2nd Ride with EV Cruisers - Breakfast in Globe and Winkelman

Today was our second ride together as a group. We met at Lowe's on Higley and I-60 at 7:30. We had 7 people show up for this ride. We headed out at 7:45 on I-60 through Superior and into Globe. The morning temps were in the mid 80's and the drive up was nice. We at breakfast at the Cookhouse on the West side of Globe. The food is always good there. We ended up meeting two other folks that missed us at the meetup in the morning. They ate with us and rode with us for the rest of the day.
After breakfast we headed out through Globe and to Winkleman on 77. We could feel the temps start to warm up now. We stopped in Winkleman at a minmart for water and a potty break. We now took 177 back toward superior driving through several small mining towns. When we got back into Superior we stop at Las Hermosa for a quick rest and a very cold beer. After the rest we headed back into the valley on I-60 and got back home around 1:00 pm.
A very nice not too long ride with the heat. Everyone on the ride was in good spirits and
another successful ride for the East Valley Cruisers.

New Group and first ride to Harold's in Cave Creek

Well... first of all the EVRG is no longer around. After several personal problems (not me) between members and organizers the group was shut down. I then decided to put together my own group of people that want to RIDE. Not a singles group and no FF just folks wanting to enjoy the outdoors and ride. I started the group (East Valley Cruisers) on Monday and by Friday had 65 members. We had our first ride yesterday. It was a short ride to Harold's bar in Cave Creek. The ride out was a little warm at first as we left at 6:15 with temps around 105. We headed out through Fountain Hills and past McDowell Mountain park. We arrived at Harold's at just about 7:30 just as the sun was going down.
We had 16 bikes and about 24 people on the ride. Everyone stayed together real well with no problems. We had a nice dinner with good service. The owner came over and said hi and found out Adam and I were both big Steeler fans. We headed back around 9 pm just as the band was starting to play. A few folks stayed behind, but most of us left together. We came back a quicker way down Pima road and then the 101 back to Gilbert. Once we hit the freeway we all kind of went our separate ways.
Overall it was a short ride, but a nice ride to get together the new group for the first time.

July 20 - Mt. Lemmon trip 300 miles

Today the EVRG did a trip to Mt. Lemmon in Tucson to get away from the heat. We are in the heart of our monsoon season so there was lot's of cloud cover. We headed out at 8 am through Queen Creek and Florence. We then headed to Oracle Junction and then to the West part of Tucson. Just before Tucson we stopped at a Uno Chicago for a quick drink and snack for those that were hungry. We then headed through the outskirts of Tucson making one quick stop for gas before heading up Mt. Lemmon. The drive up was very nice with lots of turns and not a lot of traffic. We travelled to above 8000 feet and even drove trough some low flying clouds which was really cool. We got a few drops of rain on the drive up, but not much and were able to stay dry.
We ate lunch at the top of Mt. Lemmon at the Rusty Gate restaurant. The food was good, but the menu was limited. After lunch and a good rest we hopped back on the bikes and headed back down the mountain. We stopped once for some nice pictures at a scenic site. We then drove the rest of the way down the mountain and back into Tucson. We came back the same way on the Western outskirts of town, and just as we exited Tucson made another stop for gas. We notices the monsoons were now gathering around the mountain and heading straight at us.
We headed back to Oracle Junction and decided to stop at Lupe's Mexican restaurant for a quick drink. Just as we got off the bikes we saw how close the storm was to us and decided to press on to Florence to keep ahead of the storm. We headed back out and stopped at the River Bottom saloon in Florence for a nice cold beverage and a much needed rest. After that we headed home and started to break up our separate ways in Queen Creek. I got home just about 6 pm.
Overall it was a nice ride and with the cloud cover the temps were a little more tolerable, but once we got back in the valley the humidly was quite high. We were very lucky and saw very little rain and had a nice safe ride.

