Asheville

So now that I have had a week to digest, here is my recap of my trip south. First off, my trip had several purposes: 1. to accompany Art to The Sustainable Trails Conference in Asheville, and 2. to visit Art’s family only an hour or two out of Asheville. Not in my original plans, but I also got to visit Industry Nine, and pick up my wheels (see previous post). … and of course my master plan is to ride my bike as well, but you all know that.

The Conference in Asheville:
It was kind of cool pulling up to the hotel with a” Welcome Professional Trail Builders” sign. It appears that in these parts, mountain bikers are viewed as the good guys. The Conference: was presented by The Professional Trail Builders Association, and attracted people from many places including far off places like Alaska, Hawaii and Canada. Art and Mergs attended a two day “Road to Trail” workshop. They worked on the Jim Branch Trail in Dupont State Forest. The majority of the work was done by machine and they had a chance to learn machine design concepts.





The Riding:
My first few days of riding were at Bent Creek right outside of Asheville. This area is an Experimental Forest Research area with recreational use allowed. It was Saturday, and this place was jamming with all sorts of bikers and pedestrians. The trails were a mix of forest service roads and what they call single track: It is actually 4 to 6 feet wide and smooth. There was plenty of climbing, after all this is big mountain country, and the single track looked to be all machine bench cut across the hillside with berms and rollers. The trails were designed with flow in mind. They were way fast and fun. It was encouraging to see that mountain bikers had such a strong influence in trail design in recreational use planning. This is something that some of us in New Jersey are still working towards.

By recommendation of a bike shop, Art and I rode Black Mountain in Pisgah. Well, we did not 100% follow the shop instructions. They told us to do 13 miles of roads to get to 8 mile of single-track. We said “the heck with that, we will just ride the single-track out and back”. It was a beautiful area that followed along a rushing stream. Eventually, it got so steep and eroded that we ended up walking a bunch. I actually walked some down as well. Needless to say we were very disappointed in the trail design, but managed to have a good ride. However, the so called 8 miles of single-track got us back to the car in a little over an hour. We then loaded up the bikes and drove to Dupont for some more riding. Although I don't get paid, I love this job.

The riding at Dupont was really nice. The trails seemed to be very well designed, but maybe a little less technical. Perhaps that is why Pisgah gets the good reviews. I just get so many rocks at home, that I do not feel the need to ride a drainpipe to get them. I also got a chance to check out the work that Art and Mergs did a few days before, and it looked pretty cool. Once again we passed more mountain bikers on the trails and a few families as well. Perhaps the less technical trails attract more bikers. Either way it was nice to see so many mountain bikers out riding.





I was sitting in the car staring ahead and trying not to get sick while Art was driving to his sister’s house, and I realized that these roads are no different than our trails, just a bit bigger and paved. They all had the same berms, low angle climbs, and water shedding design. It took driving in a wet mountainous area to see this. To see more on this, check out my Ashevile video in my gallery: http://gallery.me.com/ellenandart#100478

All in all, it was a worthwhile trip. We all got a chance to speak with other trail builders and got a chance to sample some machine built trails. What impressed me the most was how mountain bikers had become professional trail builders and found a way to fund trail building projects through a seminar. It allowed mountain bikers to fund their own needs and not put that responsibilty on the forest service. As for trails in N.C., they seemed really nice, but not even close to some of what northern New Jersey has to offer. The more I travel, the more lucky I feel to live where I do. Oh, did I mention that I love my Job.










12 hours in a car makes me nuts!

Going Big .... Industry Nine Style

On my recent trip to North Carolina, I had the opportunity to stop in and take a tour of the Industry Nine factory. I am honored to be sponsored by a company that makes such outstanding US made products: hubs/spokes. When I drove up the factory, I saw the number on the mail box but noticed the building had another name on the front door. I wasn't sure that I was in the right place, until I saw a tree full of bicycle rims. ....and I thought the rims were made in china, but now I wonder (wink, wink) if they grow on trees right here in the USA.



Industry Nine is part of a larger Company that specializes in CNC machining and has a whole warehouse full of computer navigated machines. I got to see the whole process from....



a pile of raw aluminum stock....



to a hub shell.



even the spokes are made exactly to their proprietary design.



they are then run through several washes, charged in a special tank to accept anodization that makes many beautiful colors.



The hub is very well designed with stepped sets of pawls and ratchet.



All hand built in what I call the candy factory, making light, stiff instant engaging wheels in enough beautiful colors to satisfy any color craving biker and pixy.

Land of Sun

No doubt, it has been a long, cold and snow-filled winter in New Jersey and most of the northeast. So, when four mountain bikers boarded a plane destined for Arizona, there was much excitement and anticipation to ride our mountain bikes in sunshine. Once in my seat on the plane, I rolled up my puffy down coat and put it away for a week…. well, that was what I thought.

