Second Front

I piled up a lot of miles in the saddle. Getting older has made my post ride nutrition critical to recovery. This trip it was especially important. After Dakota Ride/Red Rocks in Denver, Slick Rock and Moab Rim trails in Moab, I rode the Ft. Valley trails in Flagstaff. I'm getting ready for the 100K Berryman Classic in Missouri in October. All this 'four corners' riding was more than a little challenging for this North Texan.

 

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I camped out the night after my first whole day in Moab. My iPhone doesn't do the garish scenerey justice.

 

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they call it the bad lands but I guess that depends what you are trying to do with it. Its fantastic for mountain biking.

 

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The scenic overlook was a wonderful payoff for a couple of hours of relentless ascents and behind the saddle descents.



 

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Slick Rock is one of the preeminent mountain biking trails in North America. I've wanted to experience it since I took up the sport a decade ago. Despite all the hype, it surpassed my expectations. It is an extremely demanding trail from a cardiovascular and technical riding skills standpoint. The scenerey is surreal. The exposure is unsettling at first as you peer several hundred feet into the canyons. But the positive traction with the rock surfaces shores up confidence. This 12 mile loop can be ridden either direction. I chose the 'hard' direction and got all I bargained for.

The available literature speak to death on the trail - mostly this is due to heat exhaustion. Its difficult to imagine riding in the summer. it would take me at least 3 gallons of water to survive the loop.

For perspective in the photo below, note the rider in the lower left pushing her bike up the trail.

 

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Looking south.

 

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My great Four Corners trip lead me through northeast New Mexico. This photo was taken at day break between Clayton and Raton. New Mexico is the land of enchantment.

 

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