Fruita, usa trail report for Sunday feb. 28, 2010

The Lunch Loops will certainly be the first rideable trails- operative word "WILL". Yesterday I hiked out along the Tabeguache trail and up Pete-e-kes a little way (we are jonesing like the best of them and thought for sure these trails would be ready). Longstory short is that the peeps who made these ruts clearly received the instant karma reserved for those who ride muddy Bentonite trails...happy bike washing guys.

Just think what a drag it is to ride rutted trails all summer and, "keep it in your pants" a little longer- (to borrow a phrase)

Well, not too hard to get the unfortunate point here- there is NO riding to be had out at the 18.

I will admit I thought for sure we could at least ride Kessel's after the warmer days last week, but as you can see below that would be a big N-O for awhile yet.










And awhile longer for chutes and ladders...

There is super satisfying riding to be had, just not on the dirt. Just ask all the roadies ripping up the monument with grins the size of Montana...
Let us find joy with our 2 wheels on the pavement for now and in the vision of the desert blooming out of control in a couple of months!

2010 north american handbuilt bicycle show

live this weekend, from Richmond, Virginia, is the 2010 north american handbuilt bicycle show. this is the premeire showcase for cycling's boutique offerings on this side of the Atlantic. perusing the images from cyclingnews, it becomes readily apparent that there is no shortage of lust-inspiring craft & giblets on offer this year.

we here at ABANDON YOUR CAR would like to take this opportuity to wish our friend Kent Eriksen of Kent Eriksen Cycles all the best at the show this year. he took top palmares for the builder's award at last year's show, and he always has something cool and new on display to wow the judges.

back a the show:

i like the neo-retro randonneur style bikes, kitted out with color match fenders, pump, and cork-plugged bidon

sensible and stylish all wrapped up in a convenient package = my kind of bike





this is an image from an ebay auction that ended recently. this guy is one of my favorite sellers because he curates such a vast hoard of vintage items and his auction style is top notch professional. i liked this particular image a lot and thought it would be relevant to include here due to the many retro elements on display at the NAHBS

Giro d' Italia awards presentations rile the Dutch

Giro d' Italia organizers have announced that there will be Italian women presenting the awards for the stages that start in the Netherlands this year. this has caused consternation amongst a few Dutch politicians, who feel that the traditional presentation practice is sexist.

this well may be, but i'm not so sure that if i won a stage in a grand tour that i would want to get smooched by a couple of guys dressed in drag, as has been suggested by some. there's just something about a 5 o'clock shadow that would probably rub me the wrong way in that situation. maybe i'm sexist, too.

at any rate, it seems that this is a story that will be ramping up from now until the prologue kicks off in Amsterdam on the 8th of May. it should be interesting, to say the least.

without doubt this could shake up the old traditions, which would probably be a good thing- especially for the Italians who seem to be stuck fast somewhere in the era of Fausto Coppi. the view of the podium (WARNING: NSFW) will likely look much different than in the past, such as last year when Dennis Menchov reigned supreme in the Italian Grand Tour. thinking about the possibility of this newly proposed reality is the stuff that bad dreams are made of.

maybe the Dutch politicians are correct. just send the racers up there to collect the awards and call it good.

Fruita, usa trail report for friday feb. 19, 2010

o.k. all you mountain bikers, here it is: you still need to be patient. it rained all day today and the ground is saturated and snow covered in many areas. that means the trails are still snow covered in many areas, too. you don't need to be the first one to go find that out for yourself and leave wheel ruts that will last until next winter and beyond.
trust a local who knows what the current conditions are. temps have been in the high 30's and low 40's and the snow IS melting, but not all that quickly because we have had a lot of it this year and plenty of days of sub-freezing temps to keep it on the ground.
what i can say with great certainty is that the desert will be beautiful this spring, probably even more so than last year. (check some of my previous entries for the photos of what it looks like when it's all green and flowering out there...)

i would also like to take this opportunity to encourage all of the MTB "hardcores" who don't have a roadbike to get one. at least you will be riding something in the wintertime and getting some fresh air, sunshine and endorphins. stimulate the economy a little bit, diversify your cycling portfolio in a bold, new direction, and support your LBS while you're at it, too.
and i promise that all of us tight-clothes hardcore roadies won't laugh at you when your baggies are flappin' in the wind, either.

UPDATE: 11 p.m. friday the 19th... the latest head-out-the-window weather observation: steady rain has been falling for most of the evening and is still doing so at this time.
that is a good thing, indeed.

a few words about good taste

with apologies to the polite, civilized people who like to visit here and share their comments; i have now enabled word verification to be required prior to posting your contributions. it seems that, for whatever reason, this blog has atracted the attention of some very unsavory and uncouth spammers from the cyberspace of yonder internets.
i honestly don't have time to go through all of my many archived rants every day to make sure that those who can't keep their hands out of their pants while they are on the computer... just keep it to themselves. i say to those "people" (and i use that term quite loosely) please go away, you are not welcome here.

again, i apologize to all who have visited and chosen to paticipate in a dignified manner. everyone is invited to be here, in MY house, as long as their contributions do not slide into the gutter and maintain a content rating of PG-13 (at most... or perhaps i should say "least").
it's too bad that so many suffer inconveniences inflicted by those few who are lacking in good taste and manners. i hate making rules and regulations, but sometimes it is what must be done.

