Team Bizzo: RTR – My virgin voyage (Special Guest Post)

I had no idea what I was signing up for…my brother calls and says “Hey, let’s take your new Tahoe for a spin in Colorado.” Always set on go for a ride to the mountains, I quickly said yes and began clearing my calendar and closing school. You see my day job is principal for an elementary school. I look for opportunities to commune with nature to revive my energy to commune with little people! So off we go. I was in for a pleasant surprise. I already knew about the lure of the mountains, the beauty of the Aspens and rock formations, and the breathtaking views, but I had no idea of the awesome view from a bike.

Day 1 – Durango to Cortez proved to be a nice warm up for me. We (Queen Mum and I) chose to follow the bike route and got to see firsthand what this is all about. RTR is very organized, I must say, and treat their mountain climbers well. We didn’t stop at any rest stops but cruised along at a safe distance just to get a feel of the ride. At Cortez, we stocked up on some powerful Fettuccini for the evening meal! Man, I could get used to this…

Day 2 – Cortez to Telluride was a neat journey. Mum and I spotted Hammer and Johnnie Utah on the route so we scooted up to the rest stop and treated them royally. We refilled water bottles (with Dasani water, of course) and met up with Mama T, so it was a fun reunion! The Dolores River was our faithful companion all the way.

Waterfall - Downtown Telluride

Day 3 – Telluride to Montrose was a hoot. I took Mum to the True Grit Café in Ridgeway to dine where they filmed the movie of the same name. We had the special…club sandwich wraps…in honor of the Duke and shot some great pics. Feeling that we were acquiring our touring legs we saddled up and took a detour – we cruised down to Ouray and on to Silverton to take in the sights. Mum had been there 20 plus years before and commented on the changes (ya think? Couldn’t resist). I took in a few shops (always on the hunt for great bargain, and to me goodies from the area are always good bargains!) and Mum saw the sights. We rode out to the One Hundred Mine – go see it and pan for gold yourself. The riders tell me that this was a good day – not too stressful and easy going in places. I would have to wholeheartedly agree!!!