Chris is short for Christmas. Tom, his best friend, found him wandering around Christmas Eve day and took him in for the night. Thirteen years later he’s spent his lifetime hiking in the woods. Chris was our constant companion during our visit with TRACKS, the local trails organization in the Pinetop-Lakeside area.
Over the course of the last two years we’ve seen and ridden a lot of different trails. For the most part, they serve a majority of the mountain bike population, but not every single rider. It’s our view that beginners and expert riders tend to be the most underserved in our sport. Collectively, we need to think seriously about two ideas; lowering the barrier of entry for new or less skilled riders and plan for the folks who continue to reach the highest levels of the stratosphere.
During the rest of our time in Prescott we focused on Trails and Rides/Social. We rolled into town early to attend Pint Nite, PMBA’s 2nd annual fundraiser (remember, they formed last spring…). It was great to kick back and hang with a very energized and friendly mountain bike community. It was all about being together and celebrating trails. This fall they are hosting The WonderSchlutt, a festival full of riding Prescott’s outstanding trails.
We had a splendid time working in Tucson, AZ over the weekend. The blue skies were amazing! Stay tuned for the recap…
Working with Dawn to Dust Mountain Bike Club we partnered with the US Forest Service to make improvements to the much-loved Brown Canyon Trail. Starting early on Thursday morning we didn’t waste any time finding a project for Saturday. The single-digit temperatures quickly seeped through our clothes and motivated us to get our work done and get back inside.
We’re back on the road. Thankfully we’ve managed to escape most of the snow from the latest storm. The last few days have found us enjoying some great desert riding in Arizona. Last year we started with too much rain and snow. Maybe this year we’ll reverse the trend…
Ever heard of a BHAG? It’s a vision, a dream, an idea that seems a little bit beyond reality. It’s a Big Hairy Audacious Goal. In the sport of mountain biking and the world of advocacy, it’s the kind of thing that can transform a community.
Check out the winter 2009 issue of Bike Monkey magazine. Images from Leslie and Chris’s Trail Care Crew adventures were featured in the article entitled ‘Two for the Road’.
For a Trail Care Crew, the mid-winter season is all about ‘training up’ for the year ahead. When we finally pack the cars and head to somewhere warm (and hopefully dry) we are eating, sleeping, and talking trails. Beyond that, we ride…
Week three is in the books and we’re still having fun traveling and working with the other crew, Steve and Morgan…
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Tag: Arizona