Last of February and into March

 Well today, Friday, March 6th., its SNOWING big time, hopefully it won't last long as we have a service appointment at Angletech on Saturday, at 2 PM. We have had some decent weather going into March, until today! Here is the last of February and some March rides.

February 27-A much less WINDY ride on different trails, lane, etc. 

We headed up the Templeton Gap Trail off of the Pikes Peak Greenway to the junction and chose to ride the Austin Bluffs Trail to its end point. A nice day, no jackets needed. We ended up taking a back street to head to a Mavrick station store, but it was the wrong street! We did find a new trailhead off the street to get back on the Templeton Gap Trail! Headed south and west to the frontage path to pick up the T-Gap bike lane and headed to a place for lunch and iced tea. Lots more bike lanes to finish up the ride.

March 2-A ride to the Creekside Coffee House. 

Decided to go to the Creekside Coffee House for tea and the brown bag lunch. Headed out Pikes Peak Greenway to the junction with the Cottonwood Creek Trail up to Creekside Coffee House. Then headed up the CCT to the CCT Park, did a turn around and headed back down. LOL, again it was misc. trails and bike lanes to a few places before we headed back to the apartment. Another nice day for a ride, so far March is doing better than February! 

March 4-Food Run and Lunch Ride. 

We needed to get in a Food Run over to the Walmart Market Place off of the Rock Island Trail. Food and supplies loaded into the cargo trailer and headed back to the apartment. Decided to head to the Mavrick station store on Garden of the Gods for a good Hot Dog. From the apartment to the Pikes Peak Greenway and on to the Sinton Trail heading west. Didn't us the "Tiny Tunnel of Terror", picked up the double wide sidewalk to Garden of the Gods Rd and headed into the Mavrick Station. Decided to head up the double-sided sidewalk up to GoG Rd and 31st. Street and headed back down the other side on the Sinton Trail back to the PPGW and back home!

March 5-Ride to check out the "status" of the newly built Galley Rd. bridge and to see if they re-opened the Homestead South Trail. 

Headed up the Rock Island Trail to the junction with the Homestead South (otherwise known as the Canal Trail), although the top portion has been open, it's been blocked off at the Murry Blvd crossing for more than a year! Sadly, there are 2 under passes that are as usual full of water, mud and rocks so we have to use the normal street crossings at those intersections, :( The Trail Closed sign was pulled off the trail after Murry Blvd, so we headed down to Galley Rd. Galley Rd. is now open, one lane in each direction. The big surprise was the new street crossing light and the now, doublewide sidewalks across the new bridge!! 

From there, we took back streets and sidewalk down to the Starbucks at Hwy 24 and Murry Blvd. Got our iced green tea and ate our brown bag lunch. Headed back the same way up to the Rock Island, then turned east to ride to the RIT ending point at the frontage road just before Powers Blvd. Headed back on the Rock Island Trail, west to Cascade St. and over to the Building Three Coffee Roasters, for iced tea and snack bars outside at the Lincon Center from there got back on the PPGW heading south to Monument Valley Park, then over the I-25 Pedestrian Bridge to the Mesa Greenway to its end, back to the PPGW and home. Someday, they will take the Homestead South Trail and continue it to hook up with the Sand Creek Trail but that's for the future. 

That's it so far for March, we will let you know if the snow melted fast enough for us to make our Saturday March 7th. Service appointment at Angletech of if we got snowed in and have to do our rides on the Recumbent Exercise Bike! HAPPY TRAILS

More February 2026 rides

 The weather gave us a couple of breaks, so we managed to get in a couple more rides. 

Feb 15- Enjoying the SUN, out and about on the recumbents- We headed out to ride the Pikes Peak Greenway, going south, which is mostly DIRT! LOL, ya we don't normally care for dirt riding, but it had been a long time since we rode that way so, it was our destination.

Rode the PPGW down to Circle Drive, the new bridge construction was still going on so we took the detour route and then picked up the new concrete trail along Circle Dr/Lakeview Dr to get on the Harrison Interchange Ped Bridge over to pick up the Cheyenne Road bike lane to the Southgate shopping center and Panera Bread for iced tea and our brown bag lunch. Backstreets, to the Creek Walk Center and short trail to the Tejon St. bike lane back into downtown and back streets over to America the Beautiful Park.

Over the bridges and into Monument Valley Park and the "westside" Pikes Peak Greenway home. A beautiful day for a ride! 