what our friends are reading

looks like our Fresno bro Dave King has been reading at least one of the other cycling blogs lately and seeking advice from an oldschool master. i guess he's probably getting a bit nervous about the great 1st annual South Routt Velosport Kokopelli's Trail tour coming up in June... as well he should be.
hopefully, not nearly as nervous as the young apprentice is getting.

just putting a little bit of fear into you guys- and maybe a bit of motivation too. fair warning to all: Jen will be dealing with the laggers and time-stallers with a stern countenance and her laser beam-equipped hydration pack. there ain't no broom wagon haulin' the tired and wounded on this ride, there will be nowhere to hide.

one last word of advice: stay off the skiis and stay on the bikes. it's time to ride.

Colorado loves California day

it's official, as decreed by Guv. Ritter. today, we Coloradans are celebrating our true love for the state of California.

well, i'm celebrating my love for the Golden State today. i hope that Colorado finds a lot more ways to be like California. bike lanes. mass transit. cultural diversity. good food. Mediterranean climate. any or all of those things would be a great place to start. i'm not holding my breath, though.

we'll probably end up moving there before any of that stuff happens here in the square state.

a couple from the road

as can easily be determined by glancing at these images, there is still plenty of snow on the ground today, here in red-rock country. oh, sure- the thermometer cracked the 40 degree mark for one of the first times since November and the sun was finally shining again... it still wasn't all that warm out there.
nonetheless, in an act of solidarity with the cyclsts of Belgium, i ventured forth and rode outdoors in the weather for a good 2.5 hours. here's a couple of images from the last hour of the ride, the scenery out on the mud flats doesn't really compare with the grandeur of the Colorado National Monument, so i kept my hands in my gloves and stayed on the bike for all of that.



here's the view looking up the ramp from the west (Fruita) entrance. not exactly a crushing traffic volume today, thank goodness. the road is also visible at the rock cut, midway up the sandstone wall (image center).

a couple of kilometers farther up, near Balanced Rock, there was plenty of snowmelt flowing across the road. not really a problem here as the sun warms the tarmac sufficiently to keep things moving. where the road passes through shaded areas and exposed, north-facing aspects, water like this turns to a deadly sheet of ice.

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tuesday february 9, 2010

road conditions in the greater Fruita area are classified as mostly dry, with scattered areas of sand and gravel, as well as some frozen snowmelt on road surfaces at higher elevations. expect to find substantial deposits of winter debris in bike lanes and on road shoulders.

otherwise, enjoy the ride.

Fruita, usa trail report for sunday feb.7, 2010

long story short is that the trails do NOT look like this right now. these two images were from this past october when everything was smooth, dry, and fast. the trails do NOT look like the one currently at the top of this page. that was early in january when everything was still frozen solid and temps were not getting above the freezing point during the day. the trail was rideable hard pack and everything else was freeze-dried in soft sugar snow.

REPEAT MESSAGE: i am referencing older images as to illustrate comparative differences in Fruita trail conditions from the recent past up to feb 7. sure, some tough guy is probably going to say that they can ride slush up to the hubs on their Pugsley, but i'm more concerned about providing some solid information to people who still like to ride but maybe don't own a Pugsley to conquer epic slushy singletrack.

today, ALL the trails are still snow-covered mush- at least 4 inches deep on the trail proper... crusty mush on the sides, 8 to 10 inches deep. at least the precipitation today was in the form of rain-it just helps melt the snow that much faster.

there will be mud this year. yes, there will be mud...



just remember those nice fall rides like this one in october. Dave King on holiday from Cal, chasing Jen on the epic Rustler's loop.

Dave was taking time to enjoy the ride and the scenery, actually, not chasing the aggressive local (Jen) who knows all the twists and turns and tends to ride an average of 2.5 warp units faster than her guests at any given time.

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REPORT FOR ALL FRUITA AREA TRAILS: today sunday, february 7, 2010- trails are snow covered and unrideable. at least 4 inches of slush over saturated clay soils will require quite a few warm, sunny days before they can be ridden again. stay tuned for updates and enjoy those road bikes for a while!

announcing the livetrainrace.com Wednesday Night Worlds

i am pleased to announce that the Wednesday Night Worlds have arrived early this year, in the form of a 6-week spring criterium series in Grand Junction, Colorado. local good guy Mike Driver (and yes, cycling fans, that actually IS the guy's real name...) race promoter, club -sponsorer and all around 45+ leg breaker (in conjunction with Ascent Productions) is stepping up in a big way to host the series.

futhermore, the series is a USA CYCLING sanctioned race series, which in my humble opinion is THE sanctioning body to partner with for all your racing needs.

(i will save my heated rant about that for another day).

http://www.livetrainrace.com/ also has a convenient and comprehensive race calender for pretty much all of the racing action happening in the entire Rocky Mountain region (and beyond) in 2010... both kinds of racing, skinny and fat.

get ready for some great local racing in a safe, 1 kilometer closed circuit, right here on Colorado's western slope.

it's time to get out of the gym and onto the bikes, and be sure to renew your USA CYCLING RACING LICENSE ahead of time and support your local promoters as well.

see you at the Worlds!