are possible just using gravity. Someone said that if you don't brake, you won't flat: well, tell that to all the people who have flatted on, say, our St Marks Trail. You can also come up on wildlife, potholes, stopped leaf peepers, wet roadway, loose gravel, pavement cracks, hickory nuts, crashed motorcycles, motorcycles ascending in your lane, and any number of other hazards that require a very rapid change of plans. Bad stuff CAN happen. I have personally seen everything in my list above on the 6-gap course. It is unwise to descend at a speed that allows for no margin of correction. It is also unwise to brake too much, especially to ride the brakes. You want to avoid heat buildup in your rims - eventually, this will cause a blowout by melting your tube. (If you have plastic rim strips, failure will occur at a much lower temperature. Change to cloth rim tape before 6-gap.) And keep in mind: the heavier you are, the faster gravity will accelerate you and the more heat you will put into your rims when you slow down. There's no simple recipe here, just make sure you control your speed to something that gives you some wiggle room in case of unexpected events. 

Gap 5: Wolfpen The second toughest climb on 6-gap. About 2.5 miles (depending on where you define the beginning) with grades on par with Hogpen. The roadway is shady, however, which is great if the weather is hot. (It's been known to sleet up here, if the weather is wet.) The Wolfpen descent is twisty but on good pavement with good camber to the curves, so not too dangerous. It is often damp, though. Stay out of the paint.

Gap 6: Woody The descent from Wolfpen takes you only down to Suches, home of the highest elevation school in Georgia. Consequently the climb up Woody is a paltry 1.5 miles of moderate grade. From the top of Woody it's a 15+/- mile descent of mild grade all the way back to Dahlonega. Try to have enough energy left to enjoy it.

HOW TO SIMULATE A CLIMB IN FLORIDA IMO: The only way to get a feel for climbing in Tallahassee is on a flat road. We do not have seven mile hills. Hills around here are great for building climbing strength and technique, but they can't give you a feeling for the long sustained effort required for the climbs in the mountains. Here is how to "feel" the climb to Neels Gap: On a 20 mile stretch of relatively flat road, assume a climbing position on your bike (hands on the top of the bar, loose grip, elbows out, chest open, head up) and start a 20 mile time trial. Using your heart rate monitor, maintain a steady heart rate at a sustainable level for the entire 20 miles. Let's say 85% of your maximum sustainable effort. OK, that's Neels. Hog Pen: 30 miles at 90% Wolf Pen: 15 miles at 90% Etc. The entire 6-gap effort can be simulated by riding about 130 miles in Florida, making long sustained efforts of appropriate length. (Except, this simulation is harder on your butt than 6-gap, and it's a lot less fun. Plus, there's essentially no way to simulate the descents.)

ADVICE

• It's all about energy management.
• Stop at the top just long enough to get supplies. Rest on the bike going downhill.
• Be prepared for weather. I guarantee there will be some.
• You can't have too low gears. Take all you have.

DISCLAIMER Descending is never safe. Any time you are going 30+ mph in traffic there is danger to be assessed and managed. 

Fall 2008 Update The pavement is deteriorating. The Hogpen descent is still gravelly, acorny, potholy. There is at least one significant hole on the Wolfpen descent that is almost impossible to see in sunny weather due to the mottled shaddows of trees on the road. The return from Woody has been changed: from Stone Pile you now take a right. Instead of continuing a nice descent all the way to the finish, this new route has some very sharp hills. It is also more scenic. For me, at mile 90, the most beutiful thing in the world is a downhill, and in this sense the new route is much less so. Don't run over the old guys...

Commuting Chonicles 4

Commute to Gym and Grocery

Depart home heading east on Lakeshore Drive. Take the short cut left turn on Springdale - becomes Lexington - to Meridian Rd. Left on Meridian for one short and relatively safe block to a right turn onto Cloverdale. Left on Deer Lane, right on Audubon, left on Woodley Drive to Timberlane Rd. Right on Timberlane for short blocks (down and then up) to left on Martin Hurst Road. This takes you the back way to Maclay Blvd and on to Premier Fitness. Plenty of parking - the bike rack is almost always empty at the fitness center.

After a spirited (if light weight) workout, unlock and head around to Fresh Market. Today, for example, I picked up the weeks supply of apples, some Gruyere, a couple of other things. This all fits into the Performance Grocery Pannier. I lock to a tree in front of the store, on a parking lot island. Can't find a bike rack there, but the tree works fine as long as nobody complains.

