Moab

Normally, the first weekend of November is race weekend for the final hurrah of the season. The 25 Hours of Frog Hollow, out in Hurricane UT. We race hard until we stop, then take a week for vacation. It's been great fun, but the vacation part was always limited because of the race. I would need a few more days of recovery following the race before thinking about big rides and Hurricane is such a long, long drive. Felt like half the vacation was in the van, driving! So this year, with Breck Epic taking up much of the racing budget (and training time) we had to pass on Frog Hollow. That didn't mean we didn't want to get away from COS for a bit though! It just meant a shorter vacation and less driving around.

Sunset from camp in Oil Well Flats

It was a little strange, not having the stress of the race as we were getting ready to go. All we had to do was pack some food and enough clothes for four days of riding. No emptying out the entire closet or cramming both coolers full of food. We took our time getting to Moab, spending Friday and Saturday in Oil Well Flats, chilling out and riding with friends. A great start to the trip, with fun times and great riding.

Sunrise over the Colorado River on my run. I was the only person out at that time.

After Oil Well, we pushed on to Fruita. A peaceful night in the van, the silence only punctuated by intermittent rain showers. We were a little worried about the trails being mucky from the rain, but when I got up in the morning to run conditions were perfect. I ran the Rustler's Loop which was the perfect, quick little run before the day started. Then time to ride. We met up with a facebook acquaintance and let him play tour guide. He got us over to the new Hawkeye trail - an awesome climb and so easily accessible from the interstate! Then the drop off Mack Ridge and we parted ways. Nick really wanted to ride Moore Fun, which was a little too much for Jim. I didn't ride as much as I was hoping on Moore Fun, but I was a lot smoother. There were a couple of sections that we redid since I wanted to practice, but overall a great ride. I felt confident riding - unlike the last time we'd tackled Moore Fun.

Nick test-playing a dog. The owner was more interested in her phone then playing with her pup.

Nick on Moore Fun. One of the sections I missed and Nick decided to ride again.

 Finally - time to head to Moab. We claimed a chunk of land outside Klondike Bluffs for our basecamp for the night. Nick went and did a power hour ride in Klondike while I got the van set up and started dinner. A relaxing night with nothing to do but watch the moon rising over the bluffs. We were still close to the full moon and I had fun trying to be artistic. There are limits to the camera on my phone for sure though...

Moon rising over Klondike Bluffs, framed by the fire.

With a shuttle for the Mag 7 trails already scheduled, we had an easier day. I did another run along Dino Flow, rediscovering how fun, but how challenging the slick rock and sand can be to run on. I wasn't going to time, just stretching my legs and getting some miles before the world woke up. After breakfast, time for some two wheeled action. Already warmed up from the run, I was better able to stick on Nick's wheel from the start. We stayed on the north side of the park, but still covered some pretty good miles and got some pretty good climbing in our ride. The climbing in Klondike bluffs is deceptively hard, and there's a lot more then you anticipate! But that also makes for some fun descending. It was a good reminder of how Moab rides and the need for body English on bike to make some of the moves. All of that would come in handy the next day.

Mag 7 - a whole new ride for both of us. We'd only done a tiny portion of Gold Bar Rim two years ago, finishing with Portal. This time, we booked the shuttle with the goal of riding the entire way. As usual, once we got organized, Nick bolted. He likes being out in the front of the shuttle crowds, so we can ride our own pace (his pace) and not worry about getting tangled up in groups during techy stuff. Usually works out great - only this time, one of the younger guys on the shuttle decided he didn't want to ride alone. We were the only ones with a map and the only ones who had definitely said we were doing Portal at the start of the drive. And so that poor guy drilled it for the first hour to catch up and keep up. Without directly asking, he made it pretty clear that he really wanted to ride with us. He was pretty cool, not hugging my wheel or chumping any of the techy stuff, so we let him tag along. It was obvious he was turning himself inside out to stay with us on the climb up Gold Bar Road. And at that point, with the hardest stuff to come, we didn't feel like being mean and just leaving him. So we waited at various points, making sure he was tagging along and safe.

Nick on one of the slickrock sections of Gold Bar Road

The view off Gold Bar Rim, looking south into Moab

It meant the pace was a little easier, but I was also able to process things better. My brain wasn't exhausted from the technical moves and trying to ride hard. Gold Bar Rim was actually fun this time - lots of fun. There were a few things I re-did, a few things I looked at twice and then tried and a couple things I flat out said "no way" regarding. What was really cool was when we got on the section we'd ridden before and I was comfortable. The trail was still challenging, but I felt okay on it and with the exposure. At least until we hit Portal. I rode as far as I could, but when I was off, I was off. I tried getting back on and riding a little more, but it wasn't happening. I was perfectly happy to walk. Looking back at the trail, it's easy to see why... It doesn't look that bad when you are on it. You know there's a drop, but it's not that crazy. Or so you think!

Yes, there is a trail there. No, you aren't catching yourself if you fall....

Time for a day off the bike. We both had some work to do - so the morning was meeting calls for Nick and me reviewing athlete's workouts. But a day off the bike didn't mean a day off. I wanted a longer run. That meant Ahab. It's the perfect loop that I can run and have good, hard run and Nick can ride. If Nick wants a long ride, he does Upper Ahab twice. I usually run up Hymasa, go clockwise on Upper Ahab so I can see the mountain bikers coming, and then run back down Hymasa. It's almost 9 miles on the dot and I'm usually just as fast running as most of the riders. No photos this time - I was too focused on running!

With the dry weather, Burro Pass was still open. Why not? We booked another shuttle for the Whole Enchilada the following day. Again, Nick blasted out of the shuttle and we quickly started catching people from earlier shuttles. It wasn't smooth pedaling, my legs were tired and there was definitely ice in the shady spots up high. I wasn't mentally on my game at the start of the ride. That changed as we got down lower. I was putting my Camber through it's paces, starting the jump off the rocks and working on my hucking skills. Finally on the Porcupine Single Track and I was on point, picking my lines, riding everything. I could keep my focus on the trail and be comfortable. Right exposures don't panic me like left exposures! I knew I wanted to ride the final technical section - the drop into the creek bed. Nick took the huge line like I knew he would, but when he said "no" I got a little flustered and off. He'd been telling me not to take his line, not to not ride it. I studied the moves, fixed the lines in my mind and hiked back a little. Took a deep breath and let it go. Ride your bike. For some reason, when I was able to make the first move again, then follow my mentally painted line around the rocks and then all the way down, it was a release. Something that had been on my back for years was finally gone.

Our last day in Moab was spent on top of the Island in the Sky, exploring some more of the Mag 7 and Horsethief trails. Super fun with loop potential up the wazoo! We rode for a few hours and I ran a little later. We will be back in that area for sure...

And then it was time to say goodbye to the desert and head for home. Back to real life.

The perfect representation of the trip. Bikes, peace and quiet, and being outside, unplugged.