So, the taper is over and I’m ready to race in the 24 Hours of Moab, maybe. (By the way, what the hell is ‘a taper’? Oh, I’m a rider not a racer – so I don’t need to know. Just like I’m a fighter not a lover, or something like that.)

This last weekend was good for me. I’m back on the bike and feeling good. Friday afternoon was hard. I didn’t want to ride, I was tired. But I forced myself to keep the cranks rotating. I made it 3 hours. Not bad. Saturday was better. Today, Sunday was great. I’m back in the groove. I don’t know what happened to me, just flat out lost interest in the long rides. It’s always easy hammer out an hour or so. But 3+ hours on the bike is a bit different. And I’m not talking about 1.5 hours of riding and 1.5 hours of drinking cappuccino, talking with friends and pulling yoga moves. I’m talking about 3 hard hours. Wait a second. 3 hours is nothing! What am I talking about. Oh yeah, I’m in that end of the season funk where 3 hours seems like 10 hours. Oh well.

So, will I make it to Moab? I paid for it, so I should go. The TeddNeck hasn’t committed to race, yet. (But he should be committed! If you know what I mean.) I was fully prepared to go alone. But now I’m having second thoughts. I’m a bit concerned about a brutal race before my trip to New Zealand. I want to arrive in NZ full of energy, prepared to race and party like it was 1999. Just joking, I don’t party anymore – or any less. So, we will see if I hit the road for Moab on Thursday AM.

Anyway, my taper (refer to the comment above – what the hell is a taper?) is over. I put in 64.5 miles / 8200 feet of climbing. Today was a perfect end to the ‘taper’. I hammered out 22.6 miles and 3542 feet of climbing at the South Foothills. Yeah, the South Foothills can be brutal – if you don’t bypass all the tough climbs.

Well, how did I rack up 3542 feet of vertical in 22.6 miles? Easy. Some freaks (Prob-eee) would use the ABQ Trailhead signs to define a ride, i.e., Trail 401 to Trail 365 to Trail 420, blah blah blah. I use the Back of the Pack terms, the terms that have meaning. AND I MEAN ‘MEANING’ -> Check out the CRAZY info on the Meadow of the Witch,  below the ride details.

So, here is a summary of my ride:

1. Up the East Route of the 3PUAH (3 Paths Up a Hill) to The Peak
2. Down the South Route of the 3PUAH
3. Up Sidewinder Alley and across the Great Traverse
4. Down the Angry Walker Climb
5. Through the Meadow of the Witch (Very Important! Read Below!) via the Loop of the Angry Tourist
6. Down and Up the SS (Singlespeed) Stress Test
7. Through the Meadow of the Witch
8. Around Judd’s Twin Peaks
9. Back across the Great Traverse and through the Meadow of the Witch
10. Up the Angry Walker Climb back and back across the Great Traverse
11. Up the South Route of the 3PUAH to The Peak
12. Down the East Route of the 3PUAH
13. Over to Tedd’s Table Climb
14. Around the Race Track
15. Up the Pissed Off Dog Walker’s Climb
16. Up the West Route of the 3PUAH to The Peak
17. Down the South Route of the 3PUAH
18. Across the Bypass Doldrums

The End

 

The Meadow of the Witch. (I can’t make this S*^T up!) 

A ‘witch’ allegedly killed an acquaintance while hiking in the Albuquerque Foothills. The murder was on March 22nd, 2010. Very bizarre stuff. The CRAZY thing is that I named this very section of the South Foothills… ‘The Meadow of the Witch’. I came up with the name during the Winter 2010, months before the ‘incident’ on March 22nd. (And I had a good reason for the name, different story.) Below are links to posting / video that show I was ahead of the game. Yep, crazy S*^T happens all the time around me!

The Link – To the Crazy Blog Post EVER! – Meadow of the Witch

And if you think I am pulling ‘the wool’ over on you. Check out my blog posting on March 20th, you can clearly see that I define the ‘Meadow of the Witch’ before the murder in the ‘Meadow of the Witch’ by the ‘witch’. All the doubters could say that I rigged this. Say what you want, doubter. The B.P.R. crew knows that the trails were defined months before the murder by the witch – so… that’s that!

Yeah, I’m probably doomed now. I bet all the ‘witches’ will come out and hunt me down. Oh well – maybe they will find some compassion – because we live in a kinder, gentler nation. Don’t we? I hope so. I’d hate for some witches to take me out before I experience the possible / probable abduction via the Aliens that we all know are inhabiting our planet. (Am I joking? Jokester?)

The Link – The Proof. The Meadow of the Witch.

Oh, so you still don’t believe me? Check out this video from March 16th, I clearly define the Meadow of the Witch in this video. And I KNOW…. a 10 minute video is tedious. But it’s cool music, so enjoy it – or don’t. If you do anything – which means something other than nothing – go to the end of the video ~ the 6:50 mark. The trailer is pretty good too!

SS Stress Test: The Ride from Judd Rohwer on Vimeo.
Single Speed Stress Test
Albuquerque Foothills – South
March 16, 2010

This a Trailer from Winter 2010. I don’t use it, but it cracks me up. Since winter is on the way, I think it is appropriate to bring this out of the archives.

BPR Trailer 1 from Judd Rohwer on Vimeo.