Then reverse to home. Total miles: 12

Notes:

1. Hint for grocery baggers: My wife Kathy has got me using those 99 cent reusable bags that are the shape of a paper grocery sack. One thing is, they often have no solid bottom. Your old aluminum auto tag fits perfectly! It makes a nice hard bottom for the cloth bag. That in turn fits perfectly into the Performance grocery pannier. A great use for that old share-the-road you hung up in the workshop.


2. Even though this route touches Meridian and Timberlane, it seems pretty safe to me. The distances on those two roads are very short. I use a mirror and off-road capable tires.

MiniTip 1 [Urban Riding]

When a vehicle approaches from a side street or driveway: immediately check your back. If a vehicle is in your lane behind you, the driveway driver will probably see it and wait. This gives you some cover, but also no room to dodge, so remain vigilant. If there is no vehicle immediately behind you, take the lane by moving yourself into the middle of the lane. This serves two important purposes. It brings you into the attention zone of the driver of the side vehicle, and it gives you more room to react if the side vehicle lurches forward.

A driveway/side street vehicle driver is highly motivated to get past the traffic menace in your street: to merge to his right in your direction of travel, or (more dangerous) to cross the entire street, or (worst of all) to make a left turn. This driver is usually very focussed on traffic in the lanes and looking for a gap to shoot. This driver may have his finger on the trigger and have it almost squeezed off. This driver can easily miss seeing you, especially if you are not out there in the traffic lanes (the attention zone). This is one of the main reasons that riding on the sidewalk is more dangerous than riding on the roadway.

Be careful out there.

Poor Man's Compact Crank

I noticed a few months, in Leonard Zinn's Velo News column, that FSA is offering a range of aftermarket chainrings for 130mm and 110mm bolt circle diameters. These got a good review from the big guy. They are CNC machined and heat treated in the modern style, with all the extra ramps and pins that make them shift as well as those that come on new 9- and 10- speed cranks.

I googled up a place to order and have now obtained and installed on my classic DA crank: 38 tooth inner, 50 tooth outer. (38 is the smallest you can fit to the 130mm bolt pattern.) This has changed my bike a lot more than I would have thought. Here're some impressions:
The change from 53/39 to 50/38 is very noticeable and pleasant. The 50 tooth bigring is much better for me in our local terrain. With 53/39, I often found myself in a "between" state, with slight changes in speed needing a double shift. With the 50/38 I can stay in the bigring for a larger percentage of riding, I guess for me about 75% (up from something around 50% with the 53.) Basically, I only need to downshift to the small ring when a good hill looms. In the small ring, even 1 fewer teeth is noticeable, and makes those steepest hills a bit easier to climb.

I also like the closer ratio. Shifting from 50 to 38 seems more natural, with less of that "clunk" feel I get when dropping from 53 to 39.

I highly recommend the 50 bigring, especially. The only down side is that I spin out at about 35 instead of 40 (rough estimates). I deal with that problem by coasting once I can't peddle fast enough in the top gear.
The 50 bigring comes standard on the new compact cranks. These compacts often come with 34 tooth smallring. I think that's great for mountains, but for many people it is lower than they need around here. Again, you can go to FSA and get a 36 or 37 for that crank and have a less clunky front downshift and use the smallring more, saving chewing up the bigring with the chain angled too much.

Installing new chainrings is fairly simple, and it gives you a chance to get the crank clean for the first time since it left the showroom.

Just FYI, when you wear out the rings that came from the crank factory.

Clayton "Claytonius" Lacher

Born: "N Find Me" 4/20/97

Sire: Molotov

Dam: Dominatrix

Breeder: Seelke, Rt 1, Box 112B, Cleo Springs, OK 73729, 580-438-2470

Adopted from Sandy Davidson, 2015 Forrest Glen, 383-2500

January 17, 2008

I heard a cry of agony from his bed. He had tried to stand to follow me into another part of the house and his leg gave out - the femur simply ceased to stiffen his leg between hip and knee. He could not walk, would not lie down, and was in great stress. I phoned Kathy for help and our vet Dr Michelle to ask her to come to the car and examine him.

