Seven Hours of Turkey Flats...

Greg and I got a shuttle up to 7100 ft, just past Glade Park where the gravel road starts. We unloaded our bikes to the sound of thunder, and then started riding.... into the clouds.About 5 miles in we put on our rain coats, only to have the rain immediately stop. We had caught the tail end of the storm though, and the road was a mess. I let Greg lead, and he quickly showed me what lines not to take. His bike ground to a halt, tires no longer moving. I dodged left and kept moving, not having to get my shoes gunked up. A mile or so further up, the road dried out again.

Once on singletrack the conditions weren't too bad. A little slick, but not gumbo. We climbed to almost 10,000 ft and ate lunch gawking at the La Sal Mtns. I noticed this little guy and he posed for a shot in Greg's hand.

On the way back down we stopped for a few gnar gnar shots and then kept moving. Once back on the road Greg went one way and I headed back to GJ the other. I had plans to hit the Ribbon and The Gunny as well.

Heading down, the wind was blowing the wrong way. Normally by afternoon the wind is out of the west, but it was hard out of the east and making me work, despite going downhill. And speaking of that downhill, there sure was a lot of climbing for all that elevation loss? I stopped at Glad Park Store and had a chocolate milk, the energy drink of champions! I was suffering, on the pavement and into the wind on my 6" travel bike. Not really the hot set-up for road riding, but was I racing?

I finally got to The Ribbon trail. I noticed a little dampness to the soil in the parking lot but didn't think much of it. However, as I got futher down it became aparent that it had rained recently and it had rained hard. By the time I got to the wash the water was roaring. It was a grey nasty bentonite water. My bike sounded like every rotating piece was rubbing on sandpaper. I found that it was easier to keep moving if I actually rode IN the water. I kept my speed as to not get bogged down. But...one water hole was a little deeper than the rest, and a little more filled with mud. Bike stops, I keep going! Soooo, i'm laying in the nasty water, waiting for my bike to pummel me as it normally does when I fly over the bars, but it doesn't? I look up and the bike is stuck in the endo posistion front wheel deep in mud. After unsticking my bike I trudged on to the climb out. I had hope that the bentonite climb would be dry----HA HA HA. I have seen foot prints of the poor souls who have been stuck here after a rain. And I have laughed at their misfortune, I have made fun of them, and now I have been THAT GUY! The cake frosting top of the mud was slick as snot. Each shoe weighed at least 10lbs. I carried my bike so that it too would not weigh twice its normal weight. I made it out, scraped off my shoes, and rode down the Tabeguache and Lemon Squeezer to finish a fine day of mountainbiking. Turkey Flats is normally a two hour ride at the most. I stretched it a little eh?

(Greg pics, as usual, are stunning. Check out his work at http://www.bikeabout.net/)

Mary Rides, a little bit...

Despite Mary's painful hand problem, sometimes one must go riding, regardless of the consequences. This was one such evening. With the threat of sore, painful, fingers for the days to follow, she went. And it was awesome!

Keith finally cleans the rock on Prime Cut. The monkey is off his back.

Gus was happy to have a pond to swim in. The recent rains have left plenty of water out there and plenty of ruts in the trails too.

The light was simply amazing as the shadows danced across the Book Cliffs and the desert below began to turn orange.

Gus and I hung back and watched the last of the sunset turn the cliffs pink. Not a bad view from aboard the bike.

And just when you think its done, it kicks one more time and then "fade to black."

Monarch Crest Trail...

The Monarch Crest Trail, one of my favorite trails in the world! Noah and I took off for a quick one day blast. We left the night before, planning to run the shuttle before hand and camp up high.We got into Salida around midnight. We had already stashed our bikes and our camping gear at the top of Monarch Pass. I found the map I had pre-paid for under the steps of Absolute Bikes where the nice lady had hid it for me. We dropped off the truck at Poncha Springs and the pain began.Since we only had one car we brought my moto to run a self shuttle. It's a slick system for these high mountain rides requiring only one car. However, when we left GJ it was about 105 degrees. It didn't occur to us that it would be a fair bit colder up high. So there we are, two grown men in shorts, at 12:30 AM, on a small, blue, underpowered motorcycle climbing one of the highest passes in the USA. I was so cold that I was shaking violently causing the handlebars and the whole bike to swerve. Not to mention dodging the deer that seemed to be grazing on gravel on the sides of the road. At one point we both started laughing at the absurdity of our situation. The laughing seemed to warm me up, or maybe Noah was holding on too tight fearing for his life? I dunno?As we climbed toward 12,000 ft the rising yellow crescent moon came up to greet us as we rolled into camp. Chilled to the bone I was unable to get warm the whole night. A new sleeping bag is in order. Around 4 AM a large animal started snorting and kicking around. I was pretty sure I was going to be trampled to death in my sleeping bag by an Elk. This would be fitting as I am routinely attacked by animals when I vacation.

Well, the ride was amazing as the pictures show (All of Noah since he lost his memory card and thus, the pics of me) The ride was about 35 miles including the Rainbow Trail which I highly recommend. Its a slightly more strenuous way to get down, but well worth the effort. At least I thought so because I still had brakes, which was more than Noah had. He rides fast with no brakes!