My second week of ownership of my V7 started with a rain day on a Saturday.  It rained so hard that I decided that I wasn’t going to ride until Sunday, where I would make a nice loop going to the Full Moon Cafe on Highway 41, then riding up to the Sly Fox Inn in Wheaton, Wisconsin before taking a bunch of back roads to my home in Oak Park.

It’s a nice loop to make.   The route involved a ride up the 294 towards Milwaukee and then dropping off at Deerfield road for the rest of the ride North on Highway 41.  After hanging out with the other 50-60 riders that show up there on Sundays, I planned a trip up to the Sly Fox where Vintage riders meet for Brunch and tire kicking.  Then the ride home involves skirting the lakes along the Wisconsin/Illinois border and then dropping down into Arlington for a ride down the 355/290 and home.  I think it’s about 200 miles or so.

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“One of the positive things about Critical Mass is that it makes people look at bikes a little more,” he said. “Phoenix has made significant efforts in the areas of engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement and evaluation as they relate to bicycling,” said Joseph Perez, Phoenix bicycle coordinator and traffic engineer. More than 70 bicyclists will descend upon the streets of central Phoenix on Friday for the monthly meeting of Critical Mass, a group ride to promote awareness between bicyclists and motorists. This month’s ride is the first since Phoenix received its first-ever honorable mention from the League of American Bicyclists as a bicycle-friendly community Sept. “The thing about riding with the group, it takes you back to when you were a kid riding around with your friends. “It’s about having a fun, safe ride,” said Mark Patton, who attended his first Critical Mass in May 2010. The Phoenix chapter of Critical Mass, which serves as the city’s melting pot for 70 to 80 bicycle enthusiasts and recreational riders, has also improved, according to participants.

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