Tuesday I received a special handshake as Loren opened his city plot for the night. Dave and Mikell joined. Late night stay up standing around a hard wood fire that for the most part did not smoke. I slept late Wed morn. I fixed bfast and cleaned up, Dave delivered a vegie omelet. Thanks Dave.

I bid adieu headed for the Upper Buffalo IMBA epic to the SE of Bentonville. I followed the MTBP TH location and ride from Knuckles Creek TH. I geared up and started out later than I would have liked as sundown is dark shortly after 5 and the ride was long and slow. New Ardent on the front and the Raceface Turbine dropper post under me. The post is still a nut slapper.

The route took me past the lookout tower where I stayed 2 years ago getting rained on. The fall colors are brown dead on almost all the trees. The streams are dry. This is a disastrous ecological crash as all the life in the streams is dead. When the water flows again what will repopulate? The tread is paved in leaves hiding the limestone loose rocks. Pretty fall woods riding.

I push myself way hard. Today I motored trying to stay ahead of the clock and setting sun. I ran short of time to complete the full epic. I hit the big trail heading up Buffalo creek to the road ride back beating darkness which would have caught me still in the woods. I carry a rescue headlamp in my hydration pack in case, just in case but I plan on not having to use it.

Spent the night at the TH. A hunters’ camp was a short distance away but not out of earshot as I listened to their generator.

I finished Grisham’s The Whistler last night.

Warm night last night.

This morning I drove from Red Star to near Mountain View camping at Syllamore XG, $5 for a camp spot in a deserted campground and no line for a hot shower. I saw 78 degrees on the van meter. I am still wearing these Bedrock sandals now for 2 months. This is November, a week away from T day.

What a up and down twisty drive it was today. The route dropped me down and back up crossing the Buffalo 2X. Very eroded creating steep hill sides, the roads stay on the ridge which create the driving challenges.

Obama Obama Word capitalizes the “o”. When I upgrade windows will the “t” be automatically capitalized?

Sitting in the dark empty campground with the door opened. Rustling leaves call out activity, thinking raccoon. I poured my dish water in the camp fire ring which erupted in a cloud of steam, a bed of coals. Last night’s campers left their fire still alive. I am surprised with such dryness no fires would be allowed.

Friday stuff:

Clouds moved in over night trapping the heat and boding for potential rain. I heard distant thunder. A camper returned to the XG so I asked her if she heard a forecast: yes, rain and T storms in the afternoon. My plan wast o get the dry trails,return fora  shower and head out. I did change out my windbreaker for the rain coat. I pedaled from the XG and climbed up to Jacks branch loop. Trail receives hardly any travel as indicated by the leaf  fall and the quantity of loose limestone rock that would have been rolled away. I connected to  Jacks which is a main loop. Green thorn vines extended into the  scant trail corridor. My arms are deeply incised by several vines, my forearms ran literally blood red. Rain started falling. I bailed heading back into the brambles again. This time my right arm caught the thorns making a bloody mess that the rain washed away.

Back at the van under the falling rain Is tripped off my wet clothes. I scored another hot shower in the XG before heading out still raining. A ford is made in the creek, the sign warns of flash floods which seeings how no rain has fallen in days and the stream beds are dry, little likelihood.

I drove about 15 miles backwards to Gravity Brew pub and opened the pub 10 mins after opening. I needed a place to hang out. I drank a beer. Rain quit for the drive into Mountain View and internet. Sun is now shining as the temp drops to freeze warnings tonight. This county is dry.

I called the ranger station to learn of trails that have been brushed, Scrappy was not one of them for tomorrow’s ride. I’ll ride here again tomorrow during rifle season. I need to buy some orange for the ride.

I stopped in Harrison, AR to do my wash. I have since lost a pair of under shorts and a sock. I did find my missing tooth crown but not where I would have suspected it to be.

Gotta go to find a camp spot before dark.

Drove up Green mtn road to this just off the road sleep spot. Have 2 bar 4G service. Freeze warning tonight and it is working towards it. Rain clouds moved on

I bought my own orange safety vest that I will keep for the rest of the hunting season.

