Ride On / Traveling / Listening to Bob Seger / Traveling Man

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Checking out the local singletrack along the Mississippi River. Good backwater from a rainy Fall season and cool to see the St. Paul Fire Department river boat doing some practice hosing. 

 

 When in the big city, clean up the country moto and take it uptown on a grocery run...

 Good day to head south towards Mantorville on the country roads for a visit to my Sons home. A bit of lunch off the box in a picked cornfield. Flushed up a big ole roster pheasant along the fence row.

 Of course fit in an awesome Fall day on the mountain bikes over in Wisconsin.

 Always a thrill to cross the Mackinac Bridge... The wind was up and the waves were really rolling. Traveled to Michigan for a 3 day job near Bay City.

Back to Country Roads, Minnesota Style

 You guessed it, lunch off the box...Haha! Why not. The neat thing about this week is that the moon is putting on a show in the cool Fall nights. Spent about 2 hours in this area and caught the moon rise in the Eastern sky. Packed up and roared the 60 miles back to St. Paul on a mix of gravel and paved backroads.

 This is where I like to see the critters, in the bush, not on the pavement.

Moon rise over the country road in the East as the sun set in the West...

Ride On!!

Rollin' on the Snowy Winter Singletrack with LAMERE Cycles Owner JP (Buzzy) LaMere and Sponsored LAMERE Cycles Rider Jeff Hall

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A good day on the LAMERE bikes, testing both the tires and bikes on a early winter morning in Minnesota. Buzzy, Jeff Hall and yours truly put the bikes through there paces. Jeff was running studs front and rear on his bike, Buzz and I were running 4 and 5 inch non-studded tires. It was all singletrack with a good snowpack, however a couple sections of the trail that ran along some south facing hillsides had a bit of ice. I was in a few 2 wheel slides on the ice that the bike handled great. I stayed upright although I did straight-arm 1 tree to keep upright.  

 Jeff and Buzzy rockin' on the fat tires...wondering how I got in front of them. I know the shortcuts... 

Buzzy LaMere on his LAMERE Cycles Fat Tire Bike!

 Fat 5" on the rear of my bike.

 Good to ride and test the LAMERE  bikes and see how the different tire combos work.

It's cool that JP (Buzzy) LaMere is a "hands on" bike company owner and he takes pride in his product. He can talk the talk and ride the bike!

This week I had Buzzy build my own new bike and it is sweet! I will get to ride the finished bike this week. Pictures and ride report will be coming soon.

Ride On!! 

Surly Pugsley Winter Singletrack Adventure Under the Moonlight

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Playing in the snow is good fun, young and older...

 Looking forward to a moonlit night on the singletrack. Temps are about 15 degrees, a bit warmer then the zero degrees out at the resort Ski Patroling last night.

The trail is a narrow ribbon winding through the woods packed down by fat tire riders. It takes a bit of concentration to stay on the packed trail and not to flounder in the deep snow. Found that the best way to stay on track was to stand up on the pedals, power up the climbs and stay out of the saddle on the twisty descents. The key is to balance traction and power and not spin the rear tire with ones weight forward. Took 3 good tumbles into the snow, doesn't take much to get off track.

Was out in the woods about 2.5 hours and outside in the elements about 3.5 hours. The idea is to become acclimated to the winter temps and find the ideal layers of clothing for all the different activities. We have a backcountry multi-day snowshoe / snowboard trip planned into a 10th Mountain Hut in the mountains of Colorado this winter. By snowboarding one day, then snow biking the next. I am able to find out what works for clothing and how to stay warm, but not sweat too much. I like to test my equipment and clothing in true winter conditions.    

 The view from the saddle, don't need much light with the moonlight. I use a bar mounted light and a Black Diamond headlamp zip tied to my helmet.

 I enjoy the breaks and the darkness when I turn off the lights. A Monster drink and energy bar are good for keepin' the pedals turning.  

Back at the truck a cold beverage and snack bar are the reward for a good ride under the moonlight...Ride On!

Giving Thanks for a Ride Along the River and Through the Woods

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Amazing the natural sculptures that make up the River Bottoms. The Fall season eliminates the underbrush and makes the trees the stars.

 

 A good river ride is scattered with stops to soak in the starkness of the bare trees and just simply watching the water flowing. Always being alert for wildlife and the sounds of the woods.  

 With the cold snap that has froze the ponds the waterfowl has found open water along the river ice. Canadian Geese and a Mallard...what's with the Duck?

A sea of prairie grass typifies the fall season blowing in the wind.

Singletrack Mountain Biking One Year Later / Now 26"/4" Pugsley / Then 29"/2.2" Salsa / Both Good Times

 Above / November 25, 2013 / Surly

Below / November 29, 2012 / Salsa

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Best time to be in the woods on a mountain bike, the Fall and at sundown, into the darkness. I'm riding a new bike this Fall. A Surly Pugsley. A bit of change after becoming accustomed to my 29er.

 The good and different. The Salsa with 29 inch wheels and 2.2" tires are great for rolling over obstacles and carrying your speed.

The Surly Pugsley with 26 inch wheels and 4" tires have a much larger contact patch so I feel the trail. The actual diameter is more like a 27.5 because of the large tires. I feel like I can ride it more like my motorcycle, lean it over and let the knobs grab the trail.

 Above / November 25, 2013 / Surly
Below / November 29, 2012 / Salsa

 At sundown, I pulled off the trail and rigged up my light system.

A helmet light and 2 handlebar mounted lights. I set up the whole system that I had in my backpack. Changed batteries and mounted the helmet light, using zip ties to secure it to the helmet. Mounted the handlebar lights, had a quick snack and 20 minutes later, I'm on my way in the darkness.

 The top picture is with a flash on my camera, the bottom picture is the view I have with my light system.

As I am riding, I use the head lamp to look ahead and around turns. The handlebar mounted lights light up the trail right in front of the bike. That is why it is a good idea to have both systems in place off road where the trail is twisty and you need to see around the corner.

Ride On!!

Sundown Singletrack Mountain Biking & Sneaking Up on the Whitetail Deer

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The theme of the day is to blend into the woods...

 Look close to see the Whitetail Buck in the brush.

 He's keeping an eye on me as he blends into the thick brush.

 As dusk settles in, the deer start to move from their daytime beds. This is the time of day that I slow the pace down and my senses become more acute and aware of movements off the trail.

 The deer do not sense me as a threat and get back to foraging for food.

 I used the flash as darkness settled in and it creates an interesting sight. I stayed on my mountain bike and remained motionless for about 10 minutes as I observed a doe and her 2 young fawns.

After I started riding again it was dark and I had a few miles to ride to get back to my truck.

GOOD TIMES!!  

Another 2 hour mountain bike ride today. With a 2 hour ride yesterday my fitness level is getting better every week. With December approaching I feel good about the singletrack mountain biking that I'm doing now.

The riding improves my reflexes and endurance for the full days on the snowmobiles and snowboard in the mountains and on the hill for Ski Patrol...and it is great to be on the bike in the fall riding singletrack.