When Kathy got home we coaxed him, hobbling on three legs with the fourth dangling, to the car and lifted him in. I rode in back with him, supporting him as he still was afraid to lie down. He just panted and teetered on three legs, with me pressing him to the seat back so he wouldn't tumble. Dr M came to the car and the three of us managed to get him to lie down. It was his first moment of peace and calm in a couple of hours. He lay on his side with us holding and stroking him. We knew what was down the road, but tried not to show it to Clayton. For his part, trust was there, as it always had been. The vet could not really examine the leg, so she sedated him. He took the IV calmly, without fear, and drifted off to a sleep in one of his favorite places, the back of Kathy's CRV.

Once he was sound asleep Dr Michelle confirmed the broken femur. Given what we knew, there was no chance of a good heal of that bone, eaten away by cancer to the extent it had spontaneously failed. Clayton, awake with this broken leg, was unable to do anything without great stress and pain. To Kathy and me, it made no sense to wake him up to months of suffering toward an end that could not be good. Dr Michelle concurred. We asked her to put him deeper asleep, to the happy place beyond.

December 2007

In the months preceeding, Clayton had developed a worrying dry cough as well as a seemingly unrelated favoring and limping on his right rear leg. It was natural to think the latter was age-related hip issues, and the vet agreed. He was examined several times for the cough, with no findings. (No xrays were taken.)

During a Christmas visit to my Mom's in Athens, it became clear that Clayton's leg was getting worse. He could still run, like the wind (or rather a freight train - he weighed 92 lbs), but had a pronounced limp, a favoring of the leg when not "on". He also fell a couple of times getting in/out of Van Diesel. When we returned, his cough was also worse. On Jan 16, he had a very bad episode of coughing that resulted in a bloody discharge - the cough went from dry to bloody wet on that day.

We immediately went to Dr M who did a chest xray: a profusion of spots, believed to be secondary sites from metastatic bone cancer, was evident on the film. The leg was then xrayed, but the film was unreadable. We decided to let it go for the time being, since Clayton was under a lot of stress and we needed to get his coughing and lung distress under some control. We went home with a multiweek supply of steriods to ease the effects of cancer. He spent a relatively quiet night, but was uninterested in food. For Clayton, that was like Ray Baron refusing sex. The next day was Jan 17, 2008.

Blitz, Joey and Clayton

Our travel to England in the early 90s was the first step in raising our consciousness about greyhounds. Living a while in London, we decided to visit the Battersea Dog Home, a place that takes in dogs and commits to them - they are allowed to stay indefinitely, until on some lucky day they are adopted. We wanted to see this place, because we had no experience with that kind of humane treatment in the US. The home was an inspirational visit, and could be the subject of an entire essay.

We were struck by the greyhounds at Battersea. Firstly, there were so many. Perhaps more than half the dogs there were greyhounds. Secondly, their nature: without exception, they were quiet but expressive, staring at us with love and longing in the eyes, quite reminiscent of our beloved doberman Greta (who did not make the trip to England). I think we both made the decision, internalized, that when the time was right we would adopt a greyhound. It was heartbreaking to leave Battersea knowing the sadness and disappointment we left behind. But it was wonderful to know the commitment and dedication of the Dog Home for its residents.

The time did arrive, and we adopted our first greyhound, Blitz, from Katherine Crawford. Blitz had a good post-racing life with us, and he and I became inseparable friends. Blitz passed away at around 10 years of age, with bone cancer.

A few months after Blitz's passing, we visited Sitehound Rescue in Thomasville, GA, and found Josephine ("Joey"). Joey is a big girl, probably too big for racing, in any case she was diverted into the adoption track at a pre-race age where things didn't work too well for her. Perhaps she was initially adopted by someone who didn't understand the socialization process. In any case, she found herself back in the adoption system at SHR, and we found her there. Joey is quite shy and demure, but not fearful. A few weeks after adopting Joey, we were asked to take a look at a dog being foster-homed by Sandy Davidson. Sandy had Rotweilers and this greyhound didn't fit in all that well.

I took Joey with me to Sandy's place to see the big guy. Joey was large for a female greyhound, bigger than a lot of males, with fine bones and huge muscles. But Clayton towered over her! He was huge. He stood a full 8 inches taller than a typical Doberman, almost like a small great dane. He has large feet and fairly robust bones, which would have made him a step slow on the track. Joey was quite wary of the Rotweilers (although they showed no sign of aggression). Clayton immediately picked up on that and placed himself between her and the Rotties, where he remained for the entire visit. He did this without fanfare - a man holding a door for a lady.

We adopted Clayton from Sandy in November, 2001.

