don't make me nervous

I seen your qualifications. I'll raise you some willing. That's enough to get me up and over on dirt, back up and over on dirt and upUP and OVER the other way. Whoa. There's some down in there, which follows. A lot of looking on the one hand, 22.4% maximum stated (though I am certain that was exceeded), and a lot of payoff on the other.

A lot. A lot of payoff. And no small part of that is that it could have suuuuuuucked. I know I am not going to be handed the secret stashes without being handed some beatings. Luckily, that dog barked with no bites. Poison oak doesn't bother me so much.

All that to say this: cracks are beginning to appear in what seemed like a clampdown.

____________ is over rated

You know it's true.



Terry Hall is NOT overrated. I was looking at Specials videos (on account of how Good they are) when this gem caught my ear. Where was I in 1997? Living in Telluride, working seasonally at bike shops there and in Moab and blowing it apparently, because this release slid in completely under my radar.



Today was my weekend. I spent it wandering around via cross bike.




Reunited.

I am a chronic loser of left hand gloves. I have 2 right hands of the same model glove. Yesterday I found one of my lost gloves on a post top coming down South Boundary. That's not trick lighting you see there; that's sun bleaching.


Sneaky dirt connector out the ridge, then 68 to South Boundary. At the top, I strained my brain considering the funnest way to get to the 3 Bitches. That's an area of Fort Ord I no longer ride. Last time was last winter, and probably at least a year before that, so the connectors aren't fresh in me mind.

I decided going down 50 and back up 49 to the altar and down, then up Ewok would be funnest. I crashed good on 50, even though it was still excellently tacky. I won't point fingers. I got mixed up at the bottom of the altar/49 and had to back track to remember to cross the dam to find Ewok. It is still a great trail. I was stymied on 3 Sisters Road (we always called it the 3 Bitches, but it is now signed offically as 3 Sisters Road) looking for Velocache.


Are 49 and 50 in perfect shape right now? Yes!


50ish miles.

No parking, baby.

Lately it has been nooks and crannies whispering to me of their potential for linking trails. Fort Ord is a bit of a bummer East Garrison side, given the ongoing devastation/construction. That's too bad, but it's been coming for a while now and it's past time to find other options. Other options are around if we take the time and effort to seek them (witness the sneaky stuff off the top of Veteran's that M____ and I breezed through last Fall). Often, like you, I find myself unconsciously following my normal routes and not even seeing the faint spurs that lead off someplaceIvaguelyrecallwasn'tasfun or whoknowswhere. In that mode I cannot even see how ________'s Ridge could very well provide a dirt access to ___en____ Road because I am head down on the usual, just "getting there".

One of the things I lik so much about riding the bikes is not thinking. JRA doing nothing but being riding. Without getting any more hocus pocus about it, it is refreshing to simply flow with no thoughts in the head. No thoughts about work or what's for dinner or etc. That is the Good Stuff.

But. It is not conducive to finding new trails. Later, after I find these new trails, I will Just Ride Along them. For now, I find myself peering around with different eyes in an attempt to squeeze a little more potential out of this area. I should mention that this exploration is best done alone (for several reasons) and it requires a willingness to ride "trails" that are questionable in every sense of the word.

The rain is back with a vengeance, so I will put these up as a visual reminder of how nice it can be:

Looky looky. That is the Pacific Ocean out there.




That is the rear of my bike right there, in front of the overlook on the Pacific Ocean. Oh, and a fastfood restaurant table for 2 that someonenotme hauled up there. I was riding along examining the liminal areas typically swept right by, and decided to take that one faint hint of a trail...



It is a nice spot to have a beer and watch the sunset.


No parking on the dance floor, baby.