Pictures from last week's rides

Not much new to write about. However, I have been carrying my camera on rides. I have room in my pockets because I do not have to carry a spare tube and wrench on my Tarmac thanks to the quick release wheels. There are lots of Kodak moments on my ride but the actual pictures do not really do the views justice. I can often see the Manhattan skyline at the top of some of my climbs.

The picture above was taken during the Thursday evening hill climb ride with the Holmdel Park Independent Group. I got dropped while I was taking out the camera and trying to get the picture. I eventually caught up but I got dropped again trying to get a picture of the last climb of the day. Unfortunately, the picture did not really come out very well.

The deer above are out every evening. This picture was taking Friday on a ride by myself. While it looks like it is a rural area it is actually a large vacant lot in the middle of Marlboro, NJ. I actually stopped to take these pictures. The deer just looked at me for a few minutes and then scattered. One large one got to the edge of the woods and engaged me in a staring contest.

I have to worry about deer almost more than cars since they tend to run across the road at moments notice. When then are in the woods they are not visiable even though they are only a few feet away. I often hear them before I see them. I cannot imagine hitting a deer at 20 mph is a lot of fun. The Colts Neck deer seem to be more skiddish than the Holmdel and Marlboro deer.

I took this picture as I was waiting for the lefthand arrow to go over the Sea Bright Bridge. The road is RT 36 and I am facing north. The Atlantic is to the right and the entrance to to Sandy Hook is a mile or two straight ahead. Since the Highlands Bridge is being replaced I have to cut through Rumson, NJ to get up to Mt. Mitchell Scenic Overlook.

Hartshorne Woods Park is the mountain bike destination in Monmouth County. Since I was riding by in the afternoon the parking lot was not that crowded. On the weekends the lot is usually full and the extra cars are parked along the road.

The Eastpointe Tower is next to the Mt. Mitchell Scenic Overlook. I had been told that Frank Sinatra once lived there but I am not sure if it is true. The view must be incredible from the top floors. The New York sky and the Brooklyn Beaches (Coney Island) are directly north. The Atlantic is just to the right. I lived just down the road in Atlantic Highlands when I first moved to New Jersey.

This a sample of the view from the Mt. Mitchell Scenic Overlook. I took this picture from the drive way of one of the houses on Ocean Blvd as it heads toward Atlantic Highlands. The NY skyline is in the background but my camera is not good enough to pick it up. The best part of the climb up Mt. Mitchell is the drop into Atlantic Highlands.

Due to weather and other obligations I did not ride on Sunday or Monday. Hopefully the weather is better this evening so that I can ride with the Tuesday evening Holmdel Park group.