Overnight Ride to Alpine, AZ 532 Miles

The EVMR group I ride with planned an overnight trip this last weekend to escape the heat. The original plan was to get to and ride the Highway 191 (Coronado's Trail) with over 60 miles of curves and hails. However, a summer fire that started a few day earlier closed the highway. So we made alternate plans.
Saturday:
We met at the Home Depot at 7 am. We headed out around 7:20 with 18 folks and 14 bikes. We headed into Globe first for breakfast. We then drove through Safford and grabbed a quick beverage and gassed up. We then drove just south of Clifton, AZ on 191/78 into New Mexico. We drove about 70 miles through NM on some curvy hilly roads that were beautiful. We stopped at a little Cafe along the way for a nice lunch. We then headed to our cabin (TalWiWi resort) back in AZ and arrived around 4:30.
It was a little cooler, but not a cool as we had hoped in the afternoon. We had dinner at their restaurant and a few cold beer by our rooms and at the bar. Everyone headed to bed after a long day of riding around 9 pm.
Sunday:
Two couple left early around 5:45 yech. The rest of us had breakfast around 7:30 and hit the road around 9 am. We drove about 30 miles on 191 to see Hannigan Meadows and some very wonderful scenery of rolling roads and pine trees. We came to the spot where the road was closed and headed back towards Alpine. From there we went to Eagar where we stopped for gas and a stretch of the legs. We started to notice some dark clouds gathering over Show Low where we were heading. Just after leaving Eagar the clouds were looking really bad so we stopped to put on our rain gear. We Just before Pine Top-Lakeside we ran into some rain for about 15 minutes. We continued through the storm and stopped in Show Low (Branding Iron Saloon) for lunch.
As we were finishing lunch we noticed the storm had caught up to us and it started raining again. We all got back into our rain gear and gassed up after lunch. Once we headed out of Show Low we were under a steady stream of rain until just before Salt River Canyon. Then it got really bad. We got golf ball size hail along with heaving rain heading into the canyon. There were already rock slides starting on the side of some of the mountains. When it got really heavy we pulled over to see what everyone wanted to do. We decided to drive through it as carefully as possible, as it looked like we were in the middle of the storm, and it was not going to blow over us.
We headed into the canyon at a very slow speed as most of the traffic had slowed quite a bit. Just before we reached the bottom the hail finally subsided, but we still were getting a light rain.
A few of us stopped for a potty break and then headed on out of the canyon and into Globe. As we headed out of the canyon the rain ended and we had a chance to dry off before getting to Globe.
Once in Globe we all gassed up and compared how soaked we were. There was talk of stopping for a beer, but the storm we just drove through was blowing our way. We decided to head back to town without stopping. As we left Globe we again encountered some rain for about 10 miles, but not nearly as bad as we had in the canyon, an no hail. Once we were about 30 miles out of town we were out of the storm and could start to feel the desert heat. It was nice to feel the 100 degree air blow drying my clothes. I drove straight home and arrived around 4:30 on Sunday afternoon
Overall I had a great time on the trip. The weather on the way back was a little crappy, but if it had no been for the storms we would have been in 100 degree weather from the Salt River Canyon all the way home. Now I have to find so decent rain gear as the stuff I had was horrible.
I would like to someday take Adam on this trip with me so he could enjoy the scenery too.

Night Ride to Scottsdale bars

With the heat setting in you either have to ride at night or get out of the valley early in the morning. I decided yesterday to check out a few Scottsdale biker friendly bars I have been wanting to check out. The first was the Dirty Dogg Saloon located on Scottsdale and Shea. This was really cool where the girls in the bar get on the bar in skimpy outfits and use a hula hoop or swing from the rafters in the ceiling. Very cool.
The second bar was the Billet Bar about 6 miles South on Scottsdale road. This is a bar built for bikers with biker parking in the front, and a long bar outside facing Scottsdale road to see all the people and bikes. Another very cool place and they had some cute waitresses too. They also had a nice area in the back with pool tables and booths and a full bar.
The night was pretty casual, and I will be visiting these bars again in the near future.

Cool weather - Three different rides

We had a big storm blow in early this week. We got rain Thursday, Friday, and early Saturday. Temps dropped into the 70's during the day. This weekend, which was a three day weekend due to Memorial day was probably the last cool weather we might see for a while. So.. what did I do? I went on three separate rides Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.

