End of 2011

I made it a point to get out on a bicycle today. I wanted to close out a big cycling year with one last ride. The year's bigness came primarily from riding the same few routes back and forth to work, so I made sure my last coupla' outings were fun. And by fun, I mean mountain biking.

The Sweetwater Trails were in fine form, a little eroded since I last rode there in June, but that's to be expected since two rainy seasons have come and gone since then. My legs felt even stronger than they did during my last ride, though it turns out that no amount of antibiotics or recovery time can change the fact that I'm a terrible rider, skills-wise. I let out a few audible gasps and grunts as I overcooked a corner here or hung up a wheel in a rock garden there, but surprisingly, there was nobody around to mock me for my struggles.

You heard that right. On a sunny, cloudless, 76° afternoon in the Sonoran Desert, I had an entire trail network to myself. I guess everyone else was off buying champagne for this evening or something. And on that note, I'll sign off and say Happy New Year to everyone!