AHHH Almost another year gone by

Figured I better post since it will be the last one for 2008...amazing how quickly time goes by...it is so true what was told to me and everyone else when we were young "time flies as you get older"...damn if it isn't true...looking at my poor little puppy laying on the couch sleeping all curled up she has white hair on her face now...she turned 9 yrs old this month on the 3rd...I'm going to be a "GRANDFATHER" again this coming April, my third grand child, amazing...I always remembered and imagined and actually experienced "grandparents" as OLD...they have gray hair, wrinkles, missing teeth...DAMN THATS ME, I'VE GOT ALL THOSE, HOLY COW, I'M A REAL GRAND PARENT...Yikes...HAHAHAHAHAHAHA....See the picture above...sure looks like it to me!!! Funny the last few days of every year they always talk about who has left us this past year...now this is when you start really thinking (trust me young guns, this will hit you sooner than you think, so quit thinking I'm "waxing" ridiculously)...and realize a number of the popular famous people are ones that you have grown up with, some are your age, yikes...MORTALITY sucks....so what does this have to do with biking....

hmmmmmm....

Well, as some of you have followed all this stupid writting I do and for those too that know me well and hang out with me...I have had some experiences this past year with my health that has lead to a "re-evaluation" or better way of looking at it "re-discovery" my skills have not wained just my physical well being...the harder I try the weaker I get...So I have learned a new avenue and/or approach to riding....and that is "when in doubt (when the heart starts to pound to hard), dismount". I have been having a real great time meeting alot of new friends and having a blast with our rides...I just now take it a little more easy especially on hill climbs or when everyone wants to "hammer" I just have to settle into my rhyteum and "let go and let god"...thats my speed now. So far so good...

BUT....there is another way to bike that can give you a rush like nothing else...and that is going down...yep DOWN HILL/FREE RIDE...I picked up a Downhill bike in hopes of learning and experiencing this excelleranting speed riding...this is definenetly a concept I can grasp...crazy, fast, fun, and no uphill pedaling (or very little) then shuttle via truck/car/chairlift back up to the top...I am very pumped about getting into this more...have only been out a few times and it is SO MUCH FUN!!!!! Looking forward to a whole new group of friends this spring/summer to meet and hang with, even figured to keep the racing spirit going by maybe giving a try at a few DH races...

You know even though riding is such a love, I believe the gaining of friends fullfills our lives more so than what it is were doing..it's simply a common denominator that brings us all together, at least for me it is...and a HUGE thanks goes out to EVERYONE OF YOU...thank you for being friends I appreciate how you all can tolerate me at times...(another beauty that comes with age, the older you get the more of an asshole your allowed to become HAHAHAHAHA)

Happy New Year to all of ya...I appreciate everyone of you and hope we all can enjoy a super year coming up...Pray for us all.

Ed

The fate of winter.....

IT SUCKS...the time has changed and as we all know it gets dark early...and earlier yet right now...at least on the 22nd it starts going the other way...and it can't change fast enough for me. And now the weather is screwing with the routine weekday rides...trying to find a day to ride was a pain last week with all the rain...I know there is the trainer (yuck)... riding is more than just pedaling...it's about time spent with your friends, being outdoors (preferable soaking up the natural vitamin D, which the doctor tells me my blood is lacking and has me taking supplements) and seeing beautiful places you've never been...WELL WINTER IS REALLY MESSING WITH ALL THAT IS DEAR TO ME...I wish I could click my heels together 3 times and make it all go away...I know I NEED TO GO BACK TO CALIFORNIA FOR THE WINTER...god that was perfect timing last year...then when we all have the time to ride, and the weather wants to cooperate...along comes what they call hunters!!! We all have our personal opinions and since this is my blog...
...oh well..I didn't start this blog to get into things like that or political points of view so back to the weather....again IT SUCKS...so nothing I can do about it...but take advantage of the days when I can ride...I really went out and messed myself up too...I got a DH bike in winter...yikes not good timing, the DH/Freeride parks are now ski runs...WINTER...BAH HUMBUG...Its nice during the late spring or early Fall when the sun is warm, the days are long, the choice to ride is almost everyday or at least pretty much anytime you want to...So it's back to the Gym...I'm going to drown myself at the Gym...I've been away for awhile, and man it feels like it...
Happy Trails everyone.

First Ride on the New PERP

The first ride was close to home at our back door spot of Patapsco State Park...not a real big DOWNHILL area but it did have a few good little ones...

First off I KNEW IT WAS GOING TO BE A bitch TO PEDAL THAT BEAST UP HILLS...and the beast was for the most part out of its element...BUT...I stayed with it for the day, and enjoyed MYSELF...the group of course (as I totally expected) raced off to do their thing...again we were on different bikes and different missions...)

1. Its' brand spanking new and how exciting is that to take your new bike out for a ride...besides needing to get to know it.

2. The Dam run (which I did 3 times, hiked up it)...has some of our favorites jumps and NOW they are definently jumps...and at the bottom I cleared from the trail 4' down right to the asphalt trail...HA...If I feel like playing on some DH, I can park at the Hilltop lot and play for awhile on the 2 dam runs....

3. Funny I still did at least half our usual loop (adding the additional up and downs multiple times) and hiking up the blue trail to the top on the south/west side of the bridge only to run into the gang again...and rode down (stopping twice for the XC DHer's...:)

4. I found some kids with the same interest and they showed me some incredible riding skills as we walked up Vinyard and FLEW down, these kids race DH and have some amazing skills...told me a thing or two about the hows/whys/and the really big advice...TRUST YOUR BIKE, IT WILL DO AMAZING THINGS FOR YOU... they aren't kidding....it was incredible how this bike hooks up and rails the corners...surprised the sh** out of me a number of times...one time I dove into a corner to hot, hit the brake, it slid around, foot stabbed the ground and I kept rocketing around...amazing...surprised me.

5. The rock garden DH from the tire park was SOOO smooth...just blasted right through it all...but then I had all that damn uphill from there...Jason you know the trail thats shoots across/under the power lines where the vine caught me...wow this time I hit that berm, caught air right where I landed was that slight up to the right then left wow it was all so quick and smooth...for going down this is what it advertises it to be...an incredible, precise, smooth, capable, RAIL MACHINE...YEEE HAWWW...can't wait now for spring/summer...going to hit all the different parks...probablly do some beginner Dh races too...

In conclusion, for Patapsco...damn heavy machine...fun on the DH's...YEP...but there just to short there...I'm sure I'll do some more though...just know that I will do walking as well...but it's certainly worth the moments of extreme pleasure...this bike performs the job it's designed for better than anything I've ridin...(yeah I'm a real rookie)...but this bike SHOWS you right from the moment you point down...kind of like Jasons Jet9...it just jumps right out at you with the features it's designed for...the other bikes I've had and ridden just don't act that way, they ride very similar to others...where as these have their own SPECIFIC personalities....

Wish I had some shots of me riding it today but i was off by myself, maybe next time.

Picked up the new Perp

Picked up the new Perp tonight...will be going out tomorrow morning at Patapsco to meet the guys and give it a go...going to be very different...been ridin weight weanies for ever, now a 43lb monster...whew...but man its going to handle sweetly on the single track DH's and the "hits"...careful learning curve ahead...:) Post some pics tomorrow night (it'll be dirty then I'm sure).

My new PERP

Will be getting my new Perp in a day or so...then it's blasting the DH's, jumps etc...a little Freeride fun is in store...come this spring it'll be the ski mountains for me....take the lifts up and blast down....WEEEEEEEE