During the first weekend of November, I went to Roamfest Sedona, a women’s mountain biking festival weekend. This event is essentially a party on bikes all weekend! I went last year and had such a good time that I decided to go again. The format was the same as last year: lots of group rides, workshops, and general hang out time with old and new friends; good food and drink all weekend; lots of free stuff provided by the festival and the onsite vendors; clean portapotties, haha. The biggest difference this year is that I knew what to expect and therefore, was MUCH more efficient in what I packed. I drove up with a couple of friends and shared a hotel room with a friend 5 minutes away from the festival venue, which was VERY convenient!
The festival provided demo bikes for people to test ride. I demoed 6 bikes and rode them on the same trail to make it easier to compare the bikes. The bikes I tried, in order of the photos below, are: 1) Transition Scout, XS frame and S frame, 2) Pivot Shadowcat XS frame, 3) Rocky Mountain Instinct, S frame, 4) Rocky Mountain Element, S frame, 5) Pivot Mach 6, XS frame. I really liked the Shadowcat, Instinct, and Scout. Did not like the Pivot Mach 6 at all. I’m slowly narrowing down potential new bike options…
The non-biking activities I participated in included a climate advocacy discussion, a bracelet making session, and a silent disco. The disco is one of the funniest group activities I’ve ever done! Everyone had their own headphones, which connected to 2 different music playlists. You chose the song you wanted to dance to. When I took my headphones off, it was hilarious to hear the (somewhat off-key) singing of all the ladies, but no actual music recording. Most of the group wore costumes, which added to the fun.
Of course, riding mountain bikes in Sedona means sharing beautiful views with lovely people. Looking forward to next year!
Hello, dear readers! It’s late October, which means summer is finally OVER here in Phoenix, AZ. Mornings are actually pleasant and, dare I say, a wee bit chilly, which is such a welcome change from the months of heat, humidity, and general crankiness (I’m not referring to myself at all…). I’ve been enjoying the option of riding later in the morning or — gasp! — late afternoon.
One recent highlight I wanted to share was a spontaneous girls’ weekend in Sedona last month. A few friends and I decided to check out some new-to-us mountain bike trails and visit a couple of mountain bike coach friends in Sedona. Not much to say, other than a great time was had by all. Gorgeous scenery, silly photos, and awesome friends = wonderful time.
Hard to take a bad picture in Sedona.ExuberanceAmo, me, Joanna. Amo and Joanna are 2 fantastic mountain bike coaches based in Sedona.Action shot!Just look at that red rock!We visited the Amitabha Stupa park, which is an outdoor venue for prayer and meditation.Our 2nd day started with a photo opp by a sinkhole!Showing off our best sides in our Shredly mountain biking shorts!Another fun photo.Heidi and I attempting some partner yoga on top of the “Ant Hill.”
At the end of last year, I wrote a list of mountain bike goals for 2022. I realized today that I’ve achieved most of them! Here is my list:
Ride 2,000 miles this year.
Complete the Whiskey 30 race in one piece. (DONE! For proof, check out this blog.)
Learn how to jump intentionally, not accidentally. (I’ve taken a jump clinic and have actually jumped intentionally during rides!)
Go to a bike park for the first time. (DONE! Went to Angelfire in July. For proof, check out this blog and that blog.)
Continue working on my list of technical features. (This will always be a work in progress, but notable achievements include clearing 3 rocky sections on the lower National trail at South Mountain.)
Build endurance to ride my first dirt half century, i.e., 50 miles. (Still working on this one.)
Continue the skills practice by taking clinics and practicing specific skills on my own. (Still working on this.)
Continue to meet and encourage beginner riders to ride. (DONE! I just started my weekly ladies’ mountain bike ride again!)
Not too shabby! Still have time to knock off a couple more items….
I just got the professional photos from the Homegrownclinic and they look great! Vernie Aikins is the photographer and he worked hard during the clinic; he would ride to where all the different small groups were to take individual photos of all the ladies. (His Flickr page is here and his Instagram (@pedalpics) is here.) He also took lots of candid group pictures. These pictures are great souvenirs!
Coming in hot!I miss the lovely trees right now, as I’m stuck in the Phoenix heat.Cornering practice.Beautiful night sky.All the ladies.Waiting for the raffle to start!Vernie took this photo of me and Paula, also from Phoenix, at lunch.
This past weekend, I had the opportunity to participate in the Homegrown women’s downhill clinic at Angelfire Bike Park in New Mexico. I’ve wanted to ride at a bike park for the past year and now I FINALLY know what it’s about! During the summer, a lot of ski resorts offer downhill mountain biking, which I learned is very fun to do. You ride the chair lift up to the top of the mountain, then pick the trails you want to ride down. Even though I knew that there is no uphill riding, it was kind of foreign to me to NOT pedal much at all!
Riding the chair lift with my friends Heidi (left) and Jess (right).
I drove to the clinic with 3 other ladies from my mountain bike group in Phoenix. The clinic was spread over 2 days and focused on several topics, such as bike park etiquette, jumping technique, and cornering technique. We got to practice what we were learning all day on the trails.
