August 10th, 2010
Maybe I used the title b4.
Spent quiet cloudless night @ corral. Troy didn’t call for AM ride so I am on my own. That was Plan B. I rode from corral attempting to make the ground agree w/ ride colored map. No shade, flat empty sky and desert sage and old sea bed rocks eroded in buttes and fins and side slopes. Fun trails. I rode a blue, a black, a blue, and finished on a greener. All ridable, what makes them harder is exposure on narrow trails w/ some tech features rolled in. Fun riding. Well built trails wandering up & down in & around land features. Just a few unavoidable sections climbed greater than 12%. I got to steer my bike, sit, spin, & steer. 2 1/2 hours out in sun, quit just after 12:00, temp was 79 w/ a gentle breeze blowing. Enjoyable ride.
Turner & Kokopelli:
Drove back into town looking for a visitor bureau for shower info. Struck out. Will try KOA out of town. Sleeping tonight up Dry Creek seeking shade. Found some cottonwood shade on a residential street for internet access.
Tomorrow evening is shop ride that I will stay for.
I have a dentist appointment 9/13 in Spokane, that is my pull date and location. I can find & enjoy rides between here & there, maybe stay some place to enjoy their, “You could ride here a week and still not get it all” trails. There is another day of riding @ McCoy flats should I choose. Now, i am cooking in the desert.
August 2nd, 2010
Quiet night in cow pasture. Up @ 6:30 for bfast and make it to Bill & Susan’s for 8:00 departure for Canyon Creek. Looked out through out night & early morning portended nixing the ride because of rain clouds. Arrived on time to greeting of ride cancelled. Moved to plan B ride of more Hartman’s w/ Susan leading. I was good for that plan. After more visiting we rode off in their toy pickup w/ our bikes’ handlebar overhanging the bed edges. Drove out beyond where Dave & I rode. More ST dirt bike trails, digging riding over the tech challenges, still walked a few but my riding skills have improved. Susan was ahead when she rerode a section back towards me. She said she missed the upcoming rollover. She rode it and I followed just behind but not close enough to see her line. I rolled it, it was about 22″ drop w/ a less than stuff your fork run out. Confidence is growing. I could ride perhaps (4) 3 hour rides out there.
Hartman is becoming known which is a blessing and a curse in that there are 80 (?) miles of ST connected at times by old jeep roads. The curse is the supporting infrastructure to guide campers to protect the environment ( designated camp sites and toilet facilities) is not present. As more people camp and to an extent denigrate the environment w/o rec management the land will suffer. So, just quietly enjoy Hartman’s.
Back @ Bill & Susan’s more pleasant visiting went on. It was their day off and were good to be @ rest. Nice people; felt comfortable like I had known Bill for maybe 45 minutes which was length of time he shared a ride w/ me @ Sedona. I enjoyed our time together. Watched time pass on counter clock and just let it go.
Finally bid adieu and drove off towards Grand Junction where there are newer trails, some over my head technical but lesser trails exist. Stopped @ a western clothing store in Gunnison and finally bought my buffalo fur “cowboy” hat. It’s like Duvall’s hat in Lonesome Dove movie. A new sheriff is in town.
Parked right off the taxiway of Montrose airport behind hangers on a dead end gravel road right across the street from a truck parking lot. It has internet. I can hear engines running from here. Just about 6,000′, lowest I have been since 7/1. Down out of the big mtns.
Tomorrow is Grand Junction. Forecast is still for possible heavy rain storms.
January 18th, 2010
Rain that is, desert life. Looking west from camp I watched the rain clouds come in b4 I felt rain. Temp was 34, not far below snow level. I am camped @ 4080 or so. Forecast is for rain all week w/ 2 days calling for heavy rain. Sunday offers sunshine but I was told that there is rain coming in next week also. Trails are sandy w/ some clay some places, either way the trails need a day of clear weather b4 riding. Moves riding here into next week perhaps on new Spot.
Drove back into town. Found a bakery for wonderful fat pill baked good and real NY bagels. Scored today.
Sealing of the roof appears to be keeping me dry.
Hung @ B & B, skipped the spa. Tomorrow. Today I read on CNN of a drs explanation of why older people might take a bath once a week and why it is OK. Some infrequent bathes is caused by senility in that a person forgets when last bath was and why need one now. DR said as long as a person wears clean clothes and washes off apparent dirt infrequent bathing is ok. DR didn’t address old custom of once a week bathes typified by pioneers and early settlers. I have weaned myself from once a day shower. I do like one after a ride but I miss out in colder weather because it is too cold for outside or there is not one close by. I have driven some miles for a shower.
Jason @ bike shop said that if you boil bike brake pads for 5 miles and that’s all there is.you can regain ~ 70% of stopping power after the pads are contaminated. And that the Nevegal tire is a piece of crap. I’m nuetral, because I have them now doesn’t make me a defender of them. But when enough side lugs fall off I will accept their replacement tire.
Drove up canyon beyond Sedona early evening. Along the way i recognized places I have ridden high up on peaks. Someday I’ll take pictures from the down looking up. And the peaks that are based in the valley have snow on them. Freezing level is to drop not quite to Oak Creek where B & B is. I can stay out of the snow by driving down canyon.
Letting the rain put my riding on hold is ok for recovery. My left rotator cuff is bothering me from perhaps the stiches fall as I twisted around. The wound is more painful on bumpy downhills.
received comment from Sam in Brevard, NC at his shop, The Hub. He said he is expanding so business was good enough?
Off to watch Inglorious Basterds
Turner & Kokopelli: