Mountain biking in Moab Utah, April 2004
From Left to Right: Dave (in the blue shirt), Me, Rob, Jon and Erik
We rented a cargo van and loaded up our bikes and gear and headed out from Southern California in the evening. We took shifts driving, co-piloting and sleeping so we could make it to Utah without delay. After driving through the night we arrived in the morning at the world famous Slickrock trail. It had rained earlier that morning so Slickrock lived up to its name that day. I had a few wipe outs which left grapefruit sized black and blue marks on my body, but the old saying about no pain, no gain were words to live by that day. We all enjoyed the approximately 12.5 mile loop in about 3 hours including a scenic lunch break mid ride.
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Later that afternoon most of the group was ready to burn out by the campground, however Dave and I were ready for more, so we packed up and headed to the Klondike bluffs. This ride was an easier 9 1/2 mile out and back. The terrain includes sheets of rock with ancient dinosaur tracks impressed into the ground. At the top of the Bluffs we were treated to a beautiful view including a rainbow across the valley. Click the thumbnail for a glimpse of that view. By the time we returned to the campground I had a full first day of riding, but the best rides of the weekend were yet to come.
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Kicking back at the campgrounds was almost as fun as the riding. This picture has Jon in the foreground and I am sitting behind him. We medicated our wounds with fat tire amber ale beers and fine tequila. The campfires were warm and the barbecued meats were savory! After a hard day of riding the sound of the river in the background quickly lulled us to sleep. The only other sounds at night were birds, coyotes and occasionally one of the guys breaking wind in their tent.
The next morning we all geared up for a ride along the well known Porcupine Rim. For this ride we took a shuttle to the trail head and began a climb which lasted about 4 miles. The climb had several technical sections which required both strong cardiovascular efforts as well as technical riding skills. At the summit there are beautiful views of the valley, and after a light lunch we began the downhill.
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| Group shot from the top of Porcupine (click image for larger) |
We all savored the trails down porcupine rim, and eventually it leads to the more technical section of jackass canyon before connecting back to the road. The single tracks, ledges, sandstone and various terrain all required your eyes stay on the ground so you can focus on picking a good riding line. But the views of the Colorado river and valley below were a treat when you stopped to soak in the surroundings. Once we worked our way towards the most technical sections of the trail, part of the group decided to ride back to camp, while a few others and I decided to ride back up for another time down. On our way up we saw one guy walking down with a ghostly pale white face and his arm was in a sling. His wife or girlfriend was walking a bike besides him as they walked down. We assumed he broke his arm on the trail and was working his way down to the road. It was a reminder that mountain bike riding can be dangerous. After riding a total of 23.9 miles for the day, we finally made it back to the campground before dusk. We were all sore, hungry and tired. It was time to Barbecue dinner and drink beers, and we did so around a nice campfire.
| Our pork tenderloins got tender loving care from Dave as he seasoned with peanuts, garlic, beer, and much more, (click thumbnail image for larger) |
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| Rob with the van loaded with bikes and gear. |
On Sunday morning we took our time waking up and packing up camp before our last ride of the trip, Solitude trail. The ride was a nice single track through the desert and over some sandstone sections. We did 10.4 miles as an out and back. For the most part we were fatigued from the two prior days of riding, so we took it easy. It was going to be a long, late night drive home but we took turns behind the wheel and arrived back home in the still dark early morning hours.
Trips like this one take lots of effort, but the memories of riding some awesome bike trails with your best buddies is worth it. My wife and kids were thrilled to see me arrive home safely, and it was sweet to be home, sleeping under my roof in a soft bed. Sleeping the first few days home was tuff because of the numerous big bruises on my body. Most notable were the dark purple and yellow grapefruit sized bruises on my hip and elbow. Next time I plan to ride Moab with pads.
