Back To The Coke Ovens

Terry and I took Gary and John to the Coke Ovens via Martinez Canyon. Those guys from Michigan do not know the meaning of the word "fear" (or for that matter a lot of other words in the English dictionary). I believe that if we had ridden off the side of a cliff, they would have followed us. Click on photos to enlarge.

"The Waterfalls"

Proof positive that as we get older, we do not necessarily get smarter...

It's Snowing!

The last thing I expected to see this winter was snow...

Click on photo to enlarge

Fortunately, it's not sticking due to the temperature (37 degrees). Unlike last winter when I took it for granted that tomorrow would be another warm, sunny day, this year the weather has been all over the map including way too many rainy, cool days for my liking. Where is global warming when you want it?

Superstition Mountains behind the park

Obamacare: "What The Blank Could Possibly Go Wrong?"

Illinois Republican state senate candidate Dr. Barbara Bellar gave a speech with a scathing condemnation of the Obama administration's healthcare program. Here is an excerpt:

"So let me get this straight. We are going to be gifted with a healthcare plan that we are forced to purchase, and fined if we don't, which reportedly covers 10 million more people without adding a single new doctor, but provides for 16,000 new IRS agents, written by a committee whose chairman doesn't understand it, passed by Congress, that didn't read it, but exempted themselves from it, and signed by a president who smokes, with funding administered by a treasury chief who didn't pay his taxes, for which we will be taxed for four years before any benefits take effect, by a government which has bankrupted Social Security and Medicare, all to be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese and financed by a country that is broke. So what the blank could possibly go wrong?"

If I lived in Illinois, she would get my vote.

Martinez Canyon to Coke Ovens

If you are looking for an off-road "adrenaline rush", this is the ride for you. Steep, rocky ledges were the order of the day. We even took the "hard way" back which included two rather gnarly climbs. Here's a GoPro video shot from the hood of my RZR (unfortunately, it does not capture the full impact of what it is like sitting behind the wheel)...

The Perils of Off-road Riding

It's an all too familiar story - RVers pull into the park thinking they will spend a relaxing winter enjoying the warm southern Arizona weather. However, after a month or so watching others ride out the back gate in their ORVs and then return later in the day covered in dust/dirt and grinning like school kids, they succumb to the fatal attraction and purchase their own ORV.

This week two of my neighbors did just that and bought Polaris RZRs. Recognizing that this is becoming an epidemic in senior communities across the state, I decided to write about the perils of off-road riding.

It begins with you taking short rides where the trails are flat and easy but the scenery is exotic - you are seeing all kinds of cacti, critters, and panoramic vistas. You are amazed at how beautiful the desert can be.

Next, you find yourself joining a gang of rowdy seniors and taking longer, more challenging rides. The trails are getting steeper and the rocks are getting bigger. What started out as a harmless hobby is fast becoming an addiction. You are on your way to becoming an "adrenaline junkie".

Ultimately, you hit rock bottom... literally. You find yourself upside down in your machine at the bottom of an insanely steep series of rock ledges. You are okay but your ORV is toast. It's then that you realize you have a problem. If you are lucky, you find a local AA (ATV Anonymus) group and begin your twelve step program to recovery.

Got anything steeper?

Boys and their toys...

One of the things I enjoy about this park is that most of the "senior citizens" do not act their age. I offer the following video as Exhibit #1: