Go-Explore

August 19 Day 8 Hanging out in Salida, Colorado possibly the coolest town yet.  For the numbers people: Three cups of coffee ( some decaf) One Full breakfast  6 city blocks ridden 0 elevation climbed  Recap: Go? Or No Go? How would you play these cards? Proceed forward down the trail towards New Mexico. At least five more climbs to 10,000 ft elevation. Ten more days minimum.  Stay in Salida. Go river rafting. The next day, have a local bike shop owner drive you to the top of the mountain and then ride the best single track for hours back down. Fly home a week early.  The one thing we know for sure on these trips is that we have no idea of what we are getting ourselves into. So making a decision is not easy. Getting five A type personalities to make the same decision even harder. Most decisions are made with a great deal of interpolation looking backwards and assuming forwards yields similar results.  Looking backwards. if you’ve forgotten or didn’t read all...

It’s all fun and games until.. The pendulum of emotions  Day 7 August 19 For the numbers people: 50 miles 2682 ft elevation climbed 5 hours riding The hot breakfast was awesome!  We got to sit at a real table and real chairs with real silverware and real food.  Well.. you get the idea. We felt spoiled. Since we were first shift breakfast, the next shift started rolling in as we were finishing. As we got talking, it turned out that they were filming another episode of “House hunters”. A very nice crew who were out from New York.  They were appreciative of our story. The producer asked a good question after we explained our trip, “Why would you do that?”   It’s a valid question and one that a sane person should ask. I suppose that tees up our answer, “it’s crazy but we come home with so many stories!” The morning was crisp. We rode for awhile in our puffy jackets. After a good climb, the jackets came off.  I suppose we are spoiled by ...

August 18 Day 6 For the numbers people: 30 miles 896 ft elevation climbed Despite sleeping at 10,000 ft, the night was warm for a change. A very welcome change!  The sun slept in longer than Dale but iwhen it woke up with the rest of us, the sun revealed a deep blue sky full of high wispy clouds as far as the eye could see. We boiled water for our usual breakfast of oatmeal on the porch of the community center. In a very neighborly manner, one of the town members volunteered to return in the morning to help us get drinking water from the well. Mark showed up not long after we started breakfast to help us get water. Mark was one of the long time residents. His dad moved there. He was full of stories and possibly a little lonely because he kept telling stories to whoever was listening. He tried to help us get the well water working but the old pump wouldn’t kick on.  After a few pictures on the porch with Mark, we waved goodbye and rolled down the hill past houses, som...

August 17 Day 5 Recap. The Good, the bad, the ugly and the Blessed  The Good: We were invited to dinner and bingo. A small (very) town called Como. Only in America. 🇺🇸  More Good: riding the bike trail around Silverthorne Lake. Postcard views.  The Bad: We say goodbye to one of our riding buddies. Now we are five.  The Ugly: Boreas Pass 11,482 elevation. Today was one of the highest passes we cross. On a good note, it’s an old railway route which kept the grade steady.  You know. Happy talk for the first half climbing out of the haughty town of Breckenridge.  Less talking the middle. Very little talk for the last two miles.  Just as we reached the summit , an old timer offered to take our picture within seconds, the rain and thunder were upon us. I couldn’t get my jacket on fast enough in the wind!  Luckily there was some ancient railway buildings and we hid under the two foot overhang until the storm blew through. We headed for a camp...

August 16 day 4  Everything was recharged, our electronics, our bodies, our minds.  We pedaled out of town under vast blue skies.. it was a cool morning but looking to get into the 80s. Everyone was in great spirits again. Right after we crossed the Colorado River, we turned eastward and rode up a very gradual climb dirt road. Dale, stu, Jeff and Jim kept telling Ron and Bernhard, “now this is what our past rides have been!” We eased our way constantly climbing up past a mirrored reservoir that seemed to wrap around the valley in all sort of directions. We stopped for a snack at a campground but the mosquitoes decided we were the snack. Our stay didn’t last long. Continuing uphill we rode looking for a place to have lunch.  As we came down a rather steep road, at the bottom was a tree with a little white bike in it and a cooler below full of water for bikes riding the divide. Coincidentally, the owner was just getting ready to leave and turned back around to see if there ...