Feb 16- Monday wasn't quite as nice as Sunday so we needed to go do a FOOD RUN to stock the home shelves! Hooked up the cargo trailer and off, heading east on the Rock Island Trail over to the Union Blvd Walmart Marketplace. Shopping done, we headed back home the same way, put away the cold and frozen items and then headed to the Mavrick Station Store for "cheap but quite good", pizza slices for lunch. Hopped on the PPGW and then picked up the Sinton Trail up to Garden of the Gods Road and down to the Mavrick Station Store. We then headed back the way we came and decided to extend the ride a bit and ride down the PPGW to Duck Lake, took a spin around the lake, got back on the PPGW and headed home!

Well, that's all for now, really COLD, WINDY and a bit of SNOW has come back into Southern Colorado, maybe be able to sneak a short, chilly ride on Sunday or Monday, will have to see how much snow we get on Friday afternoon into Saturday morning! HAPPY TRAILS! 

Blessed with quite a few Good Weather Days in February

 Feb. 5- The Practical Side of Recumbent Triking: We needed some new pillows, sheets, etc. so, we headed out for the closest Walmart at Platte Ave and Chelton Rd. Hooked up the Cargo Trailer to the trike and took a more "Bike Lane" route instead of using parts of the trails. After loading up the cargo trailer, we headed to downtown and the Antler's Plaza Starbucks for iced tea to go with our brown bag lunch. Headed over to the Mesa Greenway to its end point, double backed to Fontanero St and the Pikes Peak Greenway Trail and then back to the apartment.

Feb 6- Solo ride and SD card test run- Well Jo had a medical appointment, so I headed out alone. It was a very nice day, but I decided to just stay around close, so I did the Vincent St Bridge Loop ride. I didn't take any photos but, I did enjoy the good weather and found out the SD cards are still functioning as normal, not sure why I had problems with them in the first place. Did the loop and then headed back to the apartment.

Feb 8- A Sunday Ride on a Beautiful Day- Wow what a day, low 60 F temps and lots of sunshine, wish winter was like this all the time! 

Didn't really have a certain destination in mind so we did a lot of wondering around using different trails and bike lanes. What a great day to out and about on a recumbent trike!

Feb 9-Another great day to RIDE, before the upcoming storms- Been fortune it having so many nice days to ride in February! 

Didn't really want to go home but it was getting late and the thought of dinner was on my mind. The storms are supposed to be coming in from the west any day so getting in the rides during this dry spell has made this a decent distance month for being winter!  

Feb 11- A Chilly start but it did warm up, with rain or rain/snow mix coming in on Friday, this was the last chance for a good ride- Decided to go to the Creekside Coffee House for hot tea and the brown bag lunch. Headed up the PPGW to the Cottonwood Creek Trail and up to the CCH. It was a chilly start but warmed up after our lunch so we decided to go all the way to the end point on the CCT. We passed the park, went thru the large tunnel and were on our way. OOPS, we forgot that they are doing creek rerouting and the trail is blocked off! Found a detour and decided to check it out. Single sidewalk but it did take us to a different access point for the trail so we could continue on! 

We headed back down the CCT and then stopped at the Academy Blvd and Woodmen Ave Starbucks for a Think Bar and iced tea break. Rode the CCT to the PPGW and headed south back to the apartment. Although it warmed, we never took off the jackets and vests so it was reminding us that it's still WINTER and can change asap! A nice 22-mile ride before the storms of Friday and Saturday morning, BTW, HAPPY VALENTINES DAY! 

Today is Friday the 13th.!! LOL, no biggie but as Saturday is VALENTINES DAY, we won't be riding. Taking the city bus to our favorite cute little Mexican Restaurant, The Bean Bandit for Valentines Lunch! It's even a bit romantic with its inside Mexican courtyard and fountain! No safe place to lock up the trikes and no windows to keep an eye on them, oh well not every adventure can be done by trike! All the best and HAPPY TRAILS. 😍

It's Winter, January is as usual, at hit and miss month weather wise!

 Have managed to get in a ride here and there, alas, with weather and medical appointments, winter just seems to be really hard to get to do continues rides! We did get fortune enough, to find out about an event a couple of days before the ride. 

This is the Alex Pretti Memorial Ride for Colorado Springs, CO. Alex Pretti was gunned down by ICE agents in Minnesota, he was a VA Nurse and supposedly went to help a lady who got pushed down and then was surrounded by Agents, they saw he had a gun, he had a Permit to Carry a firearm. The encounter, got out of hand and he was shot. Now, I wasn't there and will never know what really happened! 

Alex was also a long-time bicyclist and a great customer at a local area bike shop, the Bike Shop decided to have a Memorial Ride for Alex, it was posted by FACEBOOK, and they asked Bike Shops around the country to also have a Memorial Ride for a fellow cyclist. There were over 250 bike shops across the USA that on Jan. 31st. at 11 AM, held a Memorial Ride, we joined the one here in Colorado Springs. Not to protest but to show solidarity and remembrance of a fellow cyclist!!

