Monday, April 13, 2009
Greetings from Phoenix, Arizona, USA!
With the curtains coming down on IBC in the coming weeks, I thought I'd follow Jeffrey's lead and tell you some about my stomping grounds. I apologize in advance if you are on dialup!
Here is a table comparing Iraq with Arizona:
The greater Phoenix Metropolitan Area, where I live, has about three million people (from memory) compared to Baghdad's roughly five million. Here's a Google Earth comparison of the relative sizes: 
The Painted Desert
Arizona actually has a wide range of ecological regions including low desert (of course), high desert, pinon juniper, and ponderosa pine forests. If you went from bottom to top or top to bottom you'd likely cross all these regions. You could also see some very interesting archaelogical sites, like Montezuma's Castle National Monument, a sort of apartment building built in pre-Columbian times, which is just off the road. If you were more adventurous, you could head up to the Four Corners region and buy made-in-China Indian turquoise jewelry in four states at once! This area, too, is peppered with archaelogical sites, including the Mesa Verde National Park (in Colorado) that puts Montezuma's Castle to shame.
Montezuma's Castle
Bet you didn't know Arizona even has an ocean!
///RhusLancia, III and ///RhusLancia, Jr contemplate AZ's ocean
Just kidding. That's the Atlantic. We do have lakes though:
Look Jeffrey! We have farms too!
Friend of ///RhusLancia, Jr. and ///RhusLancia, Jr. pick their pumkins
And streams...
Over the bow
Snow...
///RhusLancia, Jr in the snow as a wee lad (don't worry- he looks totally different now)
Snakes... !
Friend of ///RhusLancia (l) captured a snake in the dez', displays it to ///RhusLancia,
///RhusLancia, Jr, and Friend of ///RhusLancia, Jr (l to r) this past weekend
... and mud
///RhusLancia at the "Attack MX" Amateur Race, circa 2005. Oldest guy to qualify!
And here's a bunch more moto pics:
Moto Kidz: (l to r) Friend of ///RhusLancia, Jr, ///RhusLancia, Jr, Friend of ///RhusLancia, III, ///RhusLancia, III
Moto Kidz 2: (l to r) ///RhusLancia, III, Friend of ///RhusLancia, Jr, ///RhusLancia, Jr
In the desert after a rain:
///RhusLancia and ///RhusLancia, III
2 Boyz: ///RhusLancia, Jr & ///RhusLancia, III
Crashes:
On the track:
///Rhuslancia, Jr.
And finally, here I am on the news in this terrible TV to cell-phone transfer. I'm on the yellow bike. My friend and I went to the track and weren't gonna let a piddly monsoon stop us from putting some laps in. A news copter, out looking for swamped motorists to film, saw us and filmed a few minutes, and clips got in three evening news programs. I love the commentary. This was four years ago, but I am presently the same age as Dennis ("I'm not old").
So there you go. If any of youse commenters come thru Phoenix and have half a day to spend, I'll hook you up with an experience that'll change your perspective in a way that's much better then you'll get from Jamaiccan Red or whatever.
///R
