Adventures

I booked a mountain bike ride with EcoRide in Puerto Vallarta for a little two-wheeled happy fun time action while I am here on vacation with the family. Turns out, being a gravity junkie, I made the right choice of the three main mountain bike outfitters here in town! Rogelio set me up with a guide named Alonso, and also on the ride was local ripper Anibal and a Nor-Cal XC fella named Stosh. Stosh and his buddies had met Alonso last year up in Whistler, and were in Puerto Vallarta visiting and riding for three weeks solid. The four of us planned to rock the Las Agujas Downhill trail from 3,300 feet elevation way outside of town nearly all the way to the beach. Here's a shot of the building to look for when you head to PV next:

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Recently I traveled thru Egypt investigating the whereabouts of alleged mountain bike trails in this desert land, and checking out the sites along the way. I promised to give Walker Thompson, enthusiast in chief, as well as all of you, a full report.

While visiting the temple of Hatsepsut (pronounced as if to say “hot chicken soup” really fast), who was the only woman ever to have ruled Egypt as a Pharaoh, I made my way thru the swarms of tourists, and spied some trails that looked mighty fine on the foothills of the adjacent red rocks (refer to picture 1). However when I asked my guide about details; he informed me that those trails led to 2000- 3000 year old tombs in the mountainsides. That could be kinda cool, I thought. What was not as cool is when he added that has never seen a bike ridden randomly on hillsides or trails unless that was your only option in transporting goods from point A to point B in all of Egypt; others concurred. And women on bikes, forget it! Think long pants, long sleeves, and headscarf to add to the list of “what to pack” with your bike gear when headed outside the cities. Then you have to think about ditching the delicate women’s scarves for the more rugged men’s version – luckily someone showed me how to wear one, should I find a bike, and then an area in which to ride.

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A Typical Business Trip- Appalachian Style

From the intermittent flashing of the passing street lights on
Northbound Rt. 79, I found myself in silent recollection of the events leading up to my position in a pull-out motor home bed at 2:30 in the late September morning.

The onset of this adventure had long since faded into the recess of memory, a distant dream of anticipation from another lifetime when the trees were alive with budding leaves and the last signs of a long cold winter faded in strips of quickly melting slush.

Like so many prior incidents of personal disappointment, the full time job played a role in the initial motivation to plan a mountain bike trek of epic proportion; a trip many miles from the comfort and security of home and toward the legendary Appalachians. The journey began as an office related request; a bankers conference to be specific, that in addition to several meetings of varying degrees of torture, would require three nights stay in lovely West Virginia. Even more exciting was the fact that the hotel hosting the affair just so happened to be located in the shadow of the Appalachian Mountains.

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Well, here goes - I've read many articles here and have not put up my own til now. I hope it makes the grade.

Riding MTB in the Colorado Front Range in November is usually unheard of. But this Fall, we were treated to unseasonably warm weather. Thanksgiving was wonderful and I'd planned to try to get one more ride in before hanging it up. Friday and Saturday continued to have good riding weather, but my plans were sidetracked by errands to run and a sick kid. I knew my window of opportunity was closing fast. Sunday dawned cold, but I was determined! Everything fell in to place and I loaded up the bike and dog and headed for a local area that I knew would be warmer - Walker Ranch. Now earlier there was a post about Walker Ranch being named after our Host Walker - well, thankfully Host Walker is much nicer than the Ranch.

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Me and my friend Grant headed up to Lory State Park yesterday to check out the jump park/pump track they got going up there, and here's a report if you haven't been!

So first things first - if you go, BRING SPARE TUBES! The ground is still pretty littered with goatheads, and it can make for a long day if you don't bring tubes. We talked to some people that said they Slimed their tubes just for riding here. Grant and I both caught flats, and had to wander over to Road 34 to pick up spares. Thanks to Matt who was manning the counter at Road 34 for getting us what we need! We rocked the thorn-resistant variety and that seemed to work very well! I'd be willing to bet that the more the park gets used the goathead problem will eventually go away as more people pick up the nasty little buggers with their tires and take them out of the park.

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OK, I dont get a chance to sit in front this machine that sucks my soul, makes me stupid and takes time away from me getting rides in - but when I do, I go on an all out blog-fest on the net.