The start of the Memorial Ride in Colorado Springs, CO. at Building 3 Coffee House, Lincon Center

Jo on the eastern (dirt) Pikes Peak Greenway, heading to America the Beautiful Park in downtown

230+ riders, stopped to fix a flat by the "CREW", heading to America the Beautiful Park

 

We arrived at the Julie Penrose Fountain in America the Beautiful Park, gathered to hear speakers and take a group photo. Some headed back to the Lincon Center for a gathering at the Goat Patch Brewery. We don't drink liquor, we decided to ride up to Sinton Trail and get a cheap hot dog lunch at the Mavrick Station Store, then to Angletech to buy a better helmet MIRROR for my new SENA R1 Smart (intercom) helmet. 

The old-style helmet mirror I had was designed to attach to glasses and just wouldn't work with the new helmet. Safe Zone Helmet Mirror, very adjustable and easy to attach, with a much larger mirror!! We prefer helmet mirrors over trike mounted mirrors, more view of different angles rearward. A bit pricey at $43.00 but worth it and made in the USA! :) 

The weather started out quite chilly but warmed nicely with lots of sunshine, a nice improvement for days before, good ride, nice company, no problems, except the flat tire someone on the ride had! 

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February 1, 2026- Food and Supplies Run and headed to the Creekside Coffee House- We don't own a car, so it's been tough with the weather to get to the food store, we were out of everything! Sunday was even warmer than Saturday, headed to Walmart Market Place via the Rock Island Trail and side street or two. Pulling the cargo trailer behind my trike, did the shopping, loaded up the trailer and panniers, then back home to put away the frozen and cold items, then headed out to the Coffee House. 

LOL, we forgot it was Sunday, the Creekside Coffee House is hooked to a local church, it's closed on Sunday's! We rode the PPGW north and picked up the Cottonwood Creek Trail east to the CC House, turned around and headed back on a fast downhill to the Starbucks on Woodman and Academy Blvd for iced tea to go with our brown bag lunch! The sun on the patio felt good and we finished lunch and headed back down the Cottonwood Creek Trail to the PPGW south and back to apartment as it was nearing 4 PM. Nicely, the sun is now up till about 5:15 PM so we can ride a bit later in the afternoon!  

Cottonwood Creek, from one of the MANY bridges that cross back and forth over the Creek on the Cottonwood Creek Trail. The view looks west towards Pikes Peak

Well, that's a rap folks, today, Monday Feb. 2 Happy Ground Hog's Day, it very gray, cloudy and chilly and I have medical appointments/classes, for both Tues. and Weds. Hopefully be able to get in a ride on Thursday and Friday. Maybe also on Sunday, Taxes getting done on Saturday so no ride RATS! Till we come together, next time, Happy Trails! 

January 18- Last ride before the serious snow and cold set in and intercom head set test.

 Sadly, this was the last ride due to either COLD or SNOW or medical appointments!! Today is the 28th. so, it's been 10 days without a ride! Looking like we might be able to get back in the saddle again for the upcoming weekend!! :) 

January 18, 2026- Finally a decent weather day and the first test of our new SENA R1 helmets with intercom headsets built in! 

We have been wanting these blue tooth/intercom helmets for a long time; we finally bit the bullet and bought the older style R1 helmets as they put them on sale!  Lots of cold, WIND and snow at times but the 18th. was heading to mid 50 F temps and only a slight breeze. I will say the "Set up and Pairing" of the R1 helmets was a real PITA!!! We finally figured it with a lot of trial and errors! Headed out for multi-trail-path ride but the big thing was the helmets test, and I will have to say they worked well!! We did find that the Half Mile Range was only good "in a straight line", i.e.: no buildings or large curves but it worked well at a Quarter Mile Range!!

All in all, we are quite happy with the helmets/intercoms, it's great not to have to SCREAM to let the other know of a turn or which way to go if a fork in the trail happens! As stated, the R1 helmet is the original bicycle helmet style, connecting by Bluetooth, I think the newer, R2 and other models have more upscale communication systems and microphones installed. This will work for us and at $129.00 each, really not too much over a standard helmet from a bicycle/recumbent shop! Sorry no photos but here is the YouTube video on our YT Channel, "Out and About on the Recumbents" for your enjoyment! 

That's it for now folks. Here is hoping the next few days is good enough to ride without a lot of cold WINDS and it's taken several days for the 10 inches of snow to melt off the trails and streets! Happy Trail's 

January 2026-Welcome to the New Year and Wind, Snow, etc.

