On Bicycling: Sometimes The Best Bicycle Ride Is The One You Never Took
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By Alan Snel, LVSportsBiz.com Publisher-Writer
LAS VEGAS, Nevada — The plan for Tuesday was to to drive to Death Valley National Park, park at the Furnace Creek Visitor’s Center and ride a road bicycle on Artists Drive. Slam dunk beautiful bike ride outing.
And it’s typically 15 degrees warmer at Death Valley than Las Vegas, so we’re talking 75 degrees at this natural visual treat.
A funny thing happened on the way to Death Valley.
I fell asleep at 12 noon and my unplanned nap scrubbed the field trip.
But there’s always Plan B.
It was drive with my bicycle to the Red Rock Scenic Drive exit dirt parking lot eight miles down the road and ride the Loop.
It was 2:50 PM by the time I reached the lot ten minutes down the road.
It was a cool 61 degrees with a steady breeze at Red Rock.
Off I pedaled the two miles along State Route 159 to the Red Rock Drive entrance and fee station.
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March 7 is coming up and it will mark eight years since a guy named Dennis Brophy drove his Chevrolet Cruz into me as I bicycled on a two-lane intracoastal road north of Fort Pierce, Florida. It was a violent crash and the force of Brophy smashing his car into me from behind would have killed many bicyclists.
I chalk up my survival to being have the physical structure of a sturdy fire hydrant. Man, I was lucky to be alive. Three months later in June 2017 I was back in Las Vegas and launched this website.
After I was injured, I thought I would do anything if I had the chance to ride a bicycle on that Red Rock Loop.
I loved the landscape of the West. It was so big that it always humbled me. I never felt that way when bicycling in Florida where the earth was so flat. It felt like I was living in a two-dimensional world.
But out here in base camp Las Vegas I can bike in Red Rock and it’s where see the lovely contours of the earth in all its glorious colors and shapes.
I have not bicycled the Red Rock Loop for about two weeks and I realized why I missed bicycling amid this scenery so much while I was recuperating back in March 2017.
It really is an amazing natural resource that’s so close to an urban setting.
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The weather feels like it’s transitioning from winter to spring with growing amount of daylight. The Red Rock Loop ascends from about 3,600 feet at the fee booth to 4,771 feet at the peak of the scenic drive.
I look at the license plates of the cars parked at the overlook parking lot and none say Nevada. They’re mostly California with a few Arizonas thrown in.
I like to joke that I park my bike at my corner office along the wooden posts in the lot. But tourists were snapping photos at that highly-coveted spot so I documented today’s ride with this photo.
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The Loop is a roller-coaster of mini micro-climates thanks to the varying elevations and shadows from the Spring Mountains foothills.
One moment I was basking in sunshine and then I’m in shadows, with my knees are feeling like they’re being stored in a refrigerator.
I’m glad I stuffed a bulky pullover in my bike jersey rear pocket to wear for the descent back to SR 159.
The rocky terrain is also getting more cloaked in the darkness as it’s approaching 5 PM.
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Las Vegas might be known for its marriage biz on the Strip.
But today I saw another bride and groom.
Red Rock has become nature’s Elvis, an official member of the wedding party photos. Like this one today where the bride stepped into the helicopter landing pad.
Death Valley, you will have to wait at least one more day.
PROMO
PROMO
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