Miles Upon Glooooorious Miles.....

Monarch Crest Trail.... Epic? Yes. Not necessarily because of it's length or difficulty, but because of its infamy in the mountain biking world. Infamous due to its storied views and its fabled singletrack. Fabled by decades of mountan bikers, worldwide, having traveled to ride the legendary trail. Miles of above-timberline trail no wider than a classroom ruler, followed by more miles of singletrack slowly winding through pine forests and aspens. Lucky for us, it's only 2 hours away from home atop Monarch Pass, near Salida.

30+ miles
1700ft elevation gain
3000+ feet of descending

ONE gear...

Some need proof of insurance after a ride like this. I need proof of singlespeed.

Topping out at 11, 700 and descending down to the tiny town of Poncha Springs over the course of an afternoon.

Another hour of soft pedaling and we'd be to the far right of that mountain there, and heading down into the valley below...

See that sign? It says "Looooooooooooooooooong descent. Enjoy"

Oh, we did. We diiiiiid.

For some God Forsaken reason, the forest service is considering CLOSING this trail, or sections of it, to mountain bikers. If you're one of them, please visit http://www.imba.com/ and sign the petition to keep this trail open. If you're NOT a mountain biker, please go sign it so that I can continue bringing you great stories and photographs of this treasured ride.

I'm Baaaaaaaaack!

The Tinglespeed (titanium singlespeed) rides agayn.....

Views from Monarch Crest Trail in the next couple days. Monarch Crest + the Singlespeed = perfect combo...

Last week (Thursday) we had another beautiful wedding to attend near Steamboat Springs. The weather was perfect out at the Catamount Ranch in the Yampa Valley. It ws a real rustic event in a serene setting as two of our friends from college tied the knot.

nice...

...What has now become my traditional 2007 wedding reception shot...

Friday we..........................well, we lounged in Steamboat. With no racing to do and no plans for the weekend it was totally relaxing. We hit the Strawberry Park hotsprings (which ARE clothing OPTional after dark) and Saturday headed over to Breckenridge to ride a section of the Colorado Trail near the Middle and South forks of the Swan River.

It was awesome- "Chamber of Commerce" type weather, you might say. Late summer in the Rockies.

The final descent took us down to that dirt road in the upper right waaaaaaay down there.

It was the sweetest. This weekend, NO WEDDINGS, but we're planning on hitting Monarch Crest Trail on Saturday. Weather forecast: mid 70's and clear in Salida. We shall see if the weather holds~

Band of Traveling Gypsies...

Please, forgive the sentiment, but here goes:

A season-long journey is now over. From the pasty white legs of April, to the bronze tan-lines of September, in one final race-day descent the 2007 mountain bike racing season is over. The final race is always a sentimental one for me- it's easy to dig deep because it's the last one. It's a time when I reflect on my season-long journey: the places I've been, the trails I've raced on, the hotels, the drives across Colorado, the scenery, the friends, the stories.

I don't know what my fellow competitors do during the week. I have no idea who works full-time or what they do. All I know is I see the same faces every other weekend at a different venue. I can depend that the same guys will be out there in the cold Colorado mornings throughout the summer, as I am, warming up in the chill of the Rocky Mountain mornings before the race. I know who I'll see those Saturdays and Sundays as I line up at the start.

It's during those 2-3 hours on race day that our race is the most important thing in our universe. We race as though our lives--our very existence depended on it. Pushing to the very limit of our capacities, and sometimes past. Comraderie and lightheartedness turns to seriousness and silence as the announcer at the start line says, "5 seconds..." Up the searing climbs hearing each others breathing rythems through our own pounding heartbeats. Calculating how much the other guy is suffering based on how hard he's breathing. Descending narrow, twisty trails as if being chased by some unseen terror pushing us faster.

What does it all mean? It doesn't really matter to the rest of the world; doesn't even matter in February. The meticulous prep...the training...the eating....the hydrating...week after week after week. Yet we continue year after year, like a band of traveling gypsies. Training, traveling, and mountain bike racing. Purpose. Love. Passion.

Out With A Bang...

Labor Day Weekend: Mountain States Cup Series Finale

Keystone, CO

Keystone is always a sentimental race for me. It marks the final race in arguably the most prestigious off-road racing series in the region, if not the country. It's a time to let it all hang out- to dig deep and leave NOTHING out there. It's also a time to say goodbye to the competition for a long winter.

Saturday's short track was an off-road circuit race, with each lap taking about 3 minutes. The Pro/SemiPro field kicked it off at 3pm and raced for 20 minutes, plus 3 laps. My goal was to leave something in the tank for Sunday's big cross country race, which is much more my cup-o-tea, but to finish in a respectable position nonetheless. So, asfastasyoucanpossiblygoforahalfhour and I ended up a decent 9th place. Mission accomplished.

Sunday's Cross Country:

Hoping to be recovered enough for a big showing following Saturday, the SemiPro field took off Sunday morning at 9:35am for a smorgasborg of high altitude Keystone singletrack and fireroad climbs and trecharous decents. I was pleased to find the legs firing on all eight cylinders early on in the race and I paced myself with the lead group through the first 45 minutes. By the top of the main climb I was sitting in a solid 6th or so place going into the descent and next climb. Atop the 11,640ft Dercum Mountain, we headed into a grueling top-to-bottom descent which would test both rider and bike.

Turning uphill once more for the final climb, it was time to go. I dug as deep as my nearly-spent legs would allow, rose out of the saddle and attacked; standing up to pedal as hard as I could for 30 seconds. I'd opened up a 75 yard gap and by this time was in 3rd place. I attacked once more towards the top and stretched the gap to 100 yards.

Into the final decent I left nothing to chance and stomped on the pedals as the trail turned steep and rocky. At the time, I didn't know it but I'd caught 2nd place and in a desparate fit of aggression passed him on a steep and grassy turn a half-mile from the finish. Telling myself not to do anything STUPID like crash I raced downhill as fast as my wits would allow and crossed the line..........to what is now my best cross-country finish ever: 2nd place, SemiPro. Less than 40 seconds from 1st place. That's the real deal.

I'd hoped to end the season on a positive note, but this one far exceeded my expectations. Once more, on the podium; and once more, in the money. 2007: dream season.

I'll have some pics from Sunday's XC and some final thoughts on the 2007 season in the next couple days. This weekend, we're off to Steamboat Springs for........anOTHER wedding, and some riding (but of course).

Cheers, laddies~