The Pass Is My Master

6/25/2010

Of the majestic passes that grace Colorado, Gore barely merits mention. It's now garnered my undivided, loving but respectful attention.
My first attempt was more than two years ago, and I severely underestimated "the impact of UP". Racing up her flanks in a car, you kid yourself at how easy it might be. Now, I'm more fit and smarter, and definitely more respectful, but again I am denied. By starting out about five miles from the turn at Kremmling, I'm thinking "how hard can it be? We're only talking about 1600' of vertical over 6.5 miles."
Clouds racing by and looking like they feel left-out.....a bit menacing, but no real winds yet. I stop CONSTANTLY for breath, but I slowly wend my way up her side.
The Pine Bark Beetle has devastated Grand County. A hundred shades of rust surround me as I puff and pant my way up this mountain. It's me and the trees, and not much else. The few vehicles I see tend to be trucks; trucks pulling boats and campers. Maybe because the travellers look "local", I seem to garner some respect and breadth in passing...even a wave once or twice.
There is nothing quite like air at altitude. It's a pine on your tongue. A dry purity that's intoxicating.
I'm within two miles when the rain starts; within one, when the hail starts. I'm thinking I'll find a tree to hide under when the lightning crackles and the air becomes electric all around me. My bike is aluminum and this fact is not lost on me. I turn tail and flee. I'm racing the rain line; the rain is heavy but when I steal a quick glance, I'm doing more than 40 mph!
Soaked and cold, I reach the car in a fraction of the time I spent climbing this beauty...and that's ok. I'll ride up her another day.
Just me and the trees.
-r

Cycling Your Senses

Because you're "in the world" when pedaling, you get to experience so many things you'd miss if driving a car. Conversely, while I love to hike, I'm not prone to long walks in the city (too slow, too short, too boring), so I don't experience the same things in the same magnitude, in the same intensity, on foot that I get from my bike.

Smells-
From good to bad, the smells rush at you and make you think. Bad cologne on the walker you just passed. Wet leaves on the ground as Fall takes over. Freshly baked bread from the bakery that's a thousand yards off the trail...but upwind. Standing water that's funky from the algae that's blooming and the rotting vegatation. Water treatment plants along the Platte River Trail that, depending on the wind, can take your breath away! Pedal faster Richard! Junk yards that put off that "cooking metal" smell you only get on the hottest days.
Sights-
Animals everywhere that you won't see when you're in a car, and run away long before you get there if you're walking. Foxes, coyotes, eagles, muskrats, and even the odd snake or two. Geese in the hundreds taking flight and passing just a few feet over your head. They're so majestic in flight....I dare you not to gawk and smile from ear to ear! I've ridden through herds of elk that looked at me like they couldn't exactly figure out just what I was. Deer bounding right in front of me....scaring me senseless.
People of interest on most every ride: I saw what had to be a great-grandfather walking with a 3 year old singing "Old McDonald had a farm...." as I zoomed by them. A couple of 80+ year old women riding in carts being pulled by Shetland ponies on the trail. A man pulling a child carrier that had his two cats in it. Another man riding with his Parrot on his shoulder....the bird was head-into the wind with his wings spread...dreaming of flight I guess.
Sounds-
People conversing about things I have no business hearing...they don't hear me coming, and because I go by so fast, I only hear snippets...and that's enough! "And then he hit me again...." "She said 'I'm not going to wait for you'" The sound of the icecream truck playing that song that brings kids out of their stupor.
Animals-birds screeching, and their prey making what have to be the last sounds they'll ever make. Dogs over fences making sure I'm aware of their presence....either wishing they could come along, or warning me not to mess with their property.
Wind howling through the trees, whistling through my helmet, whipping flags around.
Touch-
The air moving over you at speed...it's unlike anything else I experience. Legs loosening at the beginning of a long ride...getting your stride and feeling strong in the middle...then burning and wobbling a bit towards the end. ("Did I bite-off more than I can chew? Will I make it home without stopping? What was I thinking?....it's 95 degrees/23 degrees!") Your body is alive with the exertion of what you do on that ride. The hills that punish you going up, and reward you with that childlike glee on the descent. They do not care about you, but you certainly take note of them.

The bicycle...easily the best invention ever.

-r

Back in the saddle

Ok, so I'm not sure that I'll do any better on blogging going forward, than I did in the past. The latest obsession is cycling, and I'm ready to buy a bike that will serve as an "around town" bike, but will also handle touring, should I get the time and inclination to do some touring.
Been obsessing on a couple of bikes and I'm a wealth of indecision.
Stay tuned.
-r