Got a lot of catching up to do on this page but its kinda tough now that I've got no internet at the casa. Will try to get some good posts up soon but in the mean time...
This sucker touched down about 10 miles from my house yesterday!
My condolences to the people who lost property and sustained injuries in yesterdays storm. Looks like this afternoon could be a fun one too...
Friday, May 23, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Stir It Up
"When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work become monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go for a spin down the road, without though on anything but the ride you are taking."
- Arthur Conan Doyle, 1896
The academic hours that I have put in so far this week have clouded my vision and endangered my mental health. My main focus remains my school work but I recently discovered after a 7 day hiatus that I can never let other priorities keep me from pedaling a bike. I haven't felt as low as I did on Monday night for a long time. I finally cracked late Tuesday night while slaving away in front of this damn liquid crystal display studying for my Ecology of Disturbed Lands final.
My focus was gone. After 2.5 hours of sleep the previous night and a solid 15 hours of academia in the bag for the day, the mind started racing with thoughts of fluid circular motions of human propulsion through the landscape rather than the disturbance and recovery of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. At first the temptation to ride was dismissed due to a strong feeling of guilt. Telling myself that I didn't have time to ride just like I had countless other times when the seductive mistress of cycling had appeared in my mind. I then realized that my productivity had fallen off sharply to the point of being counter productive and that I needed to go pedal in order to avoid a mental melt down.
I had a surprising amount of energy at 11'clock on a couple hours of sleep. I think I was drunk on euphoric sense of freedom and the disappearance of the stress that had been making my life extremely dark recently. I tried to ride some of my urban singletrack stashes but with no moon and a low batt. led camp headlamp, my eyes were having a hard time focusing on the path. Stopped, turned the lamp off, let the eyes adjust to the little light available and continued on for a few hundred yards when all of a sudden my nostrils where overwhelmed with the unmistakable gamey aroma of a fresh kill. No way of telling if it was bovine, equine, or deer but the intensity of the stench told me it was close and I really didn't want to endo into the chest cavity of cow tonight or upset the big cat that was most likely having a feast before I clumsily rode into it's dinning room.
About Face. Ride back to the safety of the flickering mercury vapor lights in the distance. Its interesting how during the day I feel safer with a heightened sense of clarity in the natural world away from the influences of my fellows but at night the rolls switch. I am not one that is afraid of the wild but when you know you have a distinct disadvantage in all the senses,espicially sight, compared to the individuals sharing the landscape with you, it is easy to get the nerves going.
Anyways, after that I rode through town to the NBB rode a few laps on the short track course, watched some delicious brews being created and then rode home with a clear understanding of the current state of my life.
Riding is not a hobby that is optional in my life, it is a passion that requires attention on a daily basis in order to maintain my center and balance. I will never stop pedaling. Ride to live. Live to ride. 'Till death do us part.
One Love,
WC
- Arthur Conan Doyle, 1896
The academic hours that I have put in so far this week have clouded my vision and endangered my mental health. My main focus remains my school work but I recently discovered after a 7 day hiatus that I can never let other priorities keep me from pedaling a bike. I haven't felt as low as I did on Monday night for a long time. I finally cracked late Tuesday night while slaving away in front of this damn liquid crystal display studying for my Ecology of Disturbed Lands final.
My focus was gone. After 2.5 hours of sleep the previous night and a solid 15 hours of academia in the bag for the day, the mind started racing with thoughts of fluid circular motions of human propulsion through the landscape rather than the disturbance and recovery of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. At first the temptation to ride was dismissed due to a strong feeling of guilt. Telling myself that I didn't have time to ride just like I had countless other times when the seductive mistress of cycling had appeared in my mind. I then realized that my productivity had fallen off sharply to the point of being counter productive and that I needed to go pedal in order to avoid a mental melt down.
I had a surprising amount of energy at 11'clock on a couple hours of sleep. I think I was drunk on euphoric sense of freedom and the disappearance of the stress that had been making my life extremely dark recently. I tried to ride some of my urban singletrack stashes but with no moon and a low batt. led camp headlamp, my eyes were having a hard time focusing on the path. Stopped, turned the lamp off, let the eyes adjust to the little light available and continued on for a few hundred yards when all of a sudden my nostrils where overwhelmed with the unmistakable gamey aroma of a fresh kill. No way of telling if it was bovine, equine, or deer but the intensity of the stench told me it was close and I really didn't want to endo into the chest cavity of cow tonight or upset the big cat that was most likely having a feast before I clumsily rode into it's dinning room.
About Face. Ride back to the safety of the flickering mercury vapor lights in the distance. Its interesting how during the day I feel safer with a heightened sense of clarity in the natural world away from the influences of my fellows but at night the rolls switch. I am not one that is afraid of the wild but when you know you have a distinct disadvantage in all the senses,espicially sight, compared to the individuals sharing the landscape with you, it is easy to get the nerves going.
Anyways, after that I rode through town to the NBB rode a few laps on the short track course, watched some delicious brews being created and then rode home with a clear understanding of the current state of my life.
Riding is not a hobby that is optional in my life, it is a passion that requires attention on a daily basis in order to maintain my center and balance. I will never stop pedaling. Ride to live. Live to ride. 'Till death do us part.
One Love,
WC
Sunday, May 4, 2008
'Dirty' Tour of Colorado
Here is stage 1 of the ride...
