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A last foray into the Northern Minnesota forest on the Yamaha WR450 before we move back to the cities for the winter.
Fall is in full swing on this ride...Speaking of fall...riding the edge of the deep mud hole, I clipped a hidden rock in the brush and got bucked off into the middle of the water. Dang near ended up flopping in, but some fancy footwork kept me upright. All good, ended up with my boots full of swampwater. With temps this day right around 37 degrees it was good not to get any wetter.
This was a good, about 40 mile day on the saddle. Got back to the cabin at sundown dodging the deer along the way.
Also riding the BMW F800 GS a couple times a week. Exploring the country roads outside the metro area. Generally about 140 to 200 miles in a day is a good balance cruising dirt roads and with mix of 2 lane curvy pavement. Topping the ride off rolling back into the city on the freeway with a bit of AC/DC rocking in my earbuds.
Always a treat to pull off a gravel road and have a snack.
Another opportunity that has come along from time to time is to be involved with a photographer that shoots videos and photos for the running events. This involves me to transport a guy shooting video off the back of the BMW. This was the "Twin City Marathon" event.
Meanwhile Back at the Cabin
The last few tasks that needed to be performed were the pulling the boats out of the lake. 3 boats total, The speedboat was out earlier, so it was the sailboat and the pontoon. We handled the sailboat, towing it to a landing and pulling it out with our pickup. With the pontoon, it is a cruise across Whitefish Lake and dropping it at the marina. They pick it out of the water, winterize it and it is stored at their location. This is an annual event where as we load the mountain bikes and transport them over. Then it is an 18 mile bike ride back to the cabin. Good times!
Mountain Biking in October
JP LaMere rolling on his branded mountain bike, LAMERE Cycles owner and also test rider. This day he is racing the Marathon race at the last "Minnesota Mountain Bike Race Series" race. The course is set-up in the "Whitetail Ridge Trail System".
This was the last race of the Minnesota Race Series, The Border Battle. This was a make-up race from the original scheduled race. Nice to be in the River Falls woods during the Fall. Trails were in good condition and a, more open feeling in the deep woods with the foliage dropping it's leaves.
Jeff Hall raced this day, 9 races this summer in the Series. 9 wins, 9-0 for the season. It has been several years since he has done the whole Series. He won the Minnesota Series several times in the early to mid 2000s.
He enjoys being on the bike in the woods on the week-ends as he commutes 5 days a week on his bike. 50 miles a day round trip. That is the riding he does to stay fit and uses the ride to throw in some speed work for certain races.
This summer we traveled to 3 big mountain bike festivals. In Grand Marais, MN "The Lutsen 99er" 99 miles, he finished 2nd. In Marquette, MI "Ore to Shore" 48 miles, 2nd place. In Hayward, WI "Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival" 40 miles, 7th.
A very good Mountain Bike season with a variety of terrain and travel experiences along the way.
Meanwhile...
The non-racer doing a bit of exploring.
A good day on the bikes along the Minnesota River south of Louisville Swamp. A rainy 47 degree day made for some good adventure. With all the late season rain in Minnesota, the River flooded over it's banks and washed out portions of the trail. This created backwater to flood and dam up the creeks. With a bit of scrambling we were able to cross and made a big loop to return to the car. it was a chance to explore some of the local gravel roads.
October, good month to be out in the woods!
Ride On!
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