Life in Prison

Clayton came from a very deprived background (explained to me by Nancy). His race career did not last. He was competitive but a step slower than the winners, undoubtedly due to his higher bone mass. His adoption out of racing landed him with a veteranerian, who used him as a blood doner. For years, he was kept in a concrete floored chainlinked pen, without companionship of dog or human. This is exceptionally cruel for greyhounds, who are used to a very social environment. Clayton was used to provide blood transfusions for poodles and other clients of the vet. His only source of interaction and pleasure was meal time.

(Greyhound blood is 20% higher in red blood cells than other dog breeds, sort of naturally "doped". This has obvious benefits for a racing breed, and it makes their blood extra desirable for other dogs.)

That vet for whatever reason decided he/she no longer needed Clayton - so he dropped Clayton off anonymously in the Leon Co Animal Shelter after-hours drop box. Sandy noticed his arrival. He had horrible caloused growths on his elbows and knees from a life on concrete and was a bit looney from social deprivation. He craved food, likely because that is all he had to live for in the years of solitary confinement. Nancy fostered him out the day he was scheduled for euthanization. She cured his legs and started him back to socialization. What a wonderful thing to do.

Brothers


I have had the honor of sharing life with a number of dogs: Dachshunds (Waldi, Bruno, Figaro, Daisy, Ceasar), Fox Terrier, Beagle (Belle), Dobermans (Greta, Max, Porsche, Babe), Greyhounds (Blitz, Joey, Clayton), along with a few other creatures including cats, squirels, and birds. Clayton and I had a special bond, with some intangible extra consciousness between us that I can't adequately explain or describe. We were brothers in the sense of chosen, rather than born, to be so. That's Clayton and Babe on Mom's porch in Athens.

Hoo-Dah

During his life with us Clayton and I developed a special bond. We spoke to each other with body and facial language and tone of voice. He helped me invent a vehicle for my end of this communication. It began when I would arrive home and say "Who's 'da Dog" (or "who're 'da dogs" to them all). That evolved to "who 'da dogga" and further to just "hoo-dah", similar to the familiar "hoo-ahh" of army life. After a few weeks we had the term down. "Hoo-dah" became the word, and it meant almost everything important to say conversationally to loving dogs, the meaning conveyed by tone, volume, emphasis, and body language. A loud and exhuberant "hoo-dah" meant "Hello, I'm home and glad to see you!" and invariably resulted in a happy Clayton bounding to greet me. A quiet and contemplative "hoo-dah" meant "you are such a wonderful friend" and resulted in a tail wag and sometimes a loving tungue-touch on my hand. Until now, the one thing it has not meant was good by and farewell.

Hoo-dah, my friend.

Commuting Chronicles 3

Commuting and Riding in Tucson

(Originally posted to tal-rides on July 25, 2007)

This past week we (wife Kathy and I) were in Tucson visiting daughter Laurel's family: hubby Mike, daughter Daphne, and another girl WELL on the way. (They all say "hi" to you who know them.) They live in the old barrio just south of downtown. Mike bought 1/2 block there when they were practically giving it away as urban renewal and built some adobe residences where they now call home. The area is well on the way to gentrification, meaning good cafes, pubs, and bistros within walking distance, but retains a lot of the barrio flavor. It's a very interesting area to visit.

Commuting

Mike has a business (Geosystems Analysis, Inc) located about 5 miles away, and he commutes by bike. I rode with him a couple of times. He hops on the Santa Cruz River Bikeway a few blocks from home, rides north along the river all the way to his offices, where he can exit the bikeway, cross a parking lot, and he's there. The only streets he has to share with motorized vehicles are the 3-4 blocks from home to the bikeway. It is as if our St Marks trail took you from, say, a residence in Midtown to a business near the airport, something like that.

On both of these trips, I saw a lot of wildlife, including each time a Road Runner. I even passed the RR once. This has to be harder than passing a Harley, right?

This is an unbelievable commute. Mike sometimes takes Daphne to school, too, which means a few more blocks on city streets. School was out so I didn't get to lurk along on that part, but I did ride those streets and they are quite calm. Daphne rides in a seat he mounts on the rear rack of the bike, or sometimes in a Burley trailer.

Laurel works out of home and bike commutes to the YMCA (workouts, including swimming) and some shopping. She also takes Daphne to the Y for a swim, by bike.

