June Bug

On our first Chihuahuan Dirt Fest, two of our rides in BBRSP were led by Texas Parks and Wildlife bike cops. They were both incredibly strong; they carried a lot of heavy gear all day everyday while on patrol. I've also seen Highway Patrol bike patrol guys being trained, getting ready to head out from the Highway Patrol main hive on Guadalupe @ Koenig. There are Highway Patrol bike "troopers" who patrol the state capitol and the Governor's mansion.

Good to know! I've never heard a bad word about them. A family member gifted us a trip and the area where we're going (south central Utah) is definitely remote. I wanted to check it out without worrying about logistics on a first trip, then subsequent trips will be easier. There are also various moves afoot to start paving roads out there; I wanted to see it by bike before that happens. I do hope their business survives. I just checked the website for Arches National Park, on the outskirts of Moab. It's still open to the public but no one is collecting fees, the campgrounds, bookstore, visitor centers, are closed; no back country camping permits are being issued and there are no ranger-led activities. Fiery Furnace is closed. I guess you just drive around and look at stuff and hike, observing appropriate social distance. All visitor accommodations in Moab and Grand County are closed; I don't understand why they'd keep Arches open. The Moab BLM field office is closed, and BLM campgrounds are accepting no new reservations or new visitors. No word on dispersed camping. The very large Sand Flats camping area, by the Slickrock Trail trailhead, is managed in partnership with Grand County and BLM, as is the Sand Flats Recreation Area (Slickrock Trail). I can't find information on status. The BLM website for the Sand Flats Recreation Area (Slickrock Trail) shows no closure. However, because Grand County is closed to camping on state and private land, and BLM is closing their campsites to new visitation, I'd say it's likely closed or closed to new visitors.

There's a Corona Drive parallel to the 51st St. leg of your ride, east of I 35. It's not super pleasant riding, but there is a wide sidewalk on the south side of 290 Toll that can be used as part of a long loop. Traffic lights have lights with crosswalks that let you cross safely at major intersections (like 183), but you have to be super heads up to make sure that those making a right turn know that you're right there before you head into the cross walk. You can also ride back roads into Manor from the end of the Southern Walnut Creek trail where it ends at Lindell Lane. I "think" there's a way to get on the big 290 sidewalk in Manor, but now sure exactly how that works.

Dawn, It's Southern Walnut Creek Trail, the paved multi-use path. It begins in Govalle Park, on Bolm Road just off Airport and ends at Johnny Morris Road, although you can cross Johnny Morris, continue along a side walk, cross Decker Lane keep pedaling by Lake Walter E. Long, ending at Lindell Lane.

The only three people to complete the Iditabike this year completed the last 400 (!) miles together and finished together as co-finishers. Talk about a bonding experience. An Interview with Jill Matindale: Iditarod Trail Invitational 1000 Champion

BikeJames.com Some free stuff, some comprehensive training programs for sale. He's mountain bike specific.

I'll leave one last note here and then sign off this thread. The "Spanish Flu" didn't originate in Spain. Let's say that History.com is a legit site, but this information is available in other places: Why was it called the Spanish Flu?

I'd facepalm but I CAN'T TOUCH MY DAMN FACE.

The paper is dated January 27. WHO (World Health Organization) didn't apply the COVID-19 designation until February 11; the headline obviously refers to a virus happening in China. We're way down the road on this horror show and there's zero excuse for not being accurate about its official name now, especially from the bully pulpit of the presidency. You might, of course, feel different if you were an Asian person getting blow back about it from pig ignorant asshole who thinks you automatically have CV 19 and it gives them the right to treat you horribly.

Random stuff from the internet: DudeIWantThat.com TReGo Detachable Front Wheel Bike Trolley And while we're on the topic of Leaps of Faith, guac and MSM, I started thinking about how refusing to self isolate is a form of Russian Roulette. We did a nice ride yesterday evening from the Parkfield/Braker area down Shoal Creek, gawked at the landslide that blocks the trail on the way to Pease Park and rode home. We heard an owl, waved (from a appropriate distance) at other cyclists and walkers, saw gorgeous trees, felt good when we got home around 7:30. A Durango friend posted on facebook that San Juan County, CO (Silverton) has closed the backcountry to XC skiing. They cannot risk extremely limited resources going to help someone in trouble in the backcountry and (understandably) they don't want outsiders bringing them The Corona. I'd give WC at least a few more days to dry out. After a rough patch at Christmas, a Peloton exercise bike is starting to look pretty good.