Added the Colorado Trail to the mix. Figured it would be a lot more fun to ride 400+ miles of single track from Durango to Breck rather than forest service roads. Its looking like I will get in 1,000 miles and 100,000 vertical before I leave Colorado!
Its gonna be a while before I can plan the rest of the route, gotta go graduate! See ya in a week! Wish me luck, its gonna be a rough sprint to the finish.
WC
Added the Colorado Trail to the mix. Figured it would be a lot more fun to ride 400+ miles of single track from Durango to Breck rather than forest service roads. Its looking like I will get in 1,000 miles and 100,000 vertical before I leave Colorado!
Its gonna be a while before I can plan the rest of the route, gotta go graduate! See ya in a week! Wish me luck, its gonna be a rough sprint to the finish.
WC
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Summer Route v.3
My plans for this summer have changed more times than I would like to admit, but as the estimated date of departure nears, the plan becomes more solidified.
I was very fortunate to grow up surrounded by some of the best offroad riding in the country. I helped to build trails in Grand Junction/Fruita when I was in high school and the area remains my favorite place to ride. My parents recently asked me to come over to GJ for a bit before I leave to help put a new roof on the casa. Initially I wasn't looking forward to it, I've got plenty of tasks in my own life to keep me busy leading up to departure, but then I realized that not only does the area contain some of the best short day rides but it's also the location of four of the premier multi-day offroad rides in country which can all be linked together! Sounds like a perfect prolouge / shakedown session / introduction before I start heading north. This route, without the White Rim section is also known as the 'Grand Loop'
Mileage for the prologue should total close to 600 miles and will probably take about 2 weeks to complete. If I am feeling good and all the bugs are worked out by the time I finish the Paradox, I might forgo the Tabeguache Trail section and ride to Telluride, follow the numerous and spectacular jeep roads through the San Juans, and then start heading N. Or I might head back to GJ on the Tab and then over via Crested Butte, Aspen, etc...
Once I start heading N. the plan remains mostly intact. I am still planning on mostly following the GDMBR with exploration sessions planned for the Wind Rivers, Tetons, Yellowstone region, and more as I move northward and discover landscapes that I have previously been blind to. If I still have it in me in Banff I would really like to travel through the Canadian Rockies to the Pacific coast and then head south, but that is a lot of miles and I probably won't have the funds to support the mileage. Which brings me to my next point...
My funding for this trip is non-existent. I have dropped all my savings into gear for the ride and have none left over for food, supplies and a few more gear items. I am also trying to work it out so that I can film the ride and tell my story to thousands around the country, maybe the world, who knows. If I am able to film the ride, once the film is done, I would like to work something out where most of the proceeds go to MTB advocate groups such as IMBA, COPMOBA, DPMBP, etc... Basically the film would serve as a fundraiser for whatever local non-profit advocacy group was putting it on. I do not want to get rich from the film, just tell my story, inspire fellows, and help out the people that fight for, protect and build our trails.
If you would like to support my journey you can do so through paypal. My account is cooper_designATmacDOTcom, (just replace the capped words with symbols first).
Cheers,
WC
I was very fortunate to grow up surrounded by some of the best offroad riding in the country. I helped to build trails in Grand Junction/Fruita when I was in high school and the area remains my favorite place to ride. My parents recently asked me to come over to GJ for a bit before I leave to help put a new roof on the casa. Initially I wasn't looking forward to it, I've got plenty of tasks in my own life to keep me busy leading up to departure, but then I realized that not only does the area contain some of the best short day rides but it's also the location of four of the premier multi-day offroad rides in country which can all be linked together! Sounds like a perfect prolouge / shakedown session / introduction before I start heading north. This route, without the White Rim section is also known as the 'Grand Loop'
Mileage for the prologue should total close to 600 miles and will probably take about 2 weeks to complete. If I am feeling good and all the bugs are worked out by the time I finish the Paradox, I might forgo the Tabeguache Trail section and ride to Telluride, follow the numerous and spectacular jeep roads through the San Juans, and then start heading N. Or I might head back to GJ on the Tab and then over via Crested Butte, Aspen, etc...
Once I start heading N. the plan remains mostly intact. I am still planning on mostly following the GDMBR with exploration sessions planned for the Wind Rivers, Tetons, Yellowstone region, and more as I move northward and discover landscapes that I have previously been blind to. If I still have it in me in Banff I would really like to travel through the Canadian Rockies to the Pacific coast and then head south, but that is a lot of miles and I probably won't have the funds to support the mileage. Which brings me to my next point...
My funding for this trip is non-existent. I have dropped all my savings into gear for the ride and have none left over for food, supplies and a few more gear items. I am also trying to work it out so that I can film the ride and tell my story to thousands around the country, maybe the world, who knows. If I am able to film the ride, once the film is done, I would like to work something out where most of the proceeds go to MTB advocate groups such as IMBA, COPMOBA, DPMBP, etc... Basically the film would serve as a fundraiser for whatever local non-profit advocacy group was putting it on. I do not want to get rich from the film, just tell my story, inspire fellows, and help out the people that fight for, protect and build our trails.
If you would like to support my journey you can do so through paypal. My account is cooper_designATmacDOTcom, (just replace the capped words with symbols first).
Cheers,
WC
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