The Guest Bike

They now have a guest bike in my size. I have had one for a while that Mike rides when in TLH, so they knew that a spare bike for him would also work for me. (xcpt the gears - I mentioned something about liking low gears for the hills, they said "oh, it has very low gears, all you should need" - 39x23 was the lowest. Oh well. I'll treat the guest bike to a compact crank on the next trip.)
But what a luxury to have a guest bike when you visit. I recommend this practice to everyone. It's a great excuse to get yourself another bike and keep the current one for guests. It's great for you, great for guests, great for the bike shop, all around greatness. Be a good host: buy more bikes!

Other Rides

There are some excellent rides from downtown Tucson. Even leaving from city center, it is not hard at all to get out quickly. (I can't figure out how this is so. Tucson is considerably larger in population than TLH, but it seems much more comfortable to get to good riding from downtown.)
My favorite is the loop that goes through Tucson Mountain Park and Old Tucson and returns by climbing Gates Pass (about like Wolf Pen Gap, only desert). [That was REAL fun on the 39x23.] The main loop is about 30 miles, plus 10 if you add the extension through Saguaro National Park and the Arizona Desert Museum. Quiet roads, interesting hilly terrain, and amazing desert scenery. You can make a day of it by stopping at the Desert Museum. (Do the all day trip in spring, fall, or winter.)
Summer riding starts early in AZ. They don't do daylight savings time, so it is light at 5:00am, and of course HOT by 10:00am. Best rides are 5:00 - 8:00am. But that works for us - just stay on Tallahassee time, and the ride is 8:00am - 11:00am, as far as your sleep cycle can tell.

Cisterns

Laurel just had two cisterns installed that catch the roof runoff for use as water for the yard and possibly an outdoor shower. This makes a lot of sense in AZ, which is coming out of its unusually wet last few decades. At first I didn't get it. Water is water. But the point (she says) is that watering plants using municipal water means using ground water (i.e., well water from the aquifer) for a surface water job. The ground water that goes down the sewer is recycled by pumping back to the aquifer after treatment, but if you pour it on the ground it is essentially transferred to the surface system. Rainwater on the other hand is surface water, so pouring it on the ground is keeping it in the same system. I think I got this right.

[Laurel's comment, added: Well, not quite. The main point of harvesting rain water is to prevent its loss through evaporation (and mosquito breeding), which is the fate of much storm runoff in Tucson. This leads to the secondary purpose which is to minimize the mining (and associated costs) of the underground water on which we depend for basic living. The third perk is that plants love rain – not chlorinated, comparatively salty groundwater.

Uncaptured stormwater runs off into the Santa Cruz Riverbed (as you witnessed) or other washes where it then either infiltrates into the groundwater system or evaporates. Infiltration is the only way that our aquifer gets replenished, but by capturing potentially evaporated water, we effectively create a new source.]

Visiting Christine & Marty

An old friend of Laurel's is back in Tucson as President of Genuine Innovations, makers of various CO2 inflation systems. I met Marty several years ago, back when he was supporting his competitive cycling doing the product rep thing. Now settled, he and wife Christine remain gifted and dedicated athletes, on top of their bigger life responsibilities.

We all went to their home and met the 3 boys, the youngest being less than a week old. The middle boy is Daphne's age, and they take swim class together. It was a nice visit, their boys are boys, fer sure. Looks like they'll have a pro golfer, an NFL linebacker, and maybe a cyclist, although the 5-day-old is a little young to evaluate. I was duly impressed with the new one, of course, of course.

I was also impressed with the bike shop Marty has set up, taking the space where a more typical AZ family would keep the second car. They have about 7 bikes, down from 17 they brought in when they moved from California to Genuine Innovations. The shop has good working space, pro-level tools, and the top-line Park work stand, the one with the massive metal plate base. Marty has mounted this onto a low wooden frame on low-profile castors, so he can easily move the stand to the center of the shop for work but roll it out of the way otherwise. Good idea, and it works. The shop is also well organized, neat, and clean, so projects start right up.

Marty commutes every day from his home to work at the GI HQ near the Tucson airport - a good 7-8 miles on city roads. His commuter is a Surly Cross Check with 700-32 tires. We agreed that having off-road-capable tires on a commuter is an under-rated safety feature, allowing you to concentrate on traffic, not so much on minor road hazards, and also escape more easily. Cyclocross bikes are excellent for commuting.

Wile E Biker Recommends

If you get a chance, visit Tucson and do some biking. Even pretending to commute is fun. And where else can you ride a good gap and see a road runner the same day?