This is the explanation I heard from a science doctor-y person. It has to do with the size of the virus in microns. The N-95 mask has larger pores than a single virus. The analogy was to think of five big guys trying to get through a single door at the same time. They can't do it. In the same way, multiple virus particles can't get through one pore in the mask. The N-95 mask is not 100% effective, but it is definitely much, much more protective than nothing or a little surgical mask. Asking front line medical personnel to treat patients with an active CV 19 infection without PPE is criminal. Some of them will die. Some of them have already died. We at the start of this. What happens when these people are too ill to work at the same time the health care system is overwhelmed with patients in desperate need? Korea has an ingenious "telephone booth" testing set up that 100% protects those administering the COVID-19 test.

Damn! This is great/not so good news! I don't really "need" another bike. This information will gnaw at my brain like a beaver on meth. OK, gotta go! *googles Salsa website* Update: OK, so I went to the Salsa website and OH! MY! GAWD! They have a single speed gravel bike called The Stormchaser. Then somehow I got distracted by watching old SNL The Californian skits. So, back to Salsa now.

Gravel bikes = drop bars, which makes me sad. Still ride my road bike a little, but for several reasons, prefer/need a flat handle bar.

I saw a Twilight Zone as a kid that scared me for years. Some kids discover a portal to another universe in the wall in their bedroom when their little dog accidentally goes through it. Yesterday, Mr. JB discovered A Million Ways to Die in the West. It was great watching on the side while surfing the internet on the laptop. Some broad humor, some raunchy humor, some satire, lots of silliness. The owner or the mustache store dies in the end, but the protagonist sheep farmer gets the girl he should be with rather than the one who left him for the mustache store owner after the bad guy husband of the girl he gets in the end is killed by a bullet dipped in rattlesnake venom, a trick the protagonist learned when captured by Apaches but he speaks fluent Apache so it's all cool, and the girl he originally wanted wants him back but NO! he's gonna stay with...anyway. Key line: "Somebody always dies at the fair..." Old episode of Fargo popped up on the DVR and we've got quite a bit of Better Call Saul queued up. Mr. JB discovered Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (zippy! singing! dancing! perky protagonist!) and (last night) Dispatches from Elsewhere (weird and somewhat existential). Today we're gonna solve how to get Amazon Prime on TV and I'm gonna binge watch Bosch. We've also got a 1,000 piece jig saw puzzle of a floral arrangement that is only 20" x 26" completed, so the pieces are each about the size of a thumbnail. Its a great time for organizing, purging (throwing out and giving away whatever), garage reorganization except when the non-cleaning/purging spouse is home, it's harder, as in, Oh hells no, I've had that ______ (T shirt, Monopoly, cooler with no lid, 8 track cassettes, Walkman, all grade school homework) since 19___ or 20___ and no WAY it's going to _______ (Goodwill, trash, recycling). Alternatively, just make lists about doing that stuff; you don't have to actually DO it. I have two books to finish (Wayfinding and Trump's Generals) and another to start (Endurance). Austin public libraries are closed, so no worries on returns.

Wheatsville on Guadalupe has excellent fresh guac.

Yes, I truly fear our entire economy will be in tatters by the time this is over and it's devastating for the tourism economy in places like Moab. We drove through Moab a few years ago, it was an absolute crush of traffic with more motels being built at the north end of town. I'd guess the economy of Moab is probably 98% tourism these days and it's somewhat seasonal. It can get pretty damn cold there in the winter. I had the experience of driving through Moab more than once before it was "discovered," which more or less coincided with Raiders of the Lost Ark and the explosion of the climbing scene. It was a dusty little nothing of a cattle ranching town in the middle of nowhere, with a little boom during the long past uranium mining years. Hope it doesn't go back to that. However, if the COVID-19 crisis resolves a bit by summer and people are back to travelling, places like Moab will revive, but at a reduced level. Western Spirit Cycling Adventures, based out of Moab, still has active trip departures after April 18, with the caveat that things could change on short notice.

It's the CATS!

Watch the Lincoln McConaughey ice fishing ad carefully. I realized that it was edited in a way that made it seem as though he was on location. Pretty sure he wasn't. I am so terrible at picking out good avocados that I finally defaulted to store-bought guac. It's not my go-to fave food though. Sprouts was out of Brown Cow cream on top, chocolate on the bottom yogurt; that made me briefly sad.