The town of Calico Rock is the next town north from here. Grisham wrote  Calico Joe, a superstar baseball player from namesake town.

Zags are playing and I just get home town announcers on XM. Go Matt.

A long drive from Mississippi to NW corner of Arkansas and Bentonville. I arrived mid afternoon in town. Town is really hopping. I looked for a local who lives out on a dead end development up in the hills for a place to sleep but he didn’t turn up. I spent my camping nights out near Bella Vista on a vacant lot between walgreens and a bank.  I arrived late at night and left b4 breakfast, no complaints. This AM I lingered and was joined by several dog walkers and a semi truck.

Wed night was the opening IMBA Summit gathering. Lots of beer, I drank more than my daily ration. Thurs and Friday were educational sessions. I took notes. Friday afternoon was a visit and ride at the Railyard outside Rogers. What an incredible park and trail system built like right on city property line, perhaps inside the city. Purpose built machine built trails. Bike expo. Hans ray performed amazing trials moves at the event. Saturday was the back 40 starting from Blowing Springs, I managed to ride the shorter 15 mile loop. Sat night was a blow out party. Sunday the clouds cleared mentally allowing me to drive out to Eureka Springs and Lake Leatherwood. Yesterday I rode Slaughter Pen trails right from downtown Bentonville. Today the oil was changed int he van and the Raceface Turbine dropper post is being installed on my bike.

Now some flesh:

My last visit 2 years ago was to a dry town. This year a profusion of liquor stores and brew pubs. Beer and bikes. I did find tasty moonshine legally in a store. Place is bustling and crowded. Add in maybe 400 mtn bikers. I visited several of the establishments. I met people while sitting at the bars. The Walton Foundation is a big player here funding trail projects. A local got ahold of me inside my personal space while explaining that Walmart has a plan to fight obesity and put people on bikes and will take their effort to selected cities. An example:

WD 40 had a booth at the expo and advertised a free bike wash. I watched a guy wearing a WD 40 tee shirt washing a bike. I construed that they would wash bikes. I learned the stand was free for you to wash and then they would apply their lubes as WD is more than not a lube per a stickie on my van. Drought here in the SE, I don’t like to consume water to make my stuff shiny.

Commonly asked question was, ” where are you from?” My answer was I am not from anywhere so i have no place to be from. I reestablished some old contacts and made some new ones.

I attended a break out session on Electric assist bikes. This year a show of hands of who had ridden one where in the majority. Two years ago at Steamboat the response was negative, this year less resistance. Stance is still that they are considered motorized and only allowed to be ridden on trails open to motorized travel.

I parked my van behind City Hall and Phat Tire bike shop and just walked around downtown. Old time downtown with sprawl blocks south of downtown, and it’s sprawl. Newer built buildings look the same as opposed to downtown that were built over time and prolly no coordinated planning process. Cool place to be.

Sat. was a ride on the newly purpose built trails of the back 40. Four years ago I got to ride the ravines before the trails were built. This year the trails were purpose built and had permission to ride. Amazing effort. Lots of riders. I loitered allowing the group riders to take off as I did not want to impede faster riders. At a road crossing which has traffic control signals stopping cars when a bike is in the cross walk I watched a rider push uphill his fat tire bike. I asked if i could help. He said yes if I had a tube as he had a nasty sidewall tear on his rear tire. I sort of offered and he sort of said he had a friend coming to pick him up which kept my slimed spare tube in my pack. I rolled down the hill he pushed up. Part way down I saw 2 guys working on a wheel. Right before I rolled up to them I heard then felt a pop and air rushing out of my rear tire. I joined these guys dealing w/ flats. All 3 of us hit this same rock just right to tear a sidewall. I was glad I kept my tube. I broke the bead on my tubeless tire and installed the slimed tube. The tire removed easily but put up a struggle to reseat. A rider gave me a tire iron. I pumped up the tube and pedaled away. Shortly I felt the sensation of a soft tire. I checked and the tube had gone soft. I pulled the tube out and pumped it up to learn where there was a leak. I found a small pin hole that the slime had not sealed. I checked the inside of the tire and found a long thorn penetrating the tire which poked the hole in the tube. I removed it and spun the tube around a bit allowing the slime to seal the hole. Wrestled getting the tire back on. The tube held air the rest of the ride. I did destroy my tire. I bought the last Maxxis Ardent 27.5 2.4 tire.

