Bark at the Moon

The moon was full a couple of evenings ago and I woke up early with work on my mind...remembering it was a full moon, I watched the moon set behind BrokenTop and managed to snap a couple of pix:

Hipster Fix

I think we might all know someone who is guilty.....Thanks to Josh for sharing - funny stuff!

Cautiously Optimistic Snow

The scuttlebutt on the local news the last couple of days has been for some snow accumulation in the mountains starting on Friday.  As we all know, weather forecasting seems to be a bit of an art so it is with guarded optimism that the locals are taking said forecasts with a bit of a grain of salt...perhaps more accurately, it should be that we are hoping there is a grain of truth in the forecast.

Considering we have not had any snow in recent weeks, any new accumulation would be welcomed by all with opened arms.  The best part about this time of year seems to be that if we do get snow, it will in all likelihood be limited to the mountains without causing too much mayhem in town.

Hopes are high...we need the new stuff to coat the local Sno Parks for skate and cross country skiing....not to mention some of that fine fluff up at the resort too.  For the time being we will have to be content in believing in the mantra of a local ale from 10 Barrel:  'Pray For Snow'.

go get your snow dance on....

MTB Horse Ridge

Saturday shaped up to be a great day weather-wise and the word on the street was that Horse Ridge was riding well.  I had never been out to Horse Ridge so it was time to get in the car, drive slightly east of town and see what this whole horsie thing was about....

Regardless of what conditions were, it was a nice bonus to be able to get out on a mountain bike in mid February.  We left the parking lot and headed left (north) along the edge of the park as we gradually climbed.  After a little climbing, we got dumped out on to an old paved road (used to be old highway) and we continued to climb as we bird-dogged the areas off the road for trails...as we climbed higher, a trail appeared and we opted to get back on dirt and see where said trail would take us.

The trail continued up the ridge for a while where is started to get a little less than ideal.  Despite the recent warm spell, the trails was a little sloppy up high.  We crested at a viewpoint where we stopped for a little and tried to piece together the surrounding geography.  We could barely see some of the Cascade range due to cloud cover, but we could clearly make out where Tumalo was.  As we rode we got peaks at Smith Rocks and saw that it was raining pretty hard out towards the Ochocos.

We turned around and started the descent.  We hit the first junction and headed downhill on Sandy Wash which was brilliant!  The trail was packed, fast, flowy, and did I say fast???  It was the highlight of the day and it seemed to go by way too fast.  Soon enough we were back at the car and packing to head home.  Unfortunately my computer started but then I must have hit a button as it recorded all of about 1 1/2 seconds of ride time.  Being the data geek I am, there was no data to look at...it will have to wait until the next ride out there.

It was roughly a 2 hr ride with some good exploratory riding on the dusted off singlespeed -

Good times!

COB A.D.D.

The Central Oregon area has had a recent warm up which has created a bit of a dilemma...the snow is not exactly primo & the immediate trails are not ride ready quite yet.  This does not mean there is a lack of alternative for play though.  With a little motivation there are places that are rideable right now and there are plenty of places to road ride, skate ski, snow show, climb, etc...

Friday was a really nice day weather wise and I was able to sneak out of work just a wee bit early and squeeze in a road ride before the sun started to set.  I was pleasantly surprised by how many fellow riders were out trying to milk the good weather.  What struck me while riding was that it is common place to see people taking advantage of these windows to get out and ride - it is amazing just how many people were out.  The benefit to that is it creates an awareness for drivers...they tend to get used to seeing bikers and as a result, they are just part of the landscape.

It was a great way to start the weekend -

Video - Grace Under Pressure

I am not so sure I would have the skill or composure to pull this off!

Tubeless Fatty - Take 1

One of the appeals of going with the UMA rims was that the word on the street was the rims played nice with going tubeless.

The big reason for tubeless is that the tubes on these fat bikes are heavy, and in all the wrong places:  rotational weight.  The further out the weight is on the circumference of wheel, the 'heavier' the bike feels.  The Surly tubes run close to a pound a piece!

I got some 90mm stans tape from Fatback and took a shot at setting the front tire up as tubeless.  The big challenge with a tubeless set up on fat bike rims is having a tight enough seal to inflate the tires.

