I have to leave the house every now and then or my brain will explode. The past couple of days of storms blanketed Providence Canyon in white. A few riders had made it up the first section. I was alone in the climb to the top and ended up on the road to finish. The descent was in fairly deep unpacked snow. There’s something about the crunch of virgin snow under the tires, the absolute silence of the forest in the cold and the sight of trees and trail covered in brilliant white that rejuvenates the soul fills my day with joy.
In the summer when I’m on my Ripmo I get irritated by random pedal strikes. I forget how much clearance the Ripmo has. If you look you can see the strikes in the snow from my Beargrease. Hitting the soft snow isn’t a problem. The lower section of Providence Canyon doesn’t have has much of the white stuff and I found myself slamming into quite a few rocks. It’s a reminder just how spoiled I am by modern mountain bikes.
The ride – Providence Canyon
The bike – Salsa Beargrease