Chris Lesser called for followup interview. Talked almost 2 hours.

Cloudy day and chilly.

Head back into MBH for shop ride. Left about 11:00 w/ Rama, Janet, & Doug. Picked up a sort of regular woman rider out on trail. After a short while she dropped out because of gear problems. Rama went with her. Doug, Janet, & I were on our own. Under the radar, over around Pyramid. Janet left. Doug had an itch to extend the ride. He wanted to add H… E to our route which meant crossing Oak Creek. Normal crossing is @ Red Rock xing but flow is too high and washed out the rock stepping stones. Doug thought that another crossing existed above Buddha beach. We hike a bike bush bashed searching for a crossing. Creek flow was too strong to wade as was it too cold. We found a potential crossing where someone had laid a like 2×14 over to a 4′ square island. From there it was a big step over to the base of a washed out tree. A single slender piece of tree trunk spanned to the shore. Doug crossed w/o his bike and set to work improving the last crossing. I worked the island. And then i handed his bike to him. We crossed w/ dry feet then bush based some more until we hit Templeton trail. Series of 4 switchbacks awaited. Years of lack of trail care made for vey difficult going. Traildoc worked & repaired the damage. To climb them is big boy stuff. Doug almost made them all. I chose to hike a bike. Interesting, Doug tackles & rides most of hard tech stuff. I walk some of it. At the end of 6 1/2 hr ride Doug was gassed. Rode trail where I fell on my back. Both of us walked it up. Back hurts after I am off the bike. Made the climb up to H…E & rode it. Some kind of a Sedona trail as it hugged the uphill face of a cliff band. Challenge. The drop off the high slick rock is a drop your seat and get behind it downhill. I don’t drop my seat and don’t ride that kind  of trail. I rode more of it today than i did back @ christmas. Back down @ Oak Creek. Bush bash and we found our crossing. We are at low point, we have to climb out of valley. Grunts. As we crested a hill we saw javelina crossing the road. Doug counted 18 as they scampered up the hill side. Climb we did on Sketch which hangs out in space. Pay attention to where your front wheel is and look @ the trail, forget the view down below. Made it back. Doug was beat and I was looking forward to a cold beer.

Last night my EDGE 305 bike computer quit working. I used  my Etrex GPS to record route. Batteries died.

Dashed back to deer pass to find my spot occupied. Picked another.

Tubeless front tire worked great, bit of air suspension. Tomorrow I buy a new rear tire and have it made tubeless.

Tomorrow might be rest day. Possible rain tomorrow and Friday is nice w/ rain over the weekend. Sedona is 3″ of rain ahead for year.

Skies cleared last night and the mercury dropped freezing up the wet. Cloudless day and the sun warmed things back up.

Stopped @ USFS visitor center tracking javalina scat. A physical specimen was displayed under glass. Scat is the final product of javalina’s diet. This time of year they are eating mostly prickly pear. Still no source of what is excreting manzanita berries  in their poop. I did get the biologist’s name & number to call next week. Older woman in USFS uniform  in the center enjoined my curiosity.

At B & B Gonzo converted my front tire to ghetto tubeless. For the rear I need to buy a new tire before converting. The Kendal tires have weak sidewalls and the bead surface has all these tiny ridges that will prevent them from sealing against the rim. Must be mfg design to prevent running tires tubeless. Front tire has 23 psi making a slightly squishy feeling. Running less than recommended pressure of 35 psi stresses the tire side walls plus the bead is not as well defined to seat into rim.

Jeff called for 1:00 ride. Bit chilly. Jeff is in final stages of being a Sedona ambassador bestowed upon him by Traildoc. Talked to him about a Sedona trail confab. Rode new trail @ VOC. My Edge died tonight before downloading the ride info. Front tire stays on the ground more. We rode down a wash w/ puddles, and in the deep shade there was still ice.

Killing time before ride I walked down a store front row looking @ businesses. I saw a hair / nail salon w/ a sign in the window stating: Walkins are welcomed. I entered and tested their sign. For a negotiated fee of $23 the sole man employee would trim me up. He is bald. I told him that his fee was a good starting point and it should go down as I had half a head of hair to trim as I removed my hat for the first time. Chuckles were heard and smiles seen.

Finally, my replacement shoes arrived. I stopped @ the store asking about them. They said that they would call. Almost 3 weeks later I am wondering. The guy suddenly awakes and dives into an unopened shipping container. How many days they were there is their knowledge. The new shoes seemed to have eliminated the unreenforced piece of fabric which was the defect issue. My toe was almost out of mine. 3rd pair of replacement shoes since March purchase. Great shoes incorporating a footbed that properly aligns the knee to ankle which protects the knee from side to side deviation during pedal stroke.

Wore out my short finger gloves, again from Specialized. Picked up a new pair, blue. My pedals are blue, my glasses and lenses are light red, my helmet is white. And my jerseys are either red or blue, shorts are black spandez. Socks are many choices.

Back @ Deer Creek camp. Same spot. Tracks indicate someone stayed here last night, drove over vegetation.

Tomorrow is a MBH shop ride. Forecast is  1 day sunny, 1 day % probability scattered showers, 1 day sunny, etc.

Back still hurts

10 days of Flagyl plus extra 1 day just because possible drug drink interaction made today a drinking day. Eleven days passed w/ only wistful thoughts of completing a ride w/ a beer. Today was a no ride day and I celebrated it w/ a pint in a public establishment. Only snow fell from the sky. I never did shake. However my stool is still loose thus eliminating giardia as cause. Never did get it so my selection of drinking untreated h2o remains valid. More questions to be answered.

Last night sprinkles few several times. Just about daybreak rain fell in earnest mixed w/ wet snow @ camp @ 4000′. No riding today. I stopped for propane, only 1.6 gals went into tank. My estimate was twice based upon consumption. Guy said maybe their valve froze. Tonight temp will drop enough to warrant higher heater setting. Make it thru the night.

Hung @ B & B. Shared my ride map which sparked long running conversation about desires, impacts to each stakeholder. Seems like a roundtable of locals influential and performing members to a council. What we all share is mtn biking and riding Sedona trails. How and what trails are shared, who builds new trails, how do we define a ride by defining it as a whole assimilating all the short pieces of trail.  Then they diverge. Me call the court? That would be something.

Camping S of Oak Creek tonight.

Tomorrow B & B is ghetto tublessing my front whel. Tubeless allows for running lower tire pressure like 20psi which will further dampen the sharp edges and increase traction on slick rock. Front tire is Ardent which has a smooth bead face idea for sealing to wheel rim. Rear tire is a Nevegal that has ridges about every 1/4 inch of circumference which makes for a horrible seal. I will buy a new tire soon to make the rear also tubless. Ghetto in that this method uses a wheel that has open spoke nipples and maybe running tires that weren’t designed to be tubeless. Another Sedona ride need. $30 per tire.