Bike Ride Photos

We did another bike ride, but this time we did the actual Jaluco loop that everyone rides.

Melaque 10K

This morning we got up relatively early so that Linda could get ready for the Festival del Mar 10 K Fun Run.  She has run in this event every year since it was established.  If you look back in the blog three years you will see a post called A Mexican 10K.  The first year of this event the 10K was quite a bit farther then an actual 10K so we just wrote it off to being Mexican in nature and that means you never know what you are going to get.

Maggie joined us for the warm up walk down to Centro where the start line was set.  There were quite a few runners entered in the event and the whole town was out and about either running or helping as volunteers.  Linda joined the running crowd and was joined by her favorite jewelery vendor from the tianga. Maggie and I  found Jeff, one of the volleyballers, and wished him luck.  Before long the gun sounded and they were off.

Maggie and I walked up the street and watched the runners go by and after Linda passed we went to a coffee shop and sat and talked.  When all the runners returned and headed down main street to the finish line we got up and joined the crowd cheering everyone across the line.  Jeff did very well in his age group and we even think he may have gotten an award.  Linda did real well too!  She is still injured and has not been training for races.  She jogged the course and felt very good after she had finished.

Morning Bike Ride

This morning Linda dragged me out of bed and herded me onto my bike.  She said I needed to get my butt in gear and get some exercise.  I think that playing several games of aggressive old people pool volleyball is exercise enough, but Linda does not agree.  We road out North to the highway and followed it West until we hit the first dirt road to the right.  This put us on a track directly into the farm lands and away from the busy dusty city.

We road at a steady pace, but I would not consider it fast in any respect.  With the bumpy dirt roads and the occasional soggy sand the speed we traveled kept us moving with little fear of crashing.  About three miles along the road we paralleled the Pinal Villa.  This little town is only about four blocks wide and nine blocks long and soon we were moving deep into the farm lands.  The dirt road got narrower and narrower with the plant growth closing in on both sides.  Sand grew more and more prevalent and you had to concentrate and keep peddling or it would grab your tire and slide you to a stop. 

At the roads narrowest and darkest point we rode down a dip and burst into the open.  In front of us was a concrete overpass, a landmark that we had been looking for. We stopped under the overpass and took a water break and once we had cooled down a bit we headed Southeast on the unfinished highway.  This road is a wonderful place to ride.  It has been around for many years but it never seems to get completed and is very rarely used by the locals.  You can drive on the smooth road, but it is not complete and I guess it really doesn't go any place that people want to go.  It definitely is one of those Mexico things that you hear people talk about.

We followed the highway for about three miles and then jumped off at an underpass.  This took us back through the farm fields to Jaluco. Just before we entered Jaluco we cane across a six foot long Bull Snake squished on the road.  It was real big and real dead! I made sure Linda understood that if we ever saw a snake like that, and if it was not dead, then she needed to be calm and understand that it would not get her while she was on her bike.  She did not agree with that, but said she would try to be in control.

After entering Jaluco and riding parallel to highway we decided to brave the traffic and ride the shoulder of the highway back to Melaque.  Once this was done we cruised back home, put on our swimsuits and joined everyone next door for several games of aggressive old people pool volleyball.