We left Phoenix on Friday morning at 5am. Drive time is about 9 hours, but with a couple of stops for gas and a leisurely lunch break, we ended up arriving at Angelfire around 5pm, just in time for the clinic’s happy hour. All 70 clinic participants were sorted into about 10 small groups and during the happy hour, we met our respective coaches, some other ladies, and enjoyed snacks and drinks. After happy hour, my crew went back to our rooms at the Angelfire Resort to get our stuff organized for the next day and to GO TO BED!
Our bikes locked and loaded and ready to go!Cool mural at our lunch spot.We made it! At the happy hour (Gina on her phone and Jess making a ‘peace’ sign).
Saturday: we all met at the Homegrown tent near the chair lift, then split into our small coaching groups. After official introductions, we got on the chair lift (the “Chile Express,” probably named after New Mexico’s famous green chilies?) to the top of the mountain! The small groups were generally split up according to level, which was based on the questionnaire we all had to fill out prior to arriving at Angelfire. I believe that most of the groups started day 1 with a review of fundamental bike skills, such as body position and braking. It was good we started with the skills, because that gave me a chance to get to know my rental bike (Trek Slash 8, 29″ wheels, 160/170 travel). The temperature was perfect and SUCH a treat after dealing with the Phoenix heat.
Meeting the coaches.All the ladies from my mountain bike group! We had a great group from Phoenix!My first chair lift ride!View from the lift.
After the skills session, we got to do our first run (i.e., descent down the mountain). My group had 6 participants and 2 coaches and during each run, my coaches would stop at a certain point to demonstrate a specific skill, such as jumping. (For those familiar with Angelfire, the trails we rode that day included Ziggy, Combi, Diesel, Turbo Diesel, Sierra, and Jazz Hands. All are fun and feature lots of berms and jumps.)
After lunch, which was provided (box lunch: croissant sandwich, chips, cookie, water), we learned that the lift closed due to lightning (and rain). This is normal because of monsoon season. The lift opens when there are no lightning strikes for at least 30 minutes. If there is lightning within a single 30 minute timeframe, the clock is reset. Turned out that the lift would be closed the rest of the day. Therefore, instead of riding, my group snagged a covered spot and practiced trackstands (i.e., balancing on the bike without moving), played cornering games (ride in a square), practiced front wheel lifts, and learned about suspension. Very productive, educational, and creative!
Some of the ladies from my Phoenix mountain biking group met up at El Jefe’s (the Mexican restaurant right by the resort) for yummy margaritas and snacks and to discuss day 1. Then, I decided to eat some of my own food for dinner back in my room, after which I met up with the girls at the resort’s hot tub to unwind and relax. I was tired!
Sunday: All the small groups went up the chair lift to do as much riding as possible. My group focused on jumping for the morning session. I can’t believe I can jump now! It’s so fun to get a little air on the trail. This day marks the first time I was able to jump on the trail…so exciting! We also played around in the “drop zone,” which includes 4 wooden platforms of varying heights that you can “drop” off of. I’m not quite ready for the bigger drops! After all that jumping and dropping was a very tasty lunch of burgers and potato salad (and a cookie!). Tasted so good.
The 4 drops in the “drop zone.”Lunch! I got an Impossible burger. Yay for vegetarian options!My small group.
Our afternoon session was NOT cut short by inclement weather. However, we DID end early for the clinic’s raffle. All of our names were assigned a number and then randomly selected for fantastic prizes, like Dharco pants, Wild Rye apparel, an Outbound Lighting bike light, mtbvibes jewellery (made by one of the clinic coaches, Joanna Yates), and hats. I won a fun pair of earrings I’ve had my eye on for a while! We all got free t-shirts too. And….that’s the end of the clinic. But wait….there’s more! All of us Phoenix ladies had dinner at the Peruvian restaurant near the resort to celebrate a great weekend (good food! I’d come back). Then, most of us went to the hot tub to relax. That hot tub worked because I was super tired. Ah…bed….
Waiting for the raffle to begin.Me with my earrings that I won, courtesy of Joanna!Look at the little leopard!So. Many. Bikes.At dinner with the Phoenix crew.Enjoying some patio time.El Jefe’s patio (Mexican restaurant beside the resort).
Monday: bonus day! Three of my friends and I decided to stay an extra day to practice all the things we learned. I rode my own bike (Pivot Mach 4) which felt unstable and small after riding a downhill bike! Because of that, I opted not to ride any black trails. I noticed that I did not feel as stable on my bike as I did on the rental Trek Slash 8. Also, the Trek’s wheels are 29″ and my wheels are 27.5″. I felt like the Trek rolled over chunk much easier than my Pivot due to the wheel size. (Note to my Self-Appointed Trainer (SAT): I may be looking for a new bike soon….)
