23. April 2018
Bob
Bicycling , Arizona
As I was riding my bicycle through the Arizona desert outside Tucson yesterday afternoon, I saw a good-sized Gila Monster, which was my first sighting for this year.
This fortuitous discovery came just a few days after I had seen my first rattlesnake for the year, which got me thinking: perhaps I should track a few of the familiar objects that I see every year, which quickly expanded to common occurrences and mishaps. A few minutes later and I had randomized several of my semi-routine desert riding experiences into the following bingo card, where I have already encountered a few of the more-prevalent items this year:
| Stung by Wasp inside my Cycling Jersey | Rode in 100+ Temperatures | PR on RRC | Saw a Rattlesnake | Ran Out of Water |
| Saw a Tarantula | PR on PHL | Saw a Coyote | Hit by Wasp in Face | Prickly Pear in Bloom |
| Run Off the Road by Car | Passed a 20-Something During a Climb | Rode in 110+ Temperatures | Got a Flat Tire | Ocotillo in Bloom |
| Rode in 90+ Temperatures | Saw a Gila Monster | Fell Over | Hit by Cicada in Face | PR on SNP |
| Saguaro in Bloom | PR on FHC | Hit by Grasshopper in Face | Threw Chain During a Climb | Saw a Roadrunner |
Where the following abbreviations apply:
| Abbr. | Description |
| PR | Personal Record |
| FHC | Freeman Hill Climb |
| SNP | Saguaro National Park |
| PHL | Pistol Hill Loop |
| RRC | Riparian Ridge Climb |
As you can see, there are several items which I have yet to see or do for the year, but only four months have gone by; there's plenty of time to fill up the list.