Featured Rideout What Happened To Our Spring Riding Season?!

Well, it turns out that our longest Sunday ride of the year to date coincided with the hottest day of the year to date! Eight of us did a 230 mile loop to start getting our "riding legs" (on butts as the case may be) back under us.



It just so happened that the Sunday temperature in Tucson hit a high for the year at 99ºF. So much for acclimatizing! But, hey, let's jump right in. We have a big motorcycle trip coming up in one month so there's no time like the present to get used to heat and miles.



Our breakfast/lunch destination was Superior, Arizona, a town that has been known for Copper Mining. We passed by a massive open pit copper mine called the Ray Mine which is currently owned by ASARCO. It lies approximately 17 miles southeast of Superior. I noted it's location with a fuscia-colored star on our route map. It is difficult to reflect the scale of this mine which 3 miles wide and 7 miles long covering 21 square mile (53,000 acres) and is 2,400 feet deep. It can be a bit unnerving to ride along this mine on the curvy road which follows its western edge.



Ray Mine Open Pit - Arizona Geological Service


After riding past the mine and going another 18 miles or so we came to Superior, Arizona and Porter's, our breakfast destination. We arrived shortly before 10:00am which it turns out is when they open for "brunch and lunch only". I guess our timing was perfect...or just lucky.



This being a relatively high mile Sunday ride, I chose to ride my Street Glide Special. I'll be on this bike on our upcoming summer trips. This route would certainly be fun on my Speed Triple RS! But my ol' body wouldn't be particularly happy about being on that bike for so many miles.





Porter's moved to this location a few years back. It's only about half a mile away from the old location which is now a place that sounds like we need to visit there, too--"The Silver King Smokehouse and Saloon".

Minus one riding buddy who is having health issues and one girlfriend of one of our riding buddies, this is the group that will be riding to the Sturgis Motorcycle this summer. (Well, and minus me since I'm taking the photo). What a bunch of old codgers we look like!



I didn't take any food photos today but had a delicious plate of Eggs Benedict with hash brown potatoes and fruit. I'd certainly order it again but the again there's no harm in branching out, right? Might mean another Sunday ride to Porter's. And ya gotta love a place that's dog friendly.



After leaving Porter's we headed directly east to and through a town called Globe. We've been through this town many, many times on our summer rides when we head north to cooler weather. Globe was also a mining town and this whole area is known as "The Copper Corridor.

As the temperatures heated up and we headed back towards Tucson, Mr. Sandi came on over our Sena communicators and asked if I'd like to stop for ice cream at Mi Pueblito in the town of Mammoth. Hmmm, let me think. YES! We all stopped except for Chas and Kelly riding two up on their big Harley touring bike. They had to hurry home so continued on. Their loss... The ice cream was delicious and the water was icy cold. That's my half eaten Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream on the left there.



We started our ride day at 7:30am and arrived back home around 2:00pm. We had enlisted our dog sitter for the day so didn't have to be in a hurry (like Chas & Kelly) to get home. Although Ellie absolutely loves her doggy sitter, Marilyn, she was happy to see us. And we were happy to shower up, cool off, and relive our days adventures.

 

Yikes, @Oldskool! won't complain about the heat again. I'm really sorry to hear what crappy weather you've had and that you've only been able to ride once thisyear. Fingers crossed that will change soon and you can get back in the saddle.

 

I don’t think he’d mind…well not too much anyway. Especially if you bring the Sport Glide with you. Ellie the Boxer would love it! And you’d make a fine addition to our riding group, @learningtofly.

 

Don’t encourage me, @Eldon!

 

It surely is “interesting”, @MoreT! But a good excuse to ride fast. Gotta keep that engine cool.

 

Hope it dries out, @Markus, or you might need to start building an ark. Better than fish skin and fins!

 

Yikes, @Bikerman! If our temperatures dropped to what you're experiencing currently, I'd be wearing my long johns and my heated vest! Stay warm. Thanks for the kind comments about my bike and write up.

 

"Too warm", @brown mouse?! I guess it's all relative. Come join Mr. Sandi and me for a ride in Arizona in mid July sometime!