GMR Fridays...

Alright, that does it. I am making it official. From now on, for the foreseeable future, Fridays are to be known as GMR Friday. Again, almost no traffic; very few riders this time as well, which seemed a bit strange. Where was everyone? The spot where the horse was killed a few days ago by a speeding and out-of-control car was gruesome, and very sobering; from what I have read the rider will make a full recovery, physically anyway. Also, judging by comments, this seems to be a recurring concern of local residents and all non-motorized users of GMR - cyclists, equestrians, and hikers all face the same dangers up there from irresponsible drivers. Closing the road to motor vehicles during the summer sounds like a fine idea to me. 


Two additional observations on this: 1. I did not see (and rightfully so) a single comment blaming the equestrian for being on the road, and I sincerely doubt that I could say that if a cyclist were on the receiving end; we all know how the creeps and blame-the-victim types come out of the woodwork when a cyclist is hit. 2. Some journalists still report this sort of thing as an "accident". 


Well, I didn't originally intend for this post to bring you down, because otherwise it was a great morning up there. Clear, cool and, I had my climbing legs. Here's a pic:

A lot of Lupine in bloom, even more Monkey Flower (though I didn't stop for a photo of it). These Lupine were growing on the other side of a low stone barrier wall, you pass coming back down; it is about the last place you have a view down into San Gabriel Canyon before you cross over to the other side of the ridge.