Sat afternoon after lunch at Big Belly deli sitting in the library right on main street right outside. They run sheep down the main drag for a fall festival. Today the spring relocation out Bouillon rd was brown marks on the pavement.
Friend Steve lives further down river outside of Bellevue. He’s a retired horse doc now for 2 years. We have be paling around for several years now when I visit here or we meet up on a road trip of his. We have ridden together for the last 3 days.
Thurs we rode Adams Gulch which is n outside of Ketchum. Concern about local trail conditions creates first time season ride concerns as to this year floods creating muddy or washed out trails or trees not being cut out. Adams was of concern as it climbs up a creek. We pedaled up and away up canyon. Steve is stronger on the uphill so I ride his wheel going up. Every creek crossing the trail made we stayed dry and mostly mud free. All the down low trails start in sage desert and as the trail climbs up into the hills trees appear, big Doug Fir. I am riding in the woods again, conifer forests. The tread in places is a needle carpet. I rode behind Steve making my body preform. My breathing still allowed me to stay with him except for the steep climbs which is the same. we topped out then the trail pointed down. I was faster than Steve one time on Imperial so he let me go first downhill. I was gone. What a swell bike as the fruits of energy effort were rewarded by gravity assisted speed. Old legacy hand built trails. Zoom zoom.
On the drive down to Steve’s I visited Elephants Perch which has a bike shop and visited with the wrenches. Roger is a bit younger than me but an old codger already. He has ridden the Leadville like going on 23 times. He races and rides long distances. We shared riding info, he about the races and me about the patches of woods short rides. Did Thursday laundry at Hailey laundromat. Dinner at KBs. Afterwards I drove up to the Power House tavern and bike shop owned by Billy. we visited awhile. He shared some trail info. Said Imperial had a snow cornice. The place plays bike events on big screen, in years past they were road races, this night it was mtn bike downhill. I stood at the edge of the bar beside a young man who was also watching. Conversation ensued. He’s been to places I had been. He is a newspaper reporter here in Ketchum. He had just left Vernal.
Steve’s driveway was my sleep spot..
Temps dropped into the low 70s. I ran the furnace at night.
Friday we rode Greenhorn up then Imperial down. Trail was cleared of trees and just several feet of mud. The trail left Greenhorn moving on into Imperial basin. Climb climb climb. Rode around a corner and saw SNOW.
It was a snow patch and not a cornice however it was a steep outslope requiring kicking steps using the soft flat pedal shoes. We got to the downhill and Steve letting me go first. This time I was way faster.
Recently I shorten my bar by an inch. At the longer length I noticed my hands favoring a shorter length, the shorten bar now makes my hands happy. I also raised the bar about an inch. These 2 changes plus the design properties of the bike and components I just downhill so much faster and in comfortable control. Also the Innovation flat pedals really add confidence. So much fun.
I saw that local grocery store Atkins had fresh Copper River salmon. I bought a pound and fixings for waldorf salad for dinner at Steve’s, he grilled the salmon. What a treat. We watched the NBA game between GS and Cavs.
Last night the furnace ran quite a bit. 42 degrees when I looked out.
Been watching the weather forecast to pick rides and times. Today unsettled weather after noon. We rode in the AM again, this time out Croy canyon which is a local trail system out in the sage. Miles and miles of machine built trails.
Places yellow and white lupines were blooming, fragrance.
Steve lead the uphills and me the downs. Place is big and open which allowed seeing other riders spread hither and yawn. So great to see so many using something the public paid for.
Which brings me back to the library.