The week Alana was born I managed 8.75 hrs on the bike and a good 2.5 free weights and yoga – no small feat given the challenges of having a new human during that time frame. 6 days in a row on a stationary bike left my mind numb, my knees aflamed, and my hip aching from twisting sideways to use my laptop sitting on top of the adjacent ironing board.

I’ve had a lot of time with my sweat and my thoughts.   Among code control issues, email and blogging I’ve been reading Ender in Exile, a sequel of sorts to the classic Ender’s Game.   I read the first one a few years ago, and it was tired characters with ridiculous dialog, but cool ideas of morality and politics in the future.   The 20-year later sequel is much the same – I am liking it in a very painful way, much like the trainer.

i’ve also been watching Traitor, which has Don Cheedle who is pretty much my new favorite actor, and a fair portrayal of muslim extremists.

But finally on Sunday I could get out and ride.   Pass Mtn had been on my mind for being so close and so much rocky work, the best I would get for a gnar fix without it being National.   I’ve ridden Pass Mountain at least 100 times, but seeing Anthony’s pics made me feel like weeping with the joy of discovery.   Its going to be another good spring .

I finally got out at 3 after a stressful day of Day 2 with 2 t.Humans, and i just got a feeling this ride would be good.   I got a spot i think i never got before on the front side where the line is over a big toothy rock or through a deraileur-eating slot…i opted for over the jagged rock outcropping and when it happened its smoothness felt like nothing much at all.   For a while there I got the entire climb.   I sessioned the hard stretch on the north face and unlocked it all, rolled the DH with about as much poise as I’ve put together.   A couple weeks ago this switch went off in my head, where i think i finally got it and figured out how to lay off the front brake and carry speed and carve with the back.   I can’t explain why this took so long, not grabbing the front brake is fundamental and key to the gnarly descents, but letting the speed flow and carving a turn is harder but easier and much much faster.   It feels like those long calm runs through the powder in the blue glades at Wolf Creek, this synergy from boarding coming over into my riding.   1:55 including Cat’s Peak Pass and sessioning, maybe the best day on Pass Mountain I’ve ever had.

I got home feeling great and to everyone sleeping, so Kila and I headed right back out to freeride.   What the hell, I already had on the shoes and knee pads.   The drainage washes off Recker road have some 20 degree 20 yard rocky chunky runoff chutes, and i’ve been practicing turning right into and down them and letting it flow.   Knowing its predictability has made it comfortable, it being comfortable has made it easy, it being easy is making me push my boundaries.

Hiking with Kila below Red Mtn Park last week I round a sharp embankment into a wash, bigger and steeper than the one I practice jumps off.     Its hard to describe how steep and uneven this looks staring down at it, but i knew it was so so so gettable.   I felt the same way about the runoff chutes the first time.   I hit it about 5 times,   picking harder lines each time, and feeling jitters for the first three til I just got comfy with it.   Its not anything special, and the pics are not ego shots but more so I can train myself to see how easy this is. The video was my worst run, cause it was dark and I’d pounded a brew.

Kila was supportive, but little interested in my progressions, as seen in the photo;   reps on this are going to make me so much better.   I can’t wait for Beckie to get back out on the bike, and come for a doggy freeride with me and get some of this back under her.     I wrote this post during a 2.5 hour yawnfest on the trainer, and my knees and back hurt.