These words I had spoken just days earlier, echoed in my head as I approached the frozen waterfall at Lair of the Bear Open Space last January. Me and my mouth. The very thought of going down this ice and snow ridden slab of rock on a bike meant bruises and cuts. It was insane to ride this! And, yet, something inside me was smiling ear to ear and doing heel-clicks in the air as I rolled my front tire to the edge....
No, I didn't make it down the waterfall. And the bruises on my legs and elbows healed. But the hook was set and I am now a hopeless addict. I thrive on riding a bike up, down and around any ridable (and sometimes not so ridable) trail.
I ride a hand-me-down 2006 Specialized Enduro Pro. It weighs 33 lbs and cruises downhill like a dream. The first comment from one of the Yeti Bettys when I showed up to ride Alderfer this summer was in regards to the two broken spokes on the back wheel. I smiled. Neither shock works correctly anymore. The propedal is shot so 85% of my wattage on flats and hill climbs seeps into the earth. I remember wishing so badly for a functional propedal on the roads of the 24 Hours of Moab course. My wishing quickly turned into planning to buy a Superfly 100 (as it blew by me on mile 12 at 3AM).
In spite of her age and maladies, I have a fondness for the trusty steed that has carried me over everything I can possibly find to ride in the front range and Pueblo, Monarch Crest Trail, and the Colorado Trail. She has taught me that speed is my friend in some cases and she has left me on my ass, groaning in pain, in the middle of some rocky sections as well.
This coming January will mark one year of mountain biking for me. I still ride my road bike, but I rode trails 4-6 days a week all year long (think snow, mud and sand) except for the times in I was in the backcountry chasing summits. I have improved my technical skills drastically, but still have much improving to do. I love being out on the trails giving my all to try and catch Mr. Uberfast blazing up and downhills and I secretly smile as I blow by Mr. Ego. (We have all met THAT GUY out on the trails..you know the one who refuses to let A GIRL by until his lungs are about to implode).
Point of my first post? I have found something that will save me from myself...Mountain biking brings my intense love for the mountains together with my passion for bikes and extreme adventure. My spirit, my senses, my awareness of the present, and my mind, heart and body come fully alive when I swing my leg over the seat.
Stay tuned if you are interested :) Guaranteed, this blog won't be a chronicle of my daily grind you will end up snoozing through, but rather a record of my EPIC pursuit of a dream. A dream I will fully disclose in the coming months...it involves mountain trails, a bike, a lot of hard work and training and the fierce desire burning in my soul. And so it begins...
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