So here is a story I would like share.

I went on a ride today (chesebro). its was hot as chuck!. I foolishly ate some porridge and a banana before going out with me bloaks. I almost lost it will climbing the back side of baleen wall. Only cause it was hotter than amature night at a florida strip bar in july. Hellish!

this kinda of heat seems to bring out the rattle snakes something I dont care for being from Europe. I personaly saw two and ran over one. I nearly crapped my shorts when I came jaming around this turn and saw it laying there in the trail. I had NO time to react, well thats not true. I did have time to say OH SHIT, SNAKE! Then after flattening 2.1 inches of him with my kick as Hutchinson Baracudas (which I love!), I sprinted about 20 meters until my buddies behind me caught up. Thats when slick pulls out his new knife and says "I'll cut him and hang him from my Camel Bak!" Great, now when did you get the knife Chief? Apparently he got it after getting spooked on his last night ride by the mountain lions that were stalking him. (thats another story - actually from when we were in Durango, CO.)

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I've been just about everywhere on my mountain bike so this year I thought I'd try something different. Our anniversary was coming so the wife decided to buy me the ultimate MTB vacation....that's right...to the Moon. I know what you're thinking but quite honestly, it's quite affordable this time of year as the heavy gravitational pull and meteor showers usually keeps all but the most committed tourists away. You just have to want it bad enough and have the pocket book to afford it.

Well, it was quite an experience to say the least. The shuttle-lag you get from space travel made me a little groggy but once there the open-ness of space and lack of oxygen really invigorate the senses. We got our spacesuits on in just under three hours and we immdiately set up camp in our egg-crate houses, and began to unload the bikes. Of course, all government-built vehicles suffer from lack of quality, and thus...the bay doors were stuck again. So, we had to unload them from the inside out. Yakima bike racks were originally fitted to the shuttle but it was thought to be a bad idea for re-entry on the way back since the bikes would pretty much incinerate to nothingness.

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My story is not really of a vacation but of a lack of 'vacation'. The time I wanted to use this summer for vacation biking was replaced by a relocating to Edmonton, AB. My wife and I decided to leave the beautiful location of Nanaimo, BC on Vancouver Island and move back to Alberta. My wife left first as she got a job which wanted her to start prior to us actually moving there. This left me to pack up the lion's share of a two bedroom condo, one storage unit, three cats and all our gear in approximatley 3 weeks time. I was able to 'sqeeze' in a couple of rides prior to departing, with my buddies but this is no vacation when you have relocation on the brain.

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I can't believe we did this trail backward! Aargh!!! ... In Telluride this week, I took a couple teenage advanced riders on the Deep Creek Trail. I'd checked out the guidebooks which said that this was one of the best trails in the area. Here's what Trails.com says about the trail:

"The Deep Creek Trail might be one of Telluride's best. Although there's a tough climb to the Deep Creek Trail intersection, the trail, itself, offers a fast romp through thick aspens and pine. The Deep Creek Trail runs a technically challenging descent over exposed rocks and roots before dumping you into a fast meadow. Views of the Wilson Peaks are outstanding. Riders will find the switchbacks down to the Deep Creek trailhead a delight. For those of you who like speed anyway you can get it, you'll enjoy the mad race down Last Dollar Road to its intersection with Colorado 145. Take care, though. The stop sign at the end of Last Dollar Road, right before the road meets with the highway, comes up quickly. Terrain: Paved road, paved bike path, dirt road, and singletrack. The terrain encountered is mountainous: slide areas, talus fields, thick-wooded forests, soft and tacky earth, steep climbs and descents, and creek crossings."

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I'm spending the week mountain biking in Telluride, Colorado -- with 59 teenagers, 2 teachers and 19 other parents. Telluride is gorgeous, but the area definitely isn't flat. You bike on high trails that cling to steep mountainsides, with panoramic killer views of the peaks that make up the box valley where Telluride sits.

Fun, for sure, but not really the safest MTB venue. Which is fine when I'm riding with my adult buddies. It's a bit more unnerving when riding with kids (who aren't yours and whose parents might be a bit angry if one of them maims themselves badly under your watch).

Anyways, here's my report from day 1 of 3 here in Telluride:

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