Pugsley Visits Downtown Las Vegas Arts District Saturday

 

The Pugsley is often photographed in the wilds of Red Rock.

But on Saturday, the Surly single-speed beast roamed downtown Las Vegas' popular arts district.

Another joyful day for the Surly Pugsley.

 

Pugsley Rolling At Sunset

 

The Pugsley beast was back at it at sunet.

I was also picking up garbage in the State Route 159 and 160 area out by Red Rock.

Two Teens Who Drove Stolen Car Into Retired Police Chief, Killing Him In North Las Vegas Area Get Life In Prison

 

One of the most gruesome road bicyclist killings came in the north Las Vegas area where two teens stole a car and steered it right into a retired police chief who was riding a bicycle.

The two teenagers smashed their car into this man on purpose and thought it was their idea of fun.

These two evil ghouls won't be on the streets anymore.

They received life in prison.

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I use my Surly Pugsley fat-tire, single-speed beast for many purposes, including picking up garbage in the beautiful Red Rock National Conservation Area.

I use an Aeroe bikepack rack to carry the beer cans and debris, like this Monda night.

Bicycling On Closed Road In Death Valley National Park: 'Heaven'

 

I bicycled on a national park road without a car in sight.

It was Death Valley National Park.

It was Badwater Road beyond the Badwater Basin and parking lot, 17 miles from Furnace Creek. The gate was down to stop motorized vehicles on Badwater Road at the famed Badwater tourist attraction.

But bicyclists and hikers were perfectly free to use the road, which had some stone, dirt and rick debris but easily passable on a bike.

I told my close friend about the road closed to cars but open to bicyclists and he had one word in response: "Heaven."

That's a great word to describe the bicycle experience of biking on this spectacular road that was below sea while also offering views of mountains topped with snow.

Death Valley is my most underrated national park.

It's remote in the sense there's no nearby interstate.

So no big crowds that you see at Zion in Utah or Grand Canyon in Arizona.

People hear, "Death Valley," and they think the land is barren and brutish.

For me, I love the colors of the raw landscape and the mountain ranges that bookend the valley.

Even though "valley" is in the name of the national park, the landscape is actually quite rugged. There are four main ways to enter the valley. I drive from the Pahrump side, which means descending more than 3,000 feet to the Furnace Creek tourist area.

The Inn at Death Valley is a spectacular lodging experience, with a nearby motel and attached units offering more modest and very decent accommodations.

The recent rains helped form mini-lakes in the valley, too, near Badwater.

How Great Was It To Bike With My Tampa Bike Pal Ellen!

 

It was surreal and quite a treat to be bicycling with my old Tampa bike buddy, the one-of-a-kind Ellen Pierson, a kind and generous bicycle pal.

We shared bike rides all over the Tampa Bay area, especially from South Tampa across the Courtney Campbell Causeway to Clearwater.

We biked the bridges around St. Petersburg, too.

Ellen was in Las Vegas with her sister, Julie, superpal Maria, plus Maria's niece, Denise, for the Project Hero Honor Ride down the Strip and back to the Clark County government center in downtown Las Vegas.

Ellen is off to Arizona and eventually back home to Tampa, Florida. 

It was amazing to see her.   

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Enough is enough -- Too many deaths on Las Vegas roads to bear

 

Enough is enough.

The LVSportsBiz.com letter to the county commissioners on the road violence in the Las Vegas area.

Another Bicyclist Killed In The Las Vegas Area

 

The anger is building and building.

Another accused drunk driver here in the Las Vegas area killing an innocent walker or bicyclist or another motorist.

This time Sunday, Nov. 2.

And yet beneath the anger is the intellectual reality that this is predictable in Las Vegas, the logical result of a lethal combination of impaired drivers and limited prison times and lack of police enforcement.