Will ride for food

Let's start this (censored)

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Lazy

I got out for a quick ride this morning before I have to head to the airport to pick up the family. I had plans of going on a longer ride than I did but a slow leak in the rear tire had me headed home when I had the chance. I was too lazy to put a tube in that stan's'd wheel...
It's a beautiful day out there. Bright sunny skies, 70 something degrees, slight wind...
I felt good on the bike, too. I guess there is something to losing weight and feeling faster.

Seek Adventure.

Mike B and I got out for an awesome evening in the woods today. Trace Ridge from the very top, Brand new LEGAL trail to the very bottom (including some near bushwack at the end, the trail isn't quite finished....), North Mills, then Trace all the way back to the parkway. Thanks for getting me out of the house, Mike!

Pisgah Enduro course marking ride

Jarret P. and I marked the Pisgah Enduro course the day before the event. 6 hours in the woods.

 

I got home at 9PM, Had birthday cake with the family, then went straight to bed. I got up at 2AM, Got to the Start/Finish by 3AM and by 5AM the race was ready to go:

Enduro course marking day 1.

I went on a painful little gravel road ride a couple days before the Enduro. I started at Curtis Creek Road and climbed Jerret Creek Road for about 4.5 miles. I marked the start of stage 4 of the Enduro then bombed back down the mountain. I had a lot on my mind but mostly Jut Rut's advice to make that stage shorter. When I hit that little climb in the middle my legs were screaming and I knew he was right. The start was now 3 miles up the hill too far. I marked the bottom of the section then all the road sections then high-tailed it back to Asheville just in time to pick up Zoe.
I forgot the gps. I forgot the camera. My phone died. No photos or data exist for this ride.

Trailwork ride with Sophiedog

The Pisgah Enduro was fast approaching and I had intel that a small tree was down on Star Gap, one that could be taken out with a handsaw. I took it upon myself to dispose of that small tree and Sophiedog came along for the ride.
I forgot my camera and my gps but did get this nice blurry shot of Sophie with my wet iphone:

Out and back: Heartbreak->Star Gap->Star Gap->Heartbreak. 90 minutes in the woods including the trail work.

Thank God for mountain biking.

Last night I went on one of the best rides in recent memory. Mike B and I rallied at my house at 6PM and we met Jody F at Bent Creek Gap around 6:45.
The ride was just awesome. It started with a 20+mph average descent on 5000 then a great warm-up on Spencer. The guys got away from me in the steep field but I embraced the big ring and finally caught them a while later.
We took Spencer down from the gap and the sun was setting and Jody was F L Y I N G down the hill. It was everything I had to keep him close and after a root/rock lip/jump/drop I tore my front tire and went down. Nothing injured so, a quickish tube insertion later, I was rolling again.

Spencer took forever though because, after that flat, Jody broke a rear derailleur cable. A bit of fiddling took care of it but he was then lacking most of his rear gear range.
Next was the fireroad to more singletrack, we were looking to see if the ride was to continue or if the mechanicals would foil us. They did not. The ride continued.
The sunlight was almost non-existent by then but we stubbornly went forward with no lights. That was a good decision. Whoever was in front at the time was blindly leading the blind. We would call out: 'LOG!' thump...uuuugh.. 'HOLE!' and we picked our way up the trail as a single unit.
Then, on the old logging road with lights off, we started to see them.

Blue Ghosts. Fairies. Fireflies. Everywhere. They covered the mountainside like a blanket of pale blue dots. Simply amazing.

Then down the super fast singletrack to (eventually) the reservoir. Jody, Mike, and I switched first, second, and third in line again and again (with lights on). It was a spectacular descent.
Once we were on the reservoir road it was pitchblack dark so turning the lights back off was tough. The solution? GRAVEL ROAD DANCE PARTY! Mike switched his light to a random strobe setting and Jody and I were lights-out. A mile of tripping out later was enough, lights on again.
At the parking lot we were all feeling good but didn't want to climb the singletrack back out. The road was calling us. I led out to start and suddenly a pace line started. I let Mike pull, then Jody took his turn, then I led out HARD, then Mike called my bluff, pulled around, and.... second gate....third gate.... false top... top. I need to check my GPS but it sure did feel like the fastest I've ever climbed 5000.
Oh, and beyond that basic description, today, I'm overwhelmed with that warm-fuzzy feeling from a great ride. There were so many funny things said that I can't remember, so many great moments on the trail that would be too hard to describe, and just the right amount of downtime enjoying nature, sounds, sights, smells, things so much greater than three guys on a mountain bike ride... that it was one of the best mountain bike rides in recent memory. Thanks for coming out, Mike and Jody!