Sunday I drove to Eureka Springs to ride Lake Leatherwood trails and spend the night. City park w/ some purpose built trails. fall riding among limestone outcroppings.

$13 bought a legal on the grass parking spot and a hot shower. Almost full moon lit the sky. Chilly enough at night for the furnace to run.

The riding here is hard in the amount of effort required. The tread is broken limestone that sucks energy. fallen leaves pave the trail. My legs got beat up. One oft he expo booths sold Pickle Juice for cramp elimination. The guy spent time while sitting next to him at a  brew place telling me how cramps work and why their pickle juice stops cramps. He said that cramps are caused by nerves, their “juice” contains the particular vinegar which breaks the cramp signal. A bottle was included in out IMBA goodie bag. Sat night after i fell asleep cramps struck my legs. I snaked out the bottle from my Wingnut Hydration pack stored above my fridge and within arms reach. I chugged the bottle and within like seconds the cramps quit. Ah, relief and validation. I only had the sample bottle. Sunday night cramps struck again, this time I went to a bottle of Braggs vinegar for a teaspoon. I almost cramped my jaw swallowing the nasty stuff. Vote from me is Pickle juice.

Monday AM I drove back to Bentonville. Plan was to ride Slaughter Pen trails right from downtown. Amazing system that was purpose built right from the start. great signage.

Oil and filters changed and an exam of the van yielded all is good. Dropper post is installed.

My gut continues to bother me. I started making colonoscopy and gastro DR appointments in Flagstaff. All exams and tests so far have revealed nothing that will kill me at least shortly. Going up inside is the next step.

These next pics are from previously ridden places this fall.

Next is to make an Arkansas travel plan. State wide the trails are called : The Oz trails: which must stand for Ozarks. Arkansas has 5 IMBA epic rides. Next up is Upper Buffalo about 2 hours away then down to Lake Ouachita.

So far this year I have ridden in 23 states.

Let’s see, out in North Georgia woods, no internet or cell. Peaceful. Was 74 degrees earlier when I pulled into this spot. Still wearing shorts, short sleeve shirt and sandals. 8:30PM woods insects are still at it, side door is open. No biting invertebrates.

Today I left Ricks culdesac in Dalton and drove to the Snake creek gap and the start of the last part of the Snake Creek Gap race. I parked in the TH parking lot. No camping in the parking lot. I fixed bfast and cleaned up. Today I will ride north to the end at Dug Gap rd then ride the road back to my van. MTBP stated the ride was 15.2 miles.

Before I got ready to leave a white sedan pulled into the lot. 2 guys got out and gathered up some firearms and headed into the woods. Hmm, hunting season, hadn’t thought about that. They returned empty handed right before I was ready to go. I walked over and asked what season, he said rifles shotguns, bow, but didn’t say houwser. The kid said I should wear the brightest colors. My orange top is for cooler weather, too hot for today. I chose my flashy Hawaiian type shirt. They walked up to me holding out a vented orange vest giving it to me. I asked them how to get it back to them, they said it is mine. I thanked them and put it on under my hydration pack. From the TH the trail climbs to get up onto the ridge. Humping uphill on cold body. The trail has noticeably widened over time.

The SE is experiencing a severe draught. Here the lack of water is more noticeable than the Pisgah. I noticed that the understory had turned dried brown instead of normal fall color. The bigger trees seemed to drop fall colors. It’s the reds that are remarkable for their brilliance. Like riding on a red carpet.

Lots of nasty rock gardens, the worst were at the end. I walked some and worked my way over some while learning bike English. Water was a trickle in the creeks I crossed. Just no rain. Just a beautiful day to be in the woods: clear cloudless blue skies, and fall leaf colors. N places it appeared that I was getting first tracks on the newly fallen leaves, others a scant track remained. Just good demanding trail.

