Clif Bar has a contest going right now. Write up a short story of how you play differently. Here is from their official rules:
“Was there a moment or decision that changed your life? Were you put to the test or did you have to choose between two paths? Tell us all about it, inspire us.
Prices include a weekend riding with the Clif Bar folks in Napa, year supply of Clif Bars, and $1000 gift certificate to your favorite sports retailer…
Our original plan was to use yesterday, Wednesday, as a rest day of sorts, so we would be plenty fresh for a long ride on Thursday. The long ride of choice was the Alpine Trail, just outside of Oakridge in Westfir, also known as the venue for the Cascade Cream Puff . After the prior day’s dubiously restful nature, we had a lot of trouble getting ourselves motivated and out the door early enough to load our Camelbaks with a days rations and hit the trail in time to catch the shuttled riders leaving the Trailhead Cafe at 10:00, so we slept in, and it was good. Real good, and easy to tacitly rationalize at this point in our trip, so instead we grumbled. Or at least I did, all the way up the hill in the shuttle van. It seemed a shame to waste a perfectly good ride day with just one short shuttle that would have us back in town by 1:00, especially now that we were so well rested.
This was another leisure day for Sean and I at least. We were able to sleep in today, which for us was til about 9:00, after which we staggered over to the Trail Head Cafe across the street for good coffee and a big breakfast. Berry and Bill were staying up the street, so they met us, and then Nigel, who was staying in a house a few blocks away.
The herd had been culled to 8, plus our guide Mike Kinrade. He labeled us the Shredders based on our survival, er performance, after yesterday’s ride. Two other Lodge guests got a smaller ride on the second day guided by our Host, Jeff, and the remaining four guests trucked off to Rossland for an XC epic. We Shredders pushed up from the Lodge again, but this time we stopped short of the Cherry Tops summit and dropped in on Cherry Popper, and the section of trail featured on the cover of Bike magazine some months back. This begins with several switchbacks built with hand set local stone.
We have completed our second day riding in the Nelson area, both in town, as well as from the Baldface Lodge 4000 feet above town. While we originally found Canada a smaller place than originally stated (metric conversion conspiracy. Every thing in Canada is about 1/3 closer than it sounds), we have found the 4000 foot drop into town is at least 5000 feet, and a “full day” of riding can be had by noon.
Our group started with 14 eager campers, and a 45 minute push from the Lodge up to Cherry Tops, because the aforementioned 4000 feet evidently wasn’t, by local standards, enough. Our guide today was some available local named Mike, and we followed him to the best of our ability down High Man to Swamp Donkey. The best of our ability turned out to be better than the ability of at least six of the riders in our group, and they got on a truck at mid mountain. Four were never seen again.
One the scale of people you know that really like to drive, Sean would rise to the top. He really, really likes to drive, and he’s excellent at it. He and I did a very fast road trip two years ago, a mad dash to central Oregon and back in four days, with three epic rides sandwiched in between. When he called a couple weeks ago to tell me Nelson was only 19 hours away by car, I knew what he was thinking, and what he was capable of. We put together a couple of roof racks and outfitted his Prius to carry our two bikes as well as the three bikes that belonged to Patrick, Rob, and Jim, who we were to meet in downtown Nelson on Thursday.
There in the middle of Oregon, near almost nothing else, lies the little truck stop town of Oakridge, and seemingly limitless miles of wonderful singletrack trails. Some may know it as the site of the Mountain Bike Oregon events, or even the Cascade Cream Puff endurance race, and most mountain bikers will hear more about it as time goes on
This customer was riding a 4 year old Maverick ML-7 that was sized larger than ideal for his riding style. He liked the way the suspension worked, but not the bike’s handling characteristics. He bought a new Durance in the smaller size which allows him to be a better marksman on the trail. And the extra travel, combined with the stiffer, more efficient frame construction allow him to ride faster, with greater confidence than before.
You probably remember from a prior post that Maverick bikes do not have serial numbers, but are instead individually named. This bike is named “Equity”.
Today we learned that Rodney Johnson lost his life to pancreatic cancer, and we are feeling just a profound sense of sadness. Rodney was a good man. The kind of quiet and unassuming guy some people might ignore as being a bit too dorky; not nearly hip or “in” enough. But if you ever got the chance to get to know Rodney, you would silently shrink, and feel like such an idiot for judging a book by its cover.
Rodney Johnson
Rodney was a quiet, gentle, man. A giant in deed if not power output or outward appearance. A completely modest person, he never talked much about his contributions to our sport, but there can be no denying that he was the right guy in the right place at the right time. Several times.
Address: 415 Old County Rd, Belmont Phone: 650-620-9798
Our name says it – we are passionate about bikes and trails. We are all dedicated mountain bikers, and our knowledge of local trails can't be beat. Our mechanics are the best in the business, and we take customer service very seriously. We are committed to making your bike run perfectly. We guarantee great rides.
Clif Bar has a contest going right now. Write up a short story of how you play differently. Here is from their official rules: 