 Well so far January hasn't been to bad but today, the 8th. it's gray, solid clouds and on and off snow flurries! Did get to get in a few rides here and there, maybe more by the middle of next week! Ok, here's what's going on!

Jan. 3- Just a Sunday Ride on a rather windy day- Headed out on the Rock Island Trail to do the 10 miles or so to its current ending point in a Cul-de-Sac just before Powers Blvd. Had to stop and back up as a couple of dummies parked their cars so it "BLOCKED" the exit/entry to the trail, Arrugh!  We did a bit more riding around here and there but it was getting late, so we headed home. 

Jan. 6- A VERY WINDY Day RIDE- LOL, the wind didn't seem too bad at our apartment but as we got out on the Pikes Peak Greenway to pick up the Centennial South Extension Path up to the Fillmore St. bike lane, the WIND was getting insane with constant heavy gusts. We rode the bike lane over to the Mesa Trail along Mesa Road and the Mesa Overlook. It was blowing us back and forth at the Overlook, so we headed down the hill to the Foothills Trail heading north. Then, the Sinton Trail down to the Garden of the Gods Mavrick Station Store for a HOT tea and our brown bag lunch. 

Down the Sinton Trail and north on the Pikes Peak Greenway up to Criterium Bike Shop and picked up the Nevada Ave Path over to the Panera Bread at the UVC center for a 2nd. HOT tea as the winds were strong and chilly!  Heading back down to the PPGW south and home, just tired of fighting the WIND! 

Jan. 7- Reverse Ride and Errand Run and thankfully LESS WIND! - One of our granddaughters, asked Jo to make her a "Lap Blanket" for her birthday", so she got at it, and made the blanket. The "decent" UPS Store is in a shopping center at Fillmore and Centennial, so we decided to do a bit of a Reverse Ride of what we started yesterday. We headed up the Sinton Trail to Centennial Blvd, headed south up the hill to the UPS Store so Jo could get the blanket mailed off. 

Lucky for us, the wind was much mellower today, so we headed south on the Centennial South Extension Path, (they also have a bike lane, but we like the concrete path better), Then got on the Mesa Greenway to head towards America the Beautiful Park. Then the Cuchara St. Path through downtown Colorado Springs. Using different bike lanes, we got over to Shooks Run Trail, heading north. Stopped at Good Neighbors Meeting House for iced tea and a Think Bar break and then a quick stop at the Bonn Center Safeway and back to the apartment on the Rock Island Connector! 

Hopefully by the middle of next week we can get back out on the trails and bike lanes but it's according to the amount of snow we might get tonight into Friday!! Hope the new year brings you lots of excellent riding! Happy Trails! :)

The last ride of 2025 and the first ride of 2026

 December 31, 2025- Last ride of the year, decided to head up to the Creekside Coffee House via the PPGW and Cottonwood Creek Trail to get a hot tea and eat our brown bag lunch. It was a beautiful day, sunny, mid-55 F temperature. We then headed back to the PPGW and picked up Sinton Trail up to a turnaround point on the Foothills Trail back down to Sinton and the PPGW and headed back to the apartment, great day to RIDE and a nice ending to 2025!

January 2, 2026- Food Run and a lot more to get in a RIDE: Desperately needed to do a serious Food and Household Supplies Run! Headed out on the Rock Island Trail over to the Credit Union for cash and then back to the RI Trail heading to the Union Blvd Walmart Market Place store! Did the shopping, loaded up the stuff in the cargo trailer and panniers. Back to the apartment to put the cold items in the refrigerator. Headed out via RI up to hook up with Cascade Ave bike lane over to the Mavrick Station Store for lunch, hotdog, BBQ chips and an iced tea!

From there, we rode back to the bike lane to pick up the T-Gap trail south over to the PPGW and headed north to do the Vincent Street Loop Ride. DUH, we forgot our Think Bars, so we headed down the Nevada Ave Path over to the University Village Colorado Center's Panera Bread. We split an untoasted cinnamon swirl and raisin bagel and a small, iced tea. Through the center back to the PPGW and then rode all the way to Duck Lake, toured the lake and headed back on the PPGW to the apartment. LOL, turned a 6-mile Food Run into a 21-mile RIDE, as the sun was sinking low in the sky! 

Not a bad way at all to start a New Year, the weather was Chilly and Gray to start but after we got the food back, the clouds slowly parted, and we had sunshine for the rest of the ride!

That catches us up here on the old, BLOG! I don't normally take video on a Food Run as, according to the "WEATHER", it can be a short run or a long run! Taking a break on the 3rd. Hoping to RIDE on the 4th. as it's going to be 60F and SUNNY, YEA! Till we come together next time, HAPPY TRAILS.