I tried inflating the tires after installing the stan's tape and sure enough, air was escaping as quickly as it was entering.  I then added a light layer of the blue foam sill tape to build up the middle of the rim and that was enough to create a tight enough seal for the tire to inflate.

I inflated the tire to about 35 psi in order for the tire beads to seat properly on the rim and then promptly deflated the tire so I could put in Stan's sealant.  After a quick injection of Stan's, it was time to re-inflate and seal up any leaks.  I brushed soapy water on the tire and rotated the wheel to the leaks and jiggled the wheel back and forth until the Stan's sealed up those areas....I did the wheel dance (wheel jiggle) as I worked my war around the wheel/tire and left it for 30 minutes to sit on one side, and then flipped the tire over to the other side...fast forward a couple of weeks and it is still holding air....

Success!!

Process went sorta' like this:
Rubbing alcohol to wipe off any grime....

90mm wide Stan's tape:

Roll it on tight!

Find valve hole and puncture through tape:

Install sill tape to increase 'volume' for tire to bead

Put tire back on and wipe sidewalls with soapy water (help for tires to 'slip' on and bead better)

inflate to bead the tire on the rim (inflate to around 30-25 psi)

Inject some Stan's

Re-inflate and let sit to see if it holds air....work Stan's to places where soapy water is bubbling and move tire around so that Stan's plugs up the escape hole...

Meissner Luminaria

As first year residents in Bend, it is easy to get overwhelmed by all of the activities and events to try to keep up with.  It seems like there is something EVERY week and it is almost a full time job trying to keep up with all the great options for getting out into the community.

The Virginia Meisnner Sno Park hosted the Luminaria starting at 6 p.m. on Saturday.  We pulled into the parking lot and managed to get the 2nd to last official parking spot before cars started to get parked along the road and entrance.  As we went over to the hut, we started to see what Luminaria was all about.  The Sno Park hosts this event every year in an effort to try to raise money to fund their grooming efforts.  The complex is pretty much fully funded by the community via volunteer work and donations.  It is an amazing system of trails for the skate skiers/cross country skier/snow shoer.

The Luminaria is another effort at fundraising (albeit subtle since they just leave a 'tip' jar where we enter and there is no pressure to contribute if you choose not to).  Considering all the hours of fun that they have given us, we made our donation and felt great about it as we put our skate skis on and make sense of all the activity.

There were candles along the way from the parking lot all the way to the Meissner warming hut.  The candles were on either side of the trail for the 1 1/2 miles out to the warming hut.  Over 600 people were at the event so you had to weave your way through the hoards (in the candlelight).  Next year we don't plan on taking the skate skis as they made it less than ideal to snake through the people (especially going up hill or downhill).  We made it to the warming hut where everyone was gathering around the fire pit where a big toasty blaze provided heat and a conversational topic.

I was surprised by how many families were out.  There were people cooking hot dogs on the fire, there were others in the warming hut hanging, eating, drinking, chilling...There moms/dads trying to keep track of their kids in the dark...all in all, it was great fun.  I hope to be a little better prepared next year and will take snow shoes and pack some food / drink in a backpack.

It was amazing to see so many people out and enjoying one of the many fun activities this town has to offer - I am constantly getting pleasantly surprised but the depth and width of choices in this little place. Very Cool!

Feb Roadie

The weather has been clear and mild enough to be able to get out and get those skinny tires rolling.  I dusted off the road bike and decided to spin the legs for a bit on Saturday.  It was a beautiful clear day with views a plenty.  It was a relatively short ride, but it was great to get out!

I headed towards Sisters via backroads and there were a couple of spots where the view just opened up to see the Sisters range.  It was a good day to be out...

Sub Fiddy Skate

My last trip up to Virginia Meissner included a serious flail sesh thanks to the condition of the snow/ice (and of course my limited skill set).  It had been a week since I had been up to the trail system and the conditions at the time were super sketch and ended up putting me on me arse about 4 times (all on the downhills due to lack of control on that there ice stuff).

With a bruised ego, we went back up to Meissner after work on Wed for a shot at redemption.

The snow was in pretty good condition (especially compared to my prior fall sesh) and in the back of my mind was the elusive ultimate goal of doing that tangent loop without stopping.

