Wandering around the top of Pikes Peak I remembered two things. One was that I had forgotten to put water into the bike saddlebag. When we're out on the bike I'm usually careful to take lots of breaks to stretch and rehydrate. It's very easy to get dehydrated on the bike, especially for old people like us. The other thing was that we should get a drink and move slowly. High altitudes can cause altitude sickness within a very short time. Symptoms include headaches and jaw pain, dizziness, muscle and body aches, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, swollen hands, legs and feet, rapid heartbeat, and shortness of breath. Duane and I usually get mild headaches.
That said, people were enjoying themselves browsing the gift shop, marveling at the views, and even hiking around. We took our time too before we started back down.
Going up on a bike is harder than going down. Riders have to watch for cars stopped in the middle of the road or taking the center line around curves, both of which can force them to lay down their bikes on the road, or get too close to the edge . On sharp uphill turns they have to manipulate the throttle, the clutch and the rear brake simultaneously and be aware of any strong breeze or wind while trying not to be distracted by any spectacular scenery. On the way down riders only have to set the clutch and finesse the brake. Also downhill the views open up more in front of the road and riders can enjoy the scenery without looking to the side as much. On a bike wherever you're looking is where the bike's going to go.
Back down at the subalpine treeline--11000+'
We repassed miles fencing and porta pots in areas where spectators watched the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb last week. The first Hill Climb took place in 1916 with a winning time of 20:55.60 minutes. In 1984 the first European racers took part. In 2002 the City of Colorado Springs began to pave the highway to prevent further gravel erosion. 2012 was the first time the race was run on all asphalt and the first motorcycle made the run in less than 10 minutes. Today the track runs 12.42 miles over 156 turns and climbs 4720 ft. from the start at Miles 7 (at the level of the reservoirs) on the Pikes Peak Highway to the finish at 14,110 on grades averaging 7.2%. Last week an electric car broke the latest time record with a winning time of 7:57.148 minutes.
Our trip up took about 1/2 hour.
There aren't a lot of viewpoint pull offs on the road, but this one was worth the stop.
At the bottom again at Cascade, we enjoyed a glimpse of Fountain Creek.
To finish our anniversary celebration, we treated ourselves to pizza. On a whim we picked this place because it was close to the Elks Club. It was unassuming outside
and in. The pizza was excellent, just the way we like it with thin crust, very little sauce, tasty toppings, and plenty of cheese.
In addition to wonderfully twisty roads and spectacular scenery, we saw several bicycle riders. I wondered how they kept going in the higher altitudes.
We were wildlife deprived. We saw only a single marmot.
In this pic I noticed that black spot. I thought it was a bird way out there. What do you think?
We have another week here and a few more sights to see.
Louise and Duane
PS. I zoomed way in on that black spot. I'm pretty sure it's a butterfly!
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