- Saturday - 200 Miles
The EVMR group I ride with planned a ride to Chistopher Creek for lunch today. We planned to meet at 9:30 and head up. Problem was with all the recent rain and cold weather is was snowing in Payson. So... we changed our plans. We decided to head away from the rain towards Tucson. We did the Florence, Oracle Junction, Winkleman, Superior Route. I took Adam along on this ride. We first stopped at the Galloping Goose bar in Coolidge for a quick beverage. We then headed towards Tucson. We stopped a Lupes Mexican restaurant at the junction of 77 & 79. The food was very good, but service was very slow. We then headed out on 77 to past several small mining towns and then headed NW on 177 to Superior. During one stop for photos, Mark our fearless leader and his wife fell over on their bike. Luckily they had come to a stop on a soft spot on the side of the road. Other than a little pride nothing else was hurt. Once we hit Superior we
we stopped at the Mexican restaurant at the edge of town for a quick beverage an then headed home. All in all a nice ride in cool temps. Once we exited the Phoenix area the clouds cleared up and we had a beautiful ride.
-Sunday- 190 Miles
With the great cooler weather I wanted to take advantage and go for another ride Sunday morning. Late Saturday I sent an email to all EVMR folks to see if anyone was interested in going to breakfast in Globe on Sunday. I ended up getting two other riders (both named Bill) to go along. Bill W. also brought along his 11 year old daughter. Adam sat this one out as he had church today. We headed out on 60 towards Superior. We stopped at the edge of town at the Buckboard cafe for a quick potty break and then back on the road. We got the the Cookout cafe in Globe at around 9:30 am and had a really nice breakfast. The original plan was to have breakfast and head back the same way. However, with the great weather I suggested we go past Roosevelt Lake and Jake's Corner and come home down 87 from Payson. Both Bill's agreed it was a good idea and we were off after breakfast. The temps were in the 70's and felt great. We stopped in Tonto Basin for gas and potty break. We then stopped at Jake's Corner bar for a quick refreshment and rest. We then headed home. The other Bill wanted to take one more rest on the way home so we stopped at the Saguaro Lake Marina for a quick rest. We headed on home and I got back around 1:30 in the afternoon. Another great ride with perfect weather.
-Monday- 50 miles
I decided to take Adam on a ride today. We went to the top of South Mountain where he has never been. We headed out around 9:00 am. Traffic was light as this was a holiday today. We got to the top, and Adam loved the view. We stayed there for about 20 minutes while he looked over the valley and watched the planes coming and going at Sky Harbor Airport. We then took a route to the back (South) side of the mountain. There we found a group of folks that were parachuting off the side of the mountain. They had these customized shoots that were already open, that they waited until they caught the wind, and then ran off the side of the mountain. It was really cool to watch. After waiting about 20 minutes for one guy to go we headed back down the mountain. Adam really loved the twists and turns on the mountain. We stopped for lunch at a pizza place owned buy a guy I used to work for about 20 years ago. He was in and we got a chance to catch up while having lunch. After lunch we headed home as it was starting to warm up. Overall not a long ride, but very scenic and Adam enjoyed his first time on South Mountain.

5/18 Showlow/Payson Loop 350 Miles

I went on another ride with the EVMR this last Sunday. The group was little smaller than normal (4 bikes) as several of the folks in the EVMR were doing an overnight ride to Lake Havasue City. We wanted to get out of the heat and head up to the cool country. We decided on a 340 mile through Show Low and Payson. We started out at 9:00 am and headed to Show Low. We took I60 through Globe and Salt River Canyon. Once we got out of Globe you cold feel the temperature drop a bit which was nice. The drive through the Salt River Canyon was real pretty with great views. We stopped at a good Mexican restaurant at the edge of Show Low around 12:30 for lunch.
After lunch we headed West on 260 through Heber and Overgard. This was the nicest part of the trip with nice temps and beautiful mountain scenery. We stopped at the Red Onion in Overgard for a quick beverage to cool off. We then headed into Payson were we made a quick stop for gas and a final rest before the haul home. We did hit some traffic for about 3 miles outside of Payson on the Beeline highway where they had the rock slide a few months ago. Once we got out of that traffic it was smooth riding back into the heat and the valley. We finished off by stopping at Spirits in East Mesa for a quick refreshment and then back home.
Over a nice ride and we made good time without having to rush at all.