The numbers of electric bikes continue to increase here in Paradise. Most of them are being piloted by people with gray hair. My guess this is because their combination of fun and utility is attractive to seasoned humans.
They can now ride farther, faster, and the hills are largely flattened out. The other day I saw a young mom on an e-cargo bike with two smiling kids buckled in behind her. Sensible and fun all at once. Most of our days being rainless also means more riding hours are available.
Electric bikes are not without problems. Some of the cheaper models come with batteries that can explode and set buildings on fire. One of our neighbors bought a beautiful electric mountain bike, and for a while everything was great. She used it around town and could take it into the hills if she wanted to. Then some wrist and forearm issues developed and pretty soon she wasn’t riding at all. Those longer hours in the saddle gave her overuse injuries.
The number of new brands is bewildering. The old line manufacturers (Trek, Specialized, Giant, Cannondale, etc.) offer electric models, but here in Montrose they are outnumbered by machines made by companies I never heard of before.
Robin and I are still quite happy with our bikes, which are Aventons. If only they were 10 pounds lighter … .
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As I write this, sitting in a relatively cool and desert-dry backyard in Colorado, Robin is sweltering in humid California under the developing heat dome. The edges of that unpleasant heavenly structure will be here soon. So I bask while basking is possible.
For my lazing-about soundtrack I am listening to the music of the Greek electronic composer Vangelis. Beautiful stuff and a bit of a balm for a basker. I first became a fan of his in 1981 when the title tune from the movie Chariots of Fire hit number one across the country. And then there was his lovely little piece, L’Enfant, that showed up in the film The Year of Living Dangerously, in 1982. After that the score from the original Blade Runner came along, also in 1982. I was hooked from then on. This in spite of my general avoidance of electronic music up until then.
Wherever my switch for electronica was located, Vangelis’ music snaked in and turned it on.
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From the score of Chariots of Fire, which was nominated for seven Academy Awards and won four.
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From The Year of Living Dangerously, another moving composition – L’Enfant. So moving.
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From the soundtrack for Blade Runner here’s that famous scene of the programmed death of the replicant Roy Batty . Rutger Hauer wrote the speech himself, with Vangelis’ music quietly playing in the background.
Aaahhhh, I’ve seen so many great films … heard so much fine music … but I have never seen attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion … don’t know where I was that weekend, but I missed the whole thing. Blast!
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Drove to Denver on Thursday to pick up Robin at the airport. ‘Twas an easy drive with almost no construction bother. Even the traffic was relatively light.
Our local version of the heat dome is still under 100 degrees, but just barely. Sometimes I long for the simpler weather reports of my childhood, which didn’t have terms like heat dome, polar vortex, katabatic winds, helicity, et al. Instead they were framed simply as:
- Hot or cold
- Tornado warning
- Rain or shine
- Tornado warning
- Windy or calm
- Tornado warning
We didn’t have a glossary of specialized terms tossed at us, all of which I suppose are dailyspeak for meteorologists. Somehow using their arcane terminology makes everything seem more ominous.
Heat dome? I’m staying in, thank you very much.
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Our hummingbirds are all back but for the Rufous members of the family, so things are fairly calm at the feeders. Most of our flock are black- chinned hummingbirds, which are much less aggressive than the rufous variety.
We once had a hummingbird come indoors and forget the way back out. There was a bit of fuss because Robin has definite feelings about where birds belong, but eventually I was able to catch it in my hands without harming it, and carry it out to be released. It was so light that I couldn’t feel it in my enclosed hands. Not too surprising because it probably only weighed 3-4 grams.
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A couple of days ago I was driving by a stretch of electrical wires where I have often seen American kestrels perching on those wires. I spotted one just as it plummeted straight down at some prey invisible to me. The dive must have been successful as the little falcon didn’t re-emerge from the tall grass as the scene receded in my car’s mirror.
So what do these little beauties eat? Just about anything.
“Commonly taken insects include grasshoppers, cicadas, beetles, dragonflies, butterflies and moths. Spiders and scorpions are eaten as well. American Kestrels also take small rodents including voles, mice, and shrews, as well as small birds, reptiles, and amphibians.”
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Little Home In The Valley 