Gol Durned Gravity

I've got some really cool things coming up.

Next weekend, I'm headed over to Cortez, CO for the 12 Hours of Mesa Verde. Gonna hang over there for 3 or 4 days after to soak up western Colorado rays and ride singletrack in Dolores and Durango.

This weekend my friends Ed and Jen are headed up from the Front Range to ride the emerging singletrack here in Salida. The warm weather has the melt-off in full swing, and the Arkansas is running fast chocolate milk. And good riding is drying off; higher and higher.

But you know, every time you get excited about stuff that isn't church, God comes along and messes with you.

Icky weather oozed into the state yesterday. There was controversy about just how icky it would be, but I figured I better get out and do some riding yesterday just to be sure I had a little training under my belt before next Saturday when I'm expecting to race for 12 hours.

Riding down Cottonwood, be-bopping along with a kickin' Beck song in my earphones, I swooped to the right around a large rock jutting into the right side of the trail. My front tire cleared it, then the chainring chomped into it and I found myself flying through the air. Thanks to Gol Durned Gravity I landed--right on the top of my head. My neck was the crumple zone. My hands were still on the grips. There I lay, a rumpled mass with Beck still jamming in my earphones. Ow.

Thank you God (Buddha?) for not making me a quad, and thanks for modern bike helmets which kick ass. I rolled onto my butt and moved my head around. I could hear a sound like a fist full of crushed Saltine™ crackers grinding around in the base of my head. But the important thing is, I could move my head around!

Yeah, I can find the silver lining. But today I'm having to look hard for it. I'm pretty sure Ed and Jen are coming regardless of the weather, but the we probably won't be riding the Rainbow at 9,000 feet today.


Snowing so hard, it actually snowed a mini-Winni.

And I'm just a wee bit sore. Just a wee bit. When you're in your 40's, it's not such a great idea to slam yourself down onto your head. Much more fun when you're 25. Tomorrow I'll know how sore I'm going to be. But I'll survive. And I'll ride with Ed and Jen if they are into it. Just may be a little uncomfortable, which is like life--just a little uncomfortable, mostly.

How much more riding will I do before I leave for Cortez? We'll let's ask the National Weather Service what they think:



Good ol' Colorado mountain spring weather. But, of course, we need the moisture!