Carey & Craig's Epic Ride & BBQ

We headed up early to Carey & Craig's house for an epic day on the bikes followed by a bbq pigout session. 6 hrs later we rolled back to their house ready for a beer and the bbq to start. Can't believe we were on the bikes for 6 hours!!!

Good times...good exhaustion!

Cerain St Vrain/Miller Rock

Carey and I decided to ride out at Cerain St Vrain Friday morning before heading out to Fraser Valley for a weekend of camping. Awesome ride, perfect morning!

Session @ Bergen

Girls session ride @ Bergen Peak trail with Cynthia, Tracy and Jeny. Can't wait to get back out there to see what the entire trail has to offer.

Sweet, long ride in BC today

Weekend up high

Carey and Craig graciously invited us on their weekend camping trip to Salida. I have never been to Salida, up until now and I can't wait to get back there. And I can't wait to get back camping.....anywhere!

We got up super duper early pn Saturday to meet them down there to set up camp and hit the Rainbow trail and then chill out with the dogs and maybe watch Craig do some fishing. We did just that :) and sat around the campfire trading stories, Carey made some yummy guacamole and passed around her bottle of tequila and we shared her yummy vegan cookies and gluten free birthday bars. Everything was super delicious, vegan and gluten free foodsjavascript:void(0) have come a long way for sure!

Sunday we got up, not so early and made breakfast and packed up camp. Carey had a few trails in mind but we decided on Mt. Shavano because we could do an out and back on the Colorado trail...unfortunately, when we got to the base of Mt. Shavano it was hailing and raining and cold and we really didn't want to ride in those conditions. Dan said he knew of a trail he rode the last time he was out there that was pretty darn cool....sans the 6 miles of dirt road and what seemed like endless amount of 2 track :( I wasn't prepared for that and was a little grumpy once we got to the actual trailhead. But he assured us the boring climb would be totally worth it. And it was...twisty singletrack in the tree's, rolling terrain, my sidewall puncture, a little hail and whole lot of fun. I just wish the singletrack section was a little longer because it was so darn fun...luckily after a few miles of 2 track descent we ended the trail on some more super fun singletrack. Enough to put a huge smile on my face and a very empty hunger in my stomach.

I'm so glad we got to finally get out and camp again...it's been way too long and I've missed it. And I'm even more happy that Patch loves camping as well, even the cold night...he slept under his blanket the whole time! We've now purchased some more supplies that will make the nights more comfortable and the mornings more enjoyable....like an inflatable mattress and a 12 cup percolator. Everything else we had....we just hadn't used it in so long :(

I can't wait for our next camping weekend and riding adventure...Carey did mention something about Carbondale ;) I know they both enjoy camping and riding just as much as we do so it won't be a hard weekend to sell!

Here are some pics of our weekend


-Kim

2 girls playing

Cynthia graciously invited me on her solo jaunt out to Indian Creek Saturday, thank you Cynthia :) I had wanted to get back out there just to see if I could remember how to loop the trail like she showed us last year...this time I payed attention!

It was a glorious day on the bikes, cloudy and cool weather with just a few light sprinkles. The trail was tacky and the woods eerie and fun! I love riding with Cynthia because you don't have to worry about her, she doesn't mind if you ride off ahead (cause she'll do it to you too) and she doesn't mind stopping to session the techy stuff until it's nailed. What I love most is that she loves to just ride and there's no need to "prove" yourself with her, there's no competition going on. You're just riding with someone who loves to pedal just as much as you do, whether it be tight and twisty smooth single track or gnarly techy rocks.....she can do it all with ease.

Needless to say, we have a wonderful 26 mile....close to 4 hour ride. She nailed a bunch of things that gave her problems last year and I know the next time she rides out there, she'll nail them again without hesitation.


Even Mr. Hummingbird came out to play with us and drink some fresh and sweet nectar from all the blooming flowers.

My new bike handled amazingly well, except for the tires. The front washes out in any kind of loose terrain and the back tire doesn't hook up as well as I'd like it too. With new tires on and I'll be able the clean the one section that I just kept spinning out on!

Thanks Cynthia for a perfect day playing on the single track!

Bike be Nimble, Bike be Quick!

Yesterday was the first ride on the EX 9.8 and wow, what an amazing bike it is! I've never ridden a carbon frame before and the difference it makes it quite noticeable. It's hard for me to explain, but it's a quieter and less abusive feeling...it feels super stiff but it seems to absorb the rough stuff. And I love the way it sounds!

The rear sticks to the ground while picking lines through rocks and the front end is so easy to pull up, getting up ledges and big round rocks is pretty effortless. The bike is so light that it climbs with way less effort than anything I've ever experienced and it's weird how it feels like a much burlier bike on the descents, it's way more agile than the 6.6 ever felt.

All I need to do is dial in my front fork (and let it break in a little) and I think I've got the perfect bike for me! Now I just need to trust all that she can do and stop being such a wuss with certain things....like step up rock faces at certain places like Hall and out in Fruita :) I'll get there....hopefully sooner than later!

And now the 3 day weekend is almost upon us! Hopefully I'll be able to ride ride ride ride and ride some more!

Thanks again Carey & Emma for another great ride :) One of these days I'll be able to keep up with you both on the descents!

-Kim