The trail ends at Dug Gap. Big long descent. The first part was a closed road that was mixed gravel. It ended at a gate and pavement. Mountainous Georgia road dropped elevation curving. I dropped my saddle and counter steered the bends. Spun out coasting, I saw 39.1 mph. My tire pressure is now 17psi in the back and 16 in the front: soft and pliable. They stayed true at speed. My pavement return ride was 8 something miles on narrow county paved road with no shoulder but little traffic. On the screamed downhill my speed was faster than the SUV following me.

A bit of a climb on rt 136 brought me back to the TH. A guy pulled in. I watched him to learn of his activity. Eventually gear indicated a mtn biker. I could see no orange. I took off the vest and walked over to him. Here, I said, this was given to me for my safety, I am now paying forward for your safety. It is now up to him to pay the vest forward.

Sweaty ride. I spit bathed. Bear Creek bike shop told me of camping on Pocket road. I found this spot early enough in late afternoon for a walk on the road. My modus for a camping spot is picking the first site, just to lessen the likelihood of abusing the van and contents. Today was a good choice. No traffic noise.

Thursday night I hardly slept as my abdomen hurt, perhaps pain and fear of what’s up kept me awake while camped next to a stream down from Mulberry Gap getaway. Today I decided it was hospital emergency visit time. I waited till daylight before driving out. Back woods gravel roads, single lane,

sometimes steep with minor washboards mixed in. Paved RT 52 negotiated the convoluted mountain sides up then down into the valley. These Appalachian mtn roads are a handful to drive. I selected hospital on the GPS. Early morning, I beat a rush. Blood was drawn and tested, pee was freed and tested, then an abdominal CT scan w/ contrast was performed. Everything came back in accord. Per the DR this is what their role is: to identify what is not good. I passed. Next is a colonoscopy somewhere.

From there I drove to Bear Creek bike shop. Shane was out of town, missed him. Did my wash at a new to me laundromat. A guy commented about my adventure van which sparked a conversation: he was a long distance truck driver for a bunch of years.

I drove back to the bike shop. I needed to perform some shade tree wrenching on my bike. Yesterday at Cartecay cycles in Ellijay Dondo checked my chain growth while investigating a shifting problem. He put the chain stretch tool and the chain which showed wear greater than the tool. I bought a new chain and cluster. No shade in the parking lot while I replaced chain and cluster and put new brake pads on the front brake. I rode 2200 miles on the cluster between 2 chains. I still had more wear to be worn off.

The first year here I happened to hit the Snake creek race weekend several days before the race. I rode the same trail I rode today. On that ride I came upon a fallen tree blocking the trail. I noted the distance on my bike computer. I completed my ride. Back at the TH a rig pulled in and a guy got out. He appeared to be a rider. I learned he was here to inspect the trail for the race. I told him about the tree. He said he would cut it w/ his hand saw. His saw was too small for the tree. I said chain saw. He drove back to his nearby house and returned w/ a saw. I told him I would help him cut the tree for a shower at his house. That’s how I met Rick. We connected next at the 2014 IMBA summit. He told me to look him up should I be near. We connected via text and he invited me to his house again and said I could sleep in the culdesac. I arrived. He displayed a trump sign. First trump supporter I have encountered. Neither of us brought the name up. He shared kegerator beer. I walked down the steep driveway to bed.

Wed I left Jake and Bull mtn near Nimblewill and the southern terminus of the AT and drove to Mulberry gap getaway. I learned they are closed today. A guy engaged us in conversation. TJ is a photographer, he took the pics for the harrisonburg, VA article in Freehub. He told me of this campspot right on the creek. I scored the permission for a post ride shower. I drove down to the camp spot and geared up for my ride from MTPB: Bear Creek, Pinhoti 1 and 2. Humped up a gravel road to start of Bear Creek. I encountered a guy doing trail work w/ a Ditchwitch but was broken down on the trail. The machine had thrown a tread and he was having a hell of a time. Years prior I had helped Todd put a tread back on. To this guy a suggested a come along the pedaled away. The route returned me to him and he did have a come a long. Another rider was with him. Between us we put the track back on. I stared my ride early afternoon, time was passing. I developed a concern for completing my ride before dark and or the cell phone battery died killing my navigation aide. I humped my ride after helping with the machine. A mix of closed and open logging roads and reclaimed haul roads were the tread. I made the road while still light then pedaled back to my van tehn drove the mile back up creek to the getway for my shower. I drove back to the creek for the night.