The first 3-5 minutes on skate skis always seems to be like it is the first time on those darn things.  Soon enough, the cadence came back...and it was just in time for the grunt of a climb over to Wanoga.  About 1/2 way through the hill I realized there was a shot at clearing the hill without having to stop and keep my lungs from bursting.  I tried to manage my red line and somehow managed to clean those sections until we hit the flatter sections again...next up was the last push up the hill to Wanogo...push skate push skate push skate...the top of the hill was in sight and the possibility was there.  Soon enough we were heading downhill and cruising again.  As a newbie, the downhill is perhaps more stressful and straining than going uphill.  The modified snow plow somehow seems to put a lot of strain on the legs so resting on the downhills is still eluding me.

Fast forward a few minutes and we were on the home stretch!  The non-stop lap was in reach!  only 1 long downhill to go and another climb and the home stretch would reveal itself....just for some spice, the backside downhill was icy!  I was now thinking that not only did I want my non-stop lap but I was going to be a tad greedy and shoot for a no-fall lap too!  Don't jinx it....

I somehow survived the ice on the downhill and started to realize the last uphill was icy and it was time to just keep moving.  At this point the wifer had skated off into the distance and it was me, myself, and I against my newbie goal.  It was just one more little flat push and the goal was met!
It was my perfect skate...a cheap thrill, a low bar goal, but hey, small steps......

The little pleasures in life are what get you through the day to day silliness and this non-stop lap gave me some satisfaction.  The best part....not only was it a non-stop lap, but it was a sub fiddy minute lap on Tangent to boot!  ohh yeah....let the flailing continue!  yeehaa.
Next up...time to explore the other trails in that system...being consumed by survival on these little skis has had me focused on one loop - time to esssssplore some other goods there.

Crater Lake Backcountry

sublime...can you say sublime?

It might just have been the best day out in the backcountry that I have experienced.  On the surface, it should not have shaped up that way at all.  I met Toad down at the lower lodge for a day trip.
The plan was to get out and do some recon on gaining the ridge that leads up to Garfield Peak.  The proudest line goes from Garfield Peak down the steep side and heads back to the main lodge area.  This was not in our plans as we were really just getting out and getting a lay of the land.
That particular line will have to wait for a day when the snow conditions are uber stable since that particular line is an avie line that goes EVERY year...maybe in the spring when the snow is more stable...

back to the day trip.  We parked at the lower lodge and started to follow the cross country path/road until we found what we deemed a suitable place to start trying the climb to gain the ridge.  We crossed a bridge and were very pleasantly surprised at the recent snowfall.  It had been raining in Bend and Ashland where we had both come from and our hopes for weather at Crater were along the lines of frozen rain.
It had snowed about 2-3 inches overnight and 3-4 inches the prior day so the snow conditions were really quite good.

We slipped into the trees and the angle increased and the snow in the trees had sloughed off on the downhill side to create an icy surface.  Our skins were starting to become useless so we took our splits off and boot-packed about a 100 ft higher until the slope backed down again.

It was a relatively mellow skin and we kept trying to poke at the snow and pay attention to what the snow was telling us relative to safety.  We took the cruiser ridge up until it opened up to the backside and for a brief moment, the clouds parted and we had phenomenal views of Garfield and Applegate Peaks.  The snow looked like a nice fluffy blanket with absolutely zero tracks anywhere you looked...it was nice and peaceful.

The weather rolled in and out and the clouds remained pretty constant.  We saw Garfield Peak and decided to skin up to the top and ride down the backside that was lower angle and low avie danger.  While at the top, we ran into a couple of other BC enthusiasts who were contemplating the prized cherry line heading back down to the lodge.  They dug a snow pit and we went over to see what we could learn from the pit.  Regardless, we were going back down the mellow way since we wanted to traverse over to Applegate Peak and check that descent out too.  The results from the pit were enough to deter our fellow snow chasers that today was not the day to head down.  We felt better about our initial assessments and plans relative to that prize.

We went into ride mode and had a quick descent back into the saddle where we went back into skin mode,

I had just installed the skin tail adaptors and ohh what a wise decision that was.  Toad's skins start to slip n slide...we tried the duct tape fix and that lasted for a little while until bob went into boot-pack mode.  Fortunately we were sorta kinda close to the peak and the arduous work of post holing in the snow did not last too long.