Destination: Wild Outdoor World of Arizona “WOW”, an amazing restored natural habitat oasis that draws butterflies, insects, birds and a plethora of wild animals, and coincidentally has 40 miles of mountain bike trails out the backyard.

http://blog.wowarizona.com/

We arrived late, when it was dark, and we went to sleep in anticipation of the week ahead. In the morning, the first sound I heard was a familiar “wheet, wheet” of the Curve-billed Thrasher. Nearly a year had passed since I heard that sound, and instantly, I was back home with it. We live in a world co-mingled with noise pollution, and being able to step outside of our man-made world, if only for a bit with our ears can be peaceful and rejuvenating. I draw back the blinds and see blue sky over beautiful mountains.






Six days of riding in sun.....


a sun so strong, that it bakes.




These may look friendly, but the desert has a harsh side.....


with a small price to pay.










Alcohol enhanced electrolyte elixer ...aka: "margarita"


Some surprise snow to ease us back to NJ weather






Puffy coat comes out for the ride to the airport.


Happy birthday MA!!

Feline and Frozen

It had been 7 or 8 weeks since I had ridden a mountain bike in the woods. Frozen snowmobile tracks made that possible today. I mounted my studded cheetah and off we went. Keeping in touch with your handling skills may not be something first on the list for some mountain bike racers, but it is a ritual I try to practice. Besides keeping you upright, uninjured and not broken down in a race, It can be sooo good for the spirit. Today was no exception.

Good Find

After being bombarded with cheap beer commercials during football playoffs, I have decided to offer the unusual and perhaps un-patriotic to some, ...... a pre-Super Bowl French wine review.

2007 Bernard Latour Cotes du Rhone

Red Rhone blend from the southern region of France.
2007, was reported by the sales person that sold me this bottle, as a very good year for this region.

My personal but non expert review: Medium bodied, fruity, blackberry-plum, maybe a hint of spice with delicate tannins and very smooth. Simple and ready to drink as a deliciously smooth table wine. Perfect for Super Bowl. $12.

Soup Time

Yam-Ginger Coconut Curry Soup garnished with pistachios

Yes, it is soup season again, and I have made some adjustments to an old favorite of mine. This time, I have added some curry and coconut milk to yam-ginger-squash soup. I started with a base of chicken broth, and roasted yams and squash, all made the day before. I cooked chopped ginger in oil for 5 minutes. Then added the yam, squash and curry and cooked a few more minutes. I then added the chicken broth and lightly simmered for 30 minutes. Let cool and blend or process until smooth. Stir in coconut milk.

Pre-Snow Ride

a sparkle-eyed pixy on a winters ride

With a big snowstorm approaching, it did not take too much arm twisting to find a few souls to go out on one more road ride, even if the temps were in the twenties. Thankfully, Campmor is my sponsor, because just about everything I wore today, and it was a lot, came from the Campmor store. That place is great for keeping an outdoors person warm. Once we got going, I was quite warm on the inside. Thank you dearly Campmor!

As we rode, the sky was dark and reminded me too often that it was still only January, and as you can imagine, this was a bit of a disappointment when all I can do is dream of summer. We were glad to have buddies today, as I do not think any of us would have ventured out by ourselves under these conditions, but we did as a team, and it was good. Three frozen water bottles and 25 miles later we completed our adventure and were feeling better for getting outside. Sometimes half the battle is just getting out the door. Once outside, the right gear and some friends can make for a great time, so don't be afraid to get outside to play!


At the top of 106 trying to get psyched for the cold descent back.

Snow Sparkle Days

When my sacred woods become covered under a blanket of snow, it is time to strap on the cross-country (XC) skis and go explore this strange new topography. Although riding my bike is my favorite thing to do, seeing the woods covered with snow is very beautiful, and I am fortunate to have the opportunity to journey into the woods under these circumstances.

Art and I were surprised to find a XC specific machine groomed double track at the local park where we ski. We took it to the top of the climb, but then decided to venture off the groomed and break our own track towards the lakes and around. Dense snow conditions made breaking super smooth, and there is something special about seeing and feeling a consistent virgin sea of white in front of you as you ski. Tiny snow flakes lit up the floor like jewels in the sun.

Once we reached the first lake, we realized that we were pressed for time to make it all the way around before darkness. We opted to take a hiking trail as a short cut. Try to imagine 2 people negotiating a 2 ft wide twisty catwalk elevated 30 feet above a lake, with 6 ft skis on their feet. A few laughs and some not so pleasant words later, we reached the other side and were able to connect with another skiers tracks.

Although our heads were down trying to make it back by dark, the next hour was incredible as the sun began to set. First, the ground and the tree tops turned a glowing peach color. Then around a bend and all went blue as the sun dipped. By the time we were near the parking lot, the sky was on fire as the sun finally set. ….Once again, an epic outing chasing the sun home.

Big Snow

above photos all taken by Art with my new mini camera, that was tucked in my pocket while shoveling all day.