Like this, y'know...

But around 4:00 pm, ride leader Rick decided a changeup was in order, and instead of the longer "Big Sandy" loop, the ride was revised to meet conditions - and changed to "Big Shady + Scoop."

AC, for free: The group - just Rick, Mark and Mark this time - pushed off from the Baby Bar for a quick downtown tour, leading to the nearby Peaceful Valley neighborhood, to the aptly named Water Street, where gravelly beaches make access to the ice-cold Spokane River easy, and a quick dip really, really refreshing.

Next, the bunch followed the river downstream and up the Indian Canyon watershed - a shady, naturally-cooled area that follows one of the City's best greenbelts up to Garden Springs and Highway 2. From there, a quick crossover to Thorpe Road for a loop through some of Spokane's most proximate wheatfields (always cooler near these, for some reason).

Frozen treats: The final stop was for ice cream at The Scoop, in all likelihood the best home-grown ice cream and ice cream shop in town. Unfortunately, the place was closed for some bizarre reason (the sign said closed both July 4th and 5th), so a trip to the old national-chain standby, Baskin-Robbins was in order, where the group sat and chatted about classic versus new scooters until dusk and cooler conditions began to return.

All in all, a much better, even cooler way to spend an oppressively hot afternoon than holed up in some air-conditioned box. Really!