We decided to take our time and try to wait for an opening in the weather where it cleared up so we could take some pictures.  Our location would have been prime for some great pictures if the clouds would have allowed...but it was not to be.  We decided to get back into ride mode and start heading downhill.  Bob headed down and I watched eagerly as he floated down the beauty S curves in virgin snow...can you say ear to ear grin?

I started downhill and had that soulful ride downhill carving nice generous turns into the hill while a lazily cruised from bend to bend.  We knew we would have to go back into ride mode since Applegate Peak dropped but then went back uphill to gain the top of the ridge that would take us back to the car.  We found a little gully where we were able to squeeze every last inch of momentum...as we stopped, we looked at each other and did not have to say a word...mmmm mmmm sweet nectar

It was time to look back up-hill and see our turns....We quickly went back into skin mode and scoped out possible lines of descent from Applegate as we worked our way over to the ridge.  The skinning turned to ride mode quickly enough and we found a great little shortie descent that provided about 5-6 turns of bliss until we darted back into the trees.

Soon enough we reached the spot where we had to boot up on the way up...we rode carefully through the trees and watched as the slough raced ahead of us due to the angle.

All too soon, we were back in skin mode and heading back to the car....6 1/2 hours of adventuring in the backcountry turned into a phenomenal day of therapy for the soul.

and a good time was had by all.....

Worthy Brewing - Pre Soft Launch

Worthy Brewing is going to be the latest addition to the long list of breweries in Bend.  They are officially opening today but they had a pre-soft opening last week.  We dutifully went over to check out the space and the latest offerings to Bend's extensive beer options.

It is the first brewery on the 'east side' and it will be interesting to see how busy they will stay.  They have a huge space and their ability to can and bottle on-site probably gives them a leg up for sales down the road, but they are probably at a slight disadvantage relative to location...then again, they could be in the prime location!  No one thought 10 Barrel was going to be a good location and they are constantly busy busy busy.

back to Worthy....They are still ramping up and it will be interesting to go back in the daylight hours to get a better feel for the space.  They seem to have a large area for outdoor seating with the obligatory fire pit to huddle around.

I tried their taster of the 4 beers they currently have on tap and I look forward to going back and trying their food options.

Some pictures from our excursion last week:

Video Stoke

Jay crushing the Tour Divide....

What is the Backcountry...to you?

As the appeal of the backcountry started to grow on me, I started to think about just what it meant to me....For some, it is about scoping hero lines, getting transported to the top for fresh tracks and nailing big descents.  For others, it is about doing those some hero lines by using your own power (skinning, booting, etc).  For others, it is about being where people are not.  For others it is about a mellow day out in nature and finding the little gems.  For others, it is about spending time with people who are chasing the same intoxication for life...

For me personally, I probably fall into the latter categories of getting out and finding the spots that thin out the herds...and feeling like you are seeing things that many don't have the inclination to want to work to see while spending time in great company.

During my adventures climbing, riding, or backcountry snowboarding, I have come to find out that it takes very very little to get off the beaten path where the herds have thinned out.  Many times a little work goes a long way in finding the places that nourish the soul and inspire adventure.  Once such recent trip was our backcountry adventure to Crater Lake where the intent was just to spend the day doing due diligence to figure out how to gain access to the ridge that accesses Garfield Peak.

Our due diligence turned into an especially good day thanks to the sense of adventure of not having a hard core objective for the day.  Our only objective was to get up on that ridge and see what was back there.  Long story short, it was a phenomenal day and it opened my eyes as to what experience it is that I seek when out there...

The snow was perfect (roughly 4-5 inches of new snow over the prior 24 hrs...we ran into 1 other team of two who followed our skin tracks up...The terrain was all ours and looked like pillows of untracked snow on the slopes.  We were in no rush which made for a nice long day in the backcountry.  The multiple tour/ride transitions made for a nice break in ascents/descents.  We got to learn the lay of the land and had some incredible riding.  The longest contiguous descent we had probably only dropped about 600 ft and there were no steep lines that we were chasing.  It was a great all around day...more to come on Crater, but in the interim, here is some of the day's vibe: