This morning I headed to downtown, where in the sunrise light I saw the new Circa hotel-casino illuminated.
In a state with an economy built on tourism and gambling, I've always been amused that gambling is called "gaming."
That's why I always enjoy stores that tell it like it like it is -- and what it is is gambling.
I also adored this bike rack on Main Street.
And there was something about this scene that said, "Old economy, new economy."
I began bicycling down las Vegas Boulevard and saw the big Welcome to Las Vegas structure that is being built in front of The Strat.
The Strip was quiet at 7 a.m. Kind of like how it was when so many people were bilking the Strip when it the hotel-casinos were closed in April and May.
Then it was off to the Raiders' new football stadium, which is a massive update from their previous Alamada stadium home.
It's 113 degrees back in Las Vegas, so here I am climbing the eight percent grade of the Great Basin National park scenic drive.
It was closed earlier in the week for road repairs.
But today, it's back open and I'm working my way up the mountain for a closer peek at Wheeler Peak.
In my bicycle book, Great Basin is the most under-rated and most unheralded national park in the national park portfolio.
It has both Nevada's highest peak at Wheeler soaring more than 13,000 feet tall, while below there are the famed caves that are closed because of the pandemic.
Great Basin can be a little under-rated because it's so isolated, a good five hours north of Las Vegas off US 50 near the Utah border. There's a cluster of homes and a motel, restaurant and post office a few miles from the national park entrance in a community called Baker and that's about it.
But I love Great Basin's raw natural feel, grand vistas and out-of-the-way serene setting.
And of course, it decided to rain as I bicycled up the scenic drive. Not a hard-driving rain, just raindrops and a light pour as I pedaled up the steep grade.
Great Basin is Nevada's only national park. The state has plenty of terrific state parks like Valley of Fire. And to reach Great Basin from Las Vegas, you drive north on US 93 through the spine of Lincoln County, which has a nice collection of state parks at your disposal.
Red Rock outside Las Vegas is managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, not the National Parks, while Mount Charleston is run by the US Forestry Service.
I strongly recommend Great Basin as a great get-away.
This morning on Father's Day the entrance to the Red Rock Scenic Drive was open at 6 a.m. -- not the 8 a.m. start time when the Bureau of Land Management reopened the scenic drive to motorized traffic a few weeks ago.
It was 6:10 a.m. when I was bicycling by the Red Rock entrance off State Route 159. I peered toward the red rock ridge, which has a notch in the middle. I love that notch, which allows beams of lights to shoot through the ridge at daybreak.
Funny, Red Rock has nothing to do with a summer job I worked to afford college. But whenever I see that "notch" in the ridge, I think of the "notch" in the garment patterns I worked on at the Liz Claiborne plant, where I worked with my dad.
I worked with my father for 3 1/2 summers though high school and college, driving the hour back and forth with him from suburban New York to north New Jersey. The Claiborne production plant was not too far from the Giants football stadium in the Joisey swamps.
My dad was a worker bee. Man, he worked in the garment business for many years working long hours every day. I witnessed it.
Julius Cznel survived the Holocaust as a little kid fleeing with his family to Siberia, lived in displaced person camps following World War II and came to the USA at age 14 when he began learning the garment business in school. His last name was changed to Snel when he arrived in the United States.
When Liz Claiborne created her brand and line of women's clothing, Julius Snel was the second person hired in the production house.
He raised three kids outside New York City. And my dad and I bonded well at minor league ballgames in Florida.
Happy Father's Day, Julius. Keep on pedaling.
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Read more about bicycling and life by buying Alan Snel's new book Bicycle Man: Life of Journeys. Email asnel@LVSportsBiz.com to order the book.
Retail bicycle stores are busy with bike repairs these days and that was true over at
Bike World, one of the older bike shops in the Las Vegas.
I chatted with Frank, a friendly Bike World worker who bought my new book Bicycle Man for $10 and said he would leave it on the counter to see if people would be interested in reading or buying it.
Bike World at 1901 S. Rainbow Blvd is a throwback bicycle store and Frank told a customer that it would take two weeks before a repair could be made.
More people are bicycling and taking old bikes out of their garages to ride only to see the bikes could use a repair. That's why so many bike shops are busy doing repairs.
Selling books is no easy task. Thank you Summerlin Giant Store for taking a few books to sell and I'm hoping Jared at Las Vegas Cyclery agrees to sell the books at his shop.
If you have a store that would like to sell the book or you would like to buy the book, just email me at asnel@LVSportsBiz.com.
Chris Maathuis at Channel 8 did this incredible report on the book, which is a compilation of 37 years worth of bicycle travel stories, adventures and essays. Take a look:
When I bicycled back and forth on Alta Drive from Summerlin to downtown Las Vegas and back all the time, I always stopped at a house that had roses along a low brick wall lining its front lawn.
I remember chatting with a gentleman by the name of Harry, who happened to be a bicyclist, too, of all things.
Well, just yesterday morning, I bicycled down the big hill of Alta to downtown and stopped to chat with this lady at the house.
I told her I was a bicyclist who long admired the roses lining their front lawn.
And I asked about Harry.
Well, this is Marianne, and she informed me that Harry died a few months ago.
It was sad to hear, but I did tell Marianne that I always enjoyed seeing their blooming rose bushes along Alta Drive, just west of the Rainbow intersection.
Marianne told me she was a retired mathematics teacher who know volunteered at the Assistance League of Las Vegas.
I told her I knew her husband from stopping to chat with him during my Alta Drive bicycle excursions.
It's the beauty of the bicycle -- fantastic human-powered, engine-free transportation with the chance to connect to people on the street.
It's also why I can't bike in groups. I stop to chat with people when I pedal all the time.
And these bicycle adventures are all in my new book, Bicycle Man: Life of Journeys.
Buy a book by emailing me at asnel@LVSportsBiz.com
To handle the bright sun of Las Vegas and the Western United States, I'm wearing Tifosi's new Sledge model, Crystal Orange with Clarion Blue lens.
The photo above is the sunglasses modeling itself along the famed Red Rock scenic drive outside Las Vegas.
Tifosi's bread-and-butter is its high quality sunglasses that sell for less than triple figures. In this case, the Sledge models are priced in the $69.96-$79.95 range.
I love the orange frame, which feels light but durable on my face. And the large lens surface blocks all harsh sun glare. As you can see, the frame is sturdy enough that it supports my rear view mirror quite nicely.
There are three other Sledge models -- Crystal red with a Clarion Yellow lens, Matte Black with a Smole lens and Matte White with a Smoke lens.
Each option includes two additional shield lenses: a clear lens and Tifosi’s high-contrast AC Red lens. With Sledge, cyclists are equipped with the ideal tint for any lighting condition. Bicycle Stories recommends the Sledge sunglasses by Tifosi.
