I got out for a ride. I’ve spent the past month holed up with my girlfriend at her place, and I lack the discipline to keep riding my bike each day without exterior forces. I work as a bike courier at the moment, but have been off so I can limit exposing my family (who are medically sensitive) to the whole plague thing. I normally do 30-60mi per day with commuting and work riding, and then typically 30-100 or so on the weekend for fun. None of that over the past month. You get it, I’m fat and slow now.
My buddy Luis was gonna ride up GMR from the Glendora side, and I planned on meeting him at the top. He was going to leave around 10am, so since I was taking my usual loop up 39, I left at 730. I took the road bike my buddys gave me cause the rear brake on my personal bike took a shit on me. I’m replacing them soon. The road bike is a little too small since I’m taller than average, so it’s not real comfortable, and I’m leaned forward a bit too much. Not as enjoyable to ride, but it’s free and I’m not complaining so much as showing how I’m not as motivated to ride when I don’t have my nice comfy shiny black bike with fat tires that loves me and hugs me and that I can ride almost anywhere.
So my route takes me from the city up 39 to East Fork rd, then up backside (north part of gmr), up to the saddle, then down frontside into glendizzle, where I say obnoxious things as I pass old people who have money and shit like that. About 50mi and 3500ft or so of gain. This direction also gives the most downhill fun time and evens out the climbing over a longer distance. I have arthritis in my knees, they’re pretty jacked up, so I like easier climbing for a longer time when I can help it. Muscles strong, joints absolute trash. Descending as fast as I can down roads, especially gmr where I used to go drive fast all the time, is a very happy place for me. Frontside offers about 9mi of continuous downhill on a road I know extremely well. It makes me very happy and peaceful. Anyway...
With exception going to the tour de California about a decade ago, I have never seen so many cyclists on gmr! Ho-lee-chit! Not a complaint from me, certainly, just an observation. I don’t normally come up here on weekends, as I used to do this loop every Wednesday after work (at night) when traffic is real low. So many people. Lotta expensive speedyboi bikes. People were real friendly. Nice low clouds kept it cool, and there was a light drizzle on the way down. Saw a cute lil bobcat a few miles from the bottom.
Upon reaching the crime ridden war zone that is Glendora, we stopped at wienerschnitzel, as I had been craving that kinda cheap stuff. Luis got the jalapeño poppers, which he recommends, and we both got a coffee Oreo shake. Note to prospective shakemen: they issue you a paper straw, which becomes completely useless after several minutes. Go buy a $500 titanium ultralight backpacking hypernasty superstraw and bring it. Or a spoon or something.
I also got three chili cheeseburgers and two chili cheese dogs. I neglected to go back inside and add up the calories to see what kinda numbers I was pushing. This combined with the shake (I am lactose intolerant), and the apple juice bottle I finished for breakfast made for a slightly urgent 10mi ride home to utilize the latrine.
Anywho guys I hope you like my bullshit. You’ve inspired me to share my experiences again like I used to do years ago. Plus it’s good to hear what’s going on out there during end of the world everyone panic and watch too much tv apocalypse 2020 69420 etcetc. I love you all. Go solo some moderate rock routes for me cause I’m sad and fat and dumb and have already been seriously ill multiple times before so this all seems like a low quality California designed simulation that I never agreed to download. Also stay off the gold line and meth is bad. Bye.
GMR Loop
Thanks for the report! Your stories are always colorfully entertaining. I bet I'm fatter than you. (Another Wienerschnitzel fan here!) But I actually went hiking yesterday with Cecelia and burned some calories. I'll put up a report soon.
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Uncle Rico
- Posts: 1439
- Joined: Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:48 pm
Entertaining read taco man. We need more of your stories.