Thanks for these clarifications; I defer to you expertise and stand corrected on all counts! Also, for some reason I confuse measles with chicken pox as the source of shingles. I received the polio vaccine in the first year, 1955, probably in a sugar cube. Also, what's the status of small pox vaccinations? Is it only for travel to some countries? Many years ago I crossed from Mexico into Guatemala at a remote border station. When I showed my passport with proof of small pox vaccination, the Guatemalan crossing guard said he didn't need proof of vaccination because small pox was "fin in el mundo." Shopping update from this morning, Friday, March 20. Thanks to ATXZJ for the Sprouts tip. Sprouts and Trader Joes all good. Sprouts not crowded and well stocked except no TP or avocados. Got to Trader Joes about 5 minutes after opening. Much less crowded than on a Friday at 4 pm, but nobody's spending time looking at stuff. Didn't check on beef supply at Sprouts, but the beef section at the far end of the case at Trader Joes was bare. My guess is these stores are not crowded because there are groceries at Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Sam's Club, COSTCO, Target, HEB and Randalls all close to each other. Up until three years ago, geese were these awesome birds in formation, flying high, heralding a change in the seasons. You'd head this faint sound, look up and there they are. Ya know, UPLIFTING. Then we went to Pittsburgh to begin the Great Allegheny Passage ride. Geese were hanging around everywhere, pooping on everything. It took awhile to connect what I was seeing lying around with geese. But, of course, awesome, amazing birds. Honk.

Or a goose. Dear lord, their poops are huge. I don't know if they offload on the wing, though. I got nailed waiting for the light to change at 183 and Georgian by one of the many small birds that hang out on the power lines. Citation? I want to know what kind of good luck I'm in for.

The first time I went there I realized it was filled with refugees from Whole Foods.

Good to know. A week ago they were business as usual and not very busy. When did you go there?

Shopping update as of 4:36 pm on THURSDAY, March 19. Went out for a spin and decided to bike through the Domain (pretty deserted) and check out the Domain Whole Foods parking lot. Very few cars, like "Where is everybody?" . From a very respectful 8' distance, I asked two ladies unloading groceries if they had any trouble finding anything and if the store was fully stocked. No trouble finding anything and the store was fully stocked. Seniors (me) can shop for an hour before the store officially opens. I'll be there at 7 am tomorrow to stock up for two or three weeks. Jeebus I hate to support Jeff Bezos these days, but I don't want to go to HEB and I want to get some fresh produce. Might be time to start a separate Instant Pot thread. Back in the day on Mojo, I recall a winter crock pot thread.

Austin Bike, I got a notification from MediCare on Tuesday or so that MediCare has now approved tele-appointments. Not realizing that, I had just called and left a message at my primary care physician's office to see if I could do an appt by phone. It all worked out -- I talked to her yesterday and she was able to prescribe appropriately. She's safer, I'm safer and her office assistant is safer. She's a solo practitioner with a waiting room the size of a postage stamp; I really didn't want to go in. She does have great magazines, though. Anyway, it's safer to talk by phone if possible, rather than sit in a waiting room with potentially sick people. I truly hope your father, and all of us, stay well through all this. I take it seriously. How seriously? I'm getting ready to update my will (no, nobody is getting written out), set up advanced medical directives and have a second person lined up with medical power of attorney in case my husband is unable to carry out those decisions -- no extreme measure or life support. Just hoping to survive until a vaccine is developed or an existing medication is found to be effective.

Wanted to address a few things in your post -- nothing personal. Measles isn't bad unless it's bad. Please don't ever think it's an innocuous illness; it's one of the most contagious illnesses around. You don't see the potential for damage because who gets measles anymore? By 2000, it was almost eradicated in the US. It's incredibly bad for infants, the immuno-compromised and those who acquire it in adulthood. It's suppresses the immune system for quite a long period of time after the illness has passed (immune amnesia). It can rear it's ugly head much later in life as shingles. Fortunately a recent, 96% effective vaccine (Shingrix 2-shot series) has been developed for shingles. Any person over 60 should be getting it. The vaccine is MMR, Measles, Mumps, Rubella. Rubella can cause devastating birth defects and miscarriages if acquired during early pregnancy. These are all viral illnesses. Unlike bacteria, there is, as far as I know, no virus that is beneficial to its host. Moving on to polio. It, too, is caused by a virus. Polio still exists in various parts of the world and polio vaccination is still recommended and required in some areas of the US before a child begins school. The polio vaccine was introduced in 1955. Every parent in the US was incredibly grateful for this; polio was an utterly terrifying disease when I was a young child and every one of us knew what an iron lung was. Every school-aged child was vaccinated. I've known three people who survived polio as a child with subsequent disabling conditions. Polio is another illness that can re-emerge later in life as post-polio syndrome, which can also be disabling. Anti vaxxers. Gah. Rant off. Going for a mellow bike ride.