NOTE TO SELF: Riding with Skibum add to gear list: 1. Wetsuit 2. Hockey pads 3. Short drop chute Looks like some GREAT riding up there! Has anyone ever ridden in Vermont? Where and when? Liz
Gummee!, Hi! I have heard that actually. Frankly, when I rode through there, it was just as you say, elbow to ...umm .. elbow with people. It makes sense though, the access isn't set up for the North Rim to be convenient. Plus don't they close it part of the year? Unfortunately I think I was National Geographiced. The views from each of the parking areas were redundant and unimpressive due to a gazillion years of seeing photos in National Geographic and on the WWW. The next time I go would be with a hike and/or mtb included, gotta feel it, ya know? Enjoy, Liz PS: The busloads of people and watching kids tripping over tree roots might have been a distraction from the beauty of the Canyon too.
Gummee! et al, There are very few people out there who know what a Brew is. We're an odd lot you know. That is a 180 Proof, circa mid-90's. There's a story behind that for all who care to listen. The founder of SRP Bicycle Parts was a friend and client, I do taxes. He built titanium nuts and bolts for bicycles before titanium came on bikes. He was very popular with high end bicycle shops and bike builders. He built drop-outs for Craig Calfee, who is now known for his Bamboo bikes. One of his customers was BREW. Jeff loved bicycles, it's an addiction you know. He made parts for Brew, I've heard they are wild hill billies, Brew sent Jeff a couple of totally tricked out, state of the art, hand made frames. SRP used one of the frames, in my size, as their top of the line XTR everything, titanium nuts and bolts everywhere, super light, Bike Show Display Bike. Following year I did a great job on the taxes and he said "Liz, do you want to Brew?" I've had the bike ever since. Here's the website for SRP check it out. It's a quiet little secret of the bicycle industry, don't you think, barter and taking care of each other? Sounds like some great tools! Enjoy, Liz
Kingdom Trails, in East Burke. Love that place, probably my favorite riding in New England. We went twice last year; The first time was early in the year, and it was pretty muddy and turned me off, so we didn't make it back until Septemberish -- when it was absolutely gorgeous.
If ya'll are getting sick of me sharing photos, let me know. Here are some photos from my ride today. I think I got a little karma return today because of my talk of good weather. It was a little windy today to start, kept blowing harder and harder. It was really blowing, enough to make me think I was on my brakes going down hill. Every hill became a chore, fighting the wind and being pelted with sand. I thought it'd be great fun to ride out to the end of this small floating pier. I changed my mind once out there when the pier started to get swallowed by the waves. :eek1 Me being the dork I really am. My super cool riding partner. To the people who think its a great idea to ride a horse on the trail when its wet, news flash your being a douche!
originally posted by Mr Head: Do you want to know what I do for work? No bears.... Hey MsLiz, this shot's been up already, but here's a good representation of the kind of technical we get a lot of: rocky, rooty, wet, boggy-any one or all at once. Look-no cliffsoser No I haven't ridden Vermont but one day I'll go visit my friend in Brattleboro and bring a bike. I did go with my ex when she raced the Killington Stage Race many years ago though
Skibum, Oznerol, et al, That single track looks great! You'll love Vermont riding. We've got some pretty nice trails throughout the state, as Oznerol knows. One treat is doing some night riding on Killington Mountain. In the interest of it's a small world, do you remember what year and which category she raced in the Killington Stage Race? I raced it as a Cat 4, and the next year in Cat 1,2,3. I think that was the last year they had the race. Does she still race? Enjoy, Liz
what are you doing online at 5 am? She was racing in '96 I believe in one of the lower categories on a red & white True North, as I recall it was right after the Olympics? One of our friends was hurt in a crash when he went down in the middle of the peleton on day 2 I think. I saw chainring marks from at least a couple of bikes on his jersey when I went to find him in the hospital. I've ridden in Maine a bit and driven around Vermont so I can guess at what you have for trails.
I'm nocturnal, well at least this weekend I am. If he got hurt on the second day in 96 I'm pretty sure that was on the 17 mile circuit. I remember it pretty well because that year I drove Pace Car for the Men's pro category Cat 1,2's and for the men's Cat 4. A friend of mine was in a bad crash on the downhill coming to the finish in the Cat 4 race. Someone overlapped a wheel and took out eight to ten riders. My friend went to the hospital with a broken collar bone, a couple of the others weren't as lucky. Now I might be misremembering but that was the worst crash I can remember back then. Do you remember all the Saab Pace Cars? In 97 I raced it as a Cat 4 and happened to win. Blame on local knowledge or that I had a heck of a sprint. In 98 I was upgraded to Cat 3 and had to race with the Pro Women 1's and 2's, and felt lucky to just finish the race, much less place even in the top half of the pack. That was a brutal season. We didn't have enough women racing back then to fill up Cat 3. What are you doing up? Liz
That was probably the one-our friend broke a few vertabrae and went up to Montreal for surgery. He's back racing now. Sounds like you're a pretty solid racer yourself from those results. I gave up road racing after a couple of years as I didn't feel like I was getting enough out of all the training I was doing. The last season I was racing XC, DH and road at a low level for the hell of it. I don't think my ex is still racing from the last time I saw Ontario race results. I'm guessing I've got some jet lag from getting home from San Francisco on Saturday night
I confess I'm a numbers geekette. This is what I just watched. It's kind of unusual, but very creative. Check out: Little Red Riding Hood, the Animated Infographic Story Play the video where the VW bus is. I think you all might get a kick out of it.
You people post up some great pictures. I was able to ride a few days outside and the sand from the semi-trucks passing me felt like I was getting sand blasted. We are supposed to get some hard rains, and hopefully it will make it worth riding on the road again.
I finally got out on the road yesterday. I didn't want to take my 'nice' bike out so last week I bought some el cheapo road tires for my ancient MTB and took that out. I was colder than I had figured so I was freezing most of the way round but still, it was fun and felt great to be out. It snowed (only a little) about an hour after I got back :huh
the view out the front door this morning, at 2ºC the remnants of Saturday's storm don't provide any motivation for 2 wheeled activity at all. Trying to get out skiing again for the weekend.
yes that's me-those towers are 300' and yes, those are nice woods. There are a couple of hairy sections that I was too busy to stop and take pics, later in the season I'll shoot some more for you when I'm ripping them up on my new bike.
I am bound and determined to get a FS mtb next year. I will by that time be in much better shape and probably have destroyed the wheels on the chopper. As I age, I have been facing a lot of fears. The height thing remains. Though I am better, I still get a sick feeling watching any building top, or especially climbing stuff. I've done a little bouldering stuff with my brother and his friends way, way back in the day and later some climbing wall stuff that didn't bother me. Riding a bicycle across the Royal Gorge Bridge several years ago and peering down between the borads was a little tense... My first time across that was on my trusty Norton. Or was it that old buzz-bomb CB360? Either way it was an experience.