Tuesday I rode the Jake and Bull mtn IMBA Epic ride using MTBP. I had tried riding this course in the past but navigation foiled me. Today a gps track. Jake has lots of purpose built trail. Connecting to Bull and Bull itself were old logging roads. I rode the epic per the track returning to my van. I chose to spend the night there. Fall leaves.

Monday I rode Lower Black and Sycamore Cove right outside Pisgah Forest. Lower Black was reworked 2 years ago reclaiming a beat up logging road into a challenging purpose built sustainable trail. Big hump up and over to the start.

I bought Grisham’s new book: The Whisperer. I will stop now at 10:00PM to return to it.

No more baseball, Cleveland let it slip away.

 

Sunday Nov 6 Lake Lurleen State park Tuscaloosa, AL.

Camped at spot number 52 for senior $28. Electric and water that I do not avail myself of, but I did put 5 gallons of h20 in my tank. Short distance to all I needed hot water shower after today’s ride.

Yesterday I drove from that sweet backwoods spot to Chattanooga and Raccoon Mtn trails. I picked a MTBP track for my ride. It started down low where I have never started from. I chose Live Wire #2 for the climb. 2 years ago I rode down the freshly completed trail. I remember avoiding the rocks as they still had green growth slipperiness. This year all was dry. Turned into a hump and a bit of walking. In the middle there are nasty rock gardens, the top are bermed climbing turns. I paused several times. On top I connected to High Voltage etc winding my way to Live Wire 1 for the descent. Next time I will climb this and go down that.

I am impressed with this Absolute Black oval 32/30 chain ring. Plus learning flat pedaling I am getting way more power. Pedaling roads back from Snake Creek was a breeze as I made my stroke work. A round ring creates a dead spot that technique is required to even out, may the oval makes up for lack of skill for a better spin. Yesterday during the ride I stomped on the pedals making a move and felt a burning pain in my left inside upper thigh: I made a muscle not happy. I rode within myself to finish.

Next I drove down to Huntsville, AL seeking Tommy Raegh and Trailhead bikes for a visit, a place to street camp, and a shower. I followed gps to the shop location. Well, the location was now selling hairdos. I Googled the shop then followed Google directions to new location. Tommy showed up to pick up his son and got me also. We drank a beer and chatted until his wife called saying something where in the hell are you, you’re late. Tommy left. Jimmy, the wrench remembered me. He offered the curb outside his house. I struck out on a silver sneaker shower. I ate dinner at a 5 points restaurant and Tavern, except they had no TV. I asked for a craft beer place that would have college games on, I forget the name of the liquor store. I walked in: beer choices galore to go and lots of taps and TVs turned on all to the Alabama game. After a while I asked if one could be tuned to the Buckeye game. No, all TVs all the time for the Alabama games. I followed the Buck game on my phone. I savored a beer. I drove sort of cross town to Jimmy’s place. Huntsville has complicated limited access freeways that the gps likes. I drive slower than the speeders which affects my lane changes for a sudden exit ramp. I visited w/ Jimmy inside his in motion internal demolition reconstruction still furnishing a warm shower house.

I had planned on riding Monte Santo SP above Huntsville. I checked out a loop ride on MTBP reading that part of the loop is closed during hunting season which is now. Not happening. Next choice was Oak Mtn SP south of Birmingham.

11/8 update:

I did ride Oak mtn which has challenging rock gardens and smooth tread mixed in w/ flow trail stuff.

Yesterday I rode in Mississippi and spent the night in state.

Tonight I am in Arkansas.

More perhaps later as tonight I have internet access and stuff to catch up on.