Lost my notes for today. real quick summaries we woke up. Ron tent was still standing on the ridge a good downhill was interrupted by another rain we crossed the Colorado River twice Two long climbs of 1000 ft elev. stayed at anRV park that had hot showers and laundry. It was glorious.

GMBDR  day 2 Aug 14 For the numbers people: 40 miles 3400 ft elevation climbed Recap:  The elevation is taking its toll.  Don’t trust a map saying “informal campsite” How to set up a tent in a gusting rainstorm and then do it again.  All days start with a climb so if I don’t say it, just assume it will. We are going perpendicular to some beautiful rivers. But rivers make valleys and that means lots of climbing. Keep in mind, just yesterday we came from sea level. Today we kept doing 500 ft climbs over and over again. Colorado is gorgeous. Exactly what you’d expect.  We were getting tuckered out and started to strategize the days stopping point. We honed in on a campsite that the GPS labeled “informal campground “. There was a wicked steep climb that had everyone walking and pushing their bikes. The herds of cows were all over the trail. After we hustled them out of the way, they always gave us a piece of their mind as we would pass. There was a great downhi...

For the numbers people: 27 miles 2700 ft elevation climbed  Have you ever traveled with your dad?  This trip is going to be like traveling with six dads.  Our bike boxes are so big that we have to take my truck to the airport. Stu carpooled with me.  Every year regardless of the airline, the gate agent makes up the bike transport rules. If I had United premier status, the bike would fly free but I lost that when I retired. I have the united credit  card which is supposed to allow a free check on bag up to 70 lbs. my bike weighed 67 but the agent looks at me and says $140. I swiftly flashed my sexy United credit card and said , “I think it flies free because I have your credit card.”  She quipped, “did you pay for your ticket using that card?”   I hesitated thinking of a way out, “well, no I didn’t.”  She might as well said “checkmate!” But she said with a smile, “$140 please”.  I wish my momma had raised a liar I thought....

  Day -xx  We leave tomorrow Whether it’s a race or a monumental event, you reach a point where you can’t cram any more preparation into your life. Ron won the award for first done. He had his bike in its box nearly two weeks before the ride. ( I will go into the cast of characters soon enough). If I can be frank, I have to ask myself why leave the things I enjoy to go ride with very minimal conditions 650 miles on a bicycle that weighs almost as much as I do? There’s so many comforts that we will have to put aside to accomplish this journey. I ponder if the Vikings looked forward to leaving home? What drove them on? What were they thinking,” Oh boy! No more chores. No more fixing stuff. Let’s wander somewhere we have never been. See if we survive. Maybe, just maybe we will find somewhere that the sun shines even during the winter!” Did they consider, no more hugs from grandkids? No dog wanting to play even when you don’t? No nice warm dinner with their wives? No Viking Costco...

Day minus 1 August 12 over the next three weeks we will be riding unsupported our mountain bikes down the continental divide. The longest unpaved trail in the US. This section we will ride from Steam Boat Springs CO to Santa Fe NM. Some 650 miles What do you think?

  Whitney 2024   Part One:   A chance of a lifetime? Or a chance that limits your lifetime? Mount Whitney, a legend and a literal apex amongst hikers and outdoorsmen.   Mt Whitney is the highest mountain in the continental United States making it a coveted climb similar to the Boston Marathon for runners.   The most popular search about Whitney comes back with the Google Artificial Intelligence (AI) saying, “Yes it is possible to hike to the top of Mt Whitney but prepared for a challenging climb.”   I suppose after hiking Whitney the word “challenging” is indeed an understatement therefore the intelligence is indeed artificial.   The hike is so popular that only 100 passes are given per day by the Parks Service to climb Whitney.   There’s no hard data but it is said that only one in four will be able to complete the trip due to the rigorous conditions.   The summit tops out at a nose bleed elevation of 14,505 (4,421 m) for a net climb...