"Broke is only temporary; poor is a state of mind"
I get really poignant fortune cookies. I'm not quite sure why, especially when I seem to be surrounded by people who get shafted in the fortune cookie department. It's as if some fickle hand of fate seems to dollop out little life lessons in small plastic packages surrounded by a semi tasteless crunchy dough material. A gem surrounded by tastelessness, could be a metaphor for some sorts of life if I were the more pessimistic sort. However, I'm not so I'll just keep getting the dollops of wisdom pearled out by whatever old fu manchu wearing chinese gentleman in the sky there is.
Anyways, above is a fortune cookie I got a Thai place in Grand Junction last night and man did this ring true with this weekend. (I have tons of pictures that I will post up here shortly). Having received just enough snow to make the high alpine dangerous, and to cover up every rock on the Front Range, some friends and I decided to journey out to the desert in search of dry singletrack and slick rock for what might be one last thrash fest on bikes for the season (perhaps not anymore...)
Thrash fest we did find. After arriving late at night on Friday we met up at a local diner to grab some grub, before heading towards the legendary Fruita trails. Mountain biking literally has put Fruita on the map. This tiny town one exit down from Grand Junction has access to some of the most exciting rim rock, slick rock, single track in the state of Colorado. We started out in the parking lot at the Loma exit with intentions of hitting up Horsetheif canyon loop and doubling it around to Lions loop.
We ended up bailing half way through Lions Loop (lack of sunlight) making a beeline climb up Mock Ridge and connecting back to the parking lot through the Moore Fun trail. Horsethief starts out at the trailhead, winds along the rim rock and then dives straight into the canyon with a series of rock steps and then loops down along the canyon walls and ravines to meet back up to the original rock steps. As the name implies, this is the wild, wild west at its very best. Looping through the ravines and past the canyon walls, you can't help but imagine Butch Cassidy hiding out in the slot canyons and taking shelter in the course of the day.
The rock hop that took out 3 tires
Zack handling the rock hop masterfully
Lion's loop doesn't seem to have stuck in my mind as poignantly as the other trails that day so I'm going to gloss over it a bit, but say that the scenery was beautiful and trails dry and rocky. Mock Ridge started with an intense 1000 foot climb up a hilltop to crest on top of a ridge that overlooked the whole valley and canyons. The trail then wound along the rimrock, sometimes coming with in 2 to 3 feet of the plunge. This part was more than slightly spooky as riding my bike along this rim it was really easy to feel the empty space pulling at you from the left. It was sort of like learning to drive where they tell you "look where you want to go, not where you don't".
The entrance to Horsethief!
Spookay and not easy to do! The trail bounced back down some pretty technical rocky spots to a low point where we began the climb up to Moore Fun. This section of the ride I'm not really sure I can take credit for actually riding as I ended up pushing my bike up hill more than riding it and walking it through some pretty technical points. We were nearing the 20 mile and 2,000 feet of climbing mark for the day and I was very very tired and had no desire to injure myself by pushing through something stupid when I wasn't at the top of my game. I made it back to the car though in very little style and to a cold beer waiting for me!
The group I was riding with was unbelievably supportive and friendly. Zack, Lindsay and Nick were incredibly helpful with tips and patient, especially since I was the least skilled rider there. I had an incredible time goofing around on the trail, and it was the type of camraderie that makes you seriously want to go back for more.
More and photos later....
Posts
