Get Off My Trail
The skies kissed the mountains with a bit of rain over the weekend leaving the trails in perfect, sticky shape. With the mud gone but the moondust packed into smooth trails I and Ripmo set off for a wonderful morning together. Focusing less on handling and the details of a new bike I let the Ripmo take the big hits and we managed to dance
We’re headed to the Tetons today. When leaving town I frequently am required to skip the daily ride because something about not helping with packing and getting ready. I went to bed resigned to that fate. Then before the sun awoke my eyes opened. The Ripmo was restless. Worried that my garage could not contain its energy I could ignore the beast no longer. Slipping
The wind giveth and the wind taketh away. Usually it takes away all my speed and gives me a lot of grief and agony. Last night the air was thick with smoke but the wind was blowing. This morning the wind giveth us cleaner air so we can be friends. It’s nice to ride and not gasp and cough. After a road ride on the
After a late Friday night of binging on s’mores I was sure my body would want to sleep in. Instead, I woke up drawn to an early morning ride on the Ripmo. The orange light of the early morning sun a sign of smoke filled skies telling me somewhere the West is on fire. The rising sun beautiful in the east distracted my mind from
Cloud cover and morning AC blasting my body was fooled into believing that the morning Utah air would be cool and perfect for a ride. Instead the clouds withholding even the slightest drop of moisture instead populated the air with stifling humidity. I climbed through rock and dust roasted dry by drought and mountain sun all the while dripping as if I had just emerged
In the brisk, sharp, mountain morning air the Ripmo and I started up Jardine Juniper for a marvelous morning in the mountains. Crank turning and wheels rolling over rock and root we bickered about direction. The Ripmo likes to meander around the trail. I prefer to go straight. At one point the Ripmo wanders into a sagebrush. I pull hard on the reins to bring
I used to ride without music. Then I rode with ear buds. Then I started scaring hikers and runners because I couldn’t hear them and since they usually have ear buds they couldn’t hear me. Even when the hiker/runner doesn’t have earbuds, mountain bikes are remarkably quiet. On a lower traffic trail it’s easy to slip into Zen mode. The noise of the world fades
Having backed away from my destructive attitude towards the Ripmo I discovered that most people cover their new toys in all kinds of protective shielding. I made an appointment with the bike shop to have them outfit the Ripmo with all the protective stuff. Think iPhone protective plastic but all over your bike. Whenever the bike goes to the shop I take a detour to
The Ripmo was not happy that I left it in the truck yesterday and went road biking so when I woke up at 6 a.m. this morning I was like what the hell am I doing awake so early?! Then I woke up at 8 a.m. and remembered the Ripmo was waiting. I proceeded to get ready. When I started biking, getting ready meant walking
Riding the Ripmo is like taming a wild pony. It comes with a set of opinions, secrets and approach to navigating the mountains. It is the job of the new rider to discover these secrets. I’m gradually unlocking the bikes capabilities one level at a time. I still find myself breaking out of the perfect flow from time to time, surprised at the bike’s handling
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