Finishing the ride with a bang! (many)

55 Miles

I decided to go for a 4th of July ride before everyone got up.  It wasn't that early since everyone slept in.  Determined to put some miles on, I trucked it up the Molt Road and coasted back down Buffalo Trail and worked my way back home through the country roads between Billings and Laurel.  It was a pleasant, uneventful ride besides the fact that I got lost.  I knew which way I needed to go to get home but my roads kept ending in Ts forcing me to go north or south when I really just wanted to go east.  Finally I found a familiar road that brought me into territory that I've ridden before.  Next time I should map my route.

Just outside of Billings I found a fireworks stand and figured, what the hey, I can stop and get fireworks now and not have to come back out later.  (Plus I could buy them now and beg Sarah's forgiveness later rather than try to convince her that I need fireworks.)  I needed a break anyway.  The headwind was a real drag and after doing fifty miles of hills into the wind (it shifted after I turned to come home) I was pooped.

I logged 55 miles on the ride, and after about an hour of vegetated comatose state, I got back to work on the yard while Sarah went on her bike ride.  Closer to dark we all piled into the car and headed to Laurel for the fireworks.  The girls had a blast, even Evie who cried, screamed and hid from the fireworks while clapping for them.  It was pretty funny.  We set of the fireworks that I bought tonight.  I'm convinced they just don't make them the same as they used to.

15 Miles

Nathan and I got together for a Saturday morning mountain bike ride up on the rims.  I slept in and raced over to meet him.  Still battered from last weeks wreck, I rode cautiously but had a great time.  I even tried the big rock again.  Nathan can clean it every time so I have to try when he is around.  I'm still not used to my disc brakes so I took a couple approaches before I felt comfortable with them, then dropped back behind the seat and went for it.  The problem was, when I tried to get back on my seat, my shorts got stuck and I ran into the bush.  Cleaned the rock but crashed into the bush, pathetic.  Anyway, besides that, I had a great time and am loving my new mountain bike.  Sarah and Spence love their 5 inches of float on the suspension but I'm so used to not really having any that it's a little unnerving still.  I lock it out whenever I don't need it.  But it sure is great on the bumpy sandstone on top of the rims.  I let Nathan ride my bike for a bit while I tried his mountain bike with no suspension.  My wrist where throbbing when we traded back and he dusted me while I slowly jolted myself silly on the rocks.  It makes a huge difference.