My group took a lot of fun pictures during our first run. We were having a great time riding the trails and enjoying the beautiful scenery. For the second run, my group split into two. Gina and Heidi wanted to check out some black trails and Jess and I decided to ride all of Easy Street, which is a really fun green trail with lots of opportunities to practice cornering. During one break, we met Russ from North Carolina, who took our picture. We were not expecting to see him again, but we saw him at the bottom. Because the others in my group wanted to check out more black trails, I thought it would be good to ride with him, since he seemed to be more interested in riding intermediate/blue trails. So, that’s what we did! It was fun and I played tour guide, showing him some trails my small group did on the weekend.
The lift was closed from about 12:30pm to 3pm because of lightning, so we decided to have lunch at El Jefe to try and wait out the lightning. When the lift opened up, I opted to take the opportunity to shower and pack. I mean….since the others weren’t around, I could take a long shower, haha. We enjoyed a final hot tub session, then went to bed.
Group picture.Being silly on the trail.This little chapel is at the top of the mountain!Showing off my muscles, haha.Cool rock cairn.Me and Jess.Me and Russ.Me with professional enduro racer and one of the clinic coaches, Stefanie McDaniel.Our helmets in formation at lunch.
Tuesday: This day is a blur, as we got up at 4am (NM time) because we planned on leaving at 4:30am. Good thing we packed up most of our stuff in Heidi’s car the night before. I got back to my place shortly after 2pm (AZ time). Yay to seeing my kitties! Yay for not crashing on my bike!
So many takeaways!: It’s hard to remember EVERYTHING I learned, but some of my main takeaways include the following:
2-1-0: This refers to how you enter a “berm,” i.e., corner. You don’t want to brake while cornering. I learned that you should use both brakes just before entering the berm, then just use one brake while cornering, then let go of the brakes to maintain speed and even gain a little speed while exiting the berm.
Inquisitive turtle: As you are cornering, turn your head in the direction you WANT to go. You always want to be looking ahead.
Chicken wings: Keep your elbows bent while riding down steep sections….and while cornering. This gives you room to navigate drops and turns more efficiently.
Pop butt out: This helps to flatten the lower back and straighten the legs a bit to rest them. I found that I was staying in a squat position a lot while riding downhill, which fatigued my legs. Sticking my butt out reduced the pressure on my quads.
Hello and happy 2022, dear readers! Yes, I know we’re well into February. Despite my best intentions to maintain this blog in a timely fashion, I’ve been busy living my life, which is probably a great thing to do, especially in light of a certain global pandemic that is still in our faces 2 years later…I have a couple notable events to catch you up on, so let’s get started!
One of my mountain biking goals this year is to successfully finish the Whiskey 30 race at the end of April. This race is called the “Whiskey Off-Road” and has several course options: the 15-proof, 30-proof, and the 50-proof. What does “proof” mean? “Proof” is defined as twice the alcohol content by volume. For example, a whiskey with 50% alcohol is 100-proof whiskey. Anything 120-proof would contain 60% alcohol, and 80-proof means 40% of the liquid is alcohol.
This race will be my first solo race and the most difficult in terms of distance and elevation. The 30-proof option is about 32 miles long with about 3,300 feet (1000 m) of elevation. Additionally, the race is in Prescott, which is at a higher altitude than Phoenix, so breathing may be affected. (Actually, I fully expect my breathing to be affected. That, along with all the climbing and all the rocks, will most likely adversely affect my performance!)
As soon as I said to my SAT (self-appointed trainer, a.k.a., my husband) that I was doing the Whiskey 30, his eyes lit up and he happily proclaimed that he would “help” me train. And thus it began. The first major training ride we did was in mid-January and was….hard. Of course. We invited our friend, Ian, to join us because misery apparently loves company. That, or my SAT wanted to ensure that I wouldn’t complain too much by having someone else along for the ride. (Ha! I didn’t complain hardly at all!) We rode the “Around the Mountain” (ATM) route, which simply means that we rode our mountain bikes all the way around South Mountain. The route is 35 miles long with 3,300 feet of elevation, which is almost the exact statistics for the Whiskey 30 route. Did I mention it was hard? The first half wasn’t so bad because I already was pretty familiar with the trails. But….I basically died on the second half. There was SO MUCH climbing! However, I didn’t complain hardly at all (out loud). (Note: Yes, I already said that, but it’s worth noting because “not complaining” was actually one of my goals for this ride. So there.) My left quad complained a lot. It cramped up several times, the last of which brought me to my knees. I was SO HAPPY when the ride was done and questioned my decision to race the Whiskey.
View from the north side of South Mountain. We were riding the Ma-Ha-Tuak trail.Ian and I look happy. This is before my leg started cramping.My SAT always looks happy on a bike, especially when he takes me on loooong rides.Quick break.What?? There’s MORE climbing??
As you may know, I’m part of a women’s mountain biking group here in Phoenix. The group’s name is Hawesaholics Babes Ride On, or HBRO for short (pronounced “H-bro”) because most of the members live in the East Valley near the Hawes trail system. I’ve been a member for just over a year and have enjoyed getting to know a lot of women who love mountain biking. At the end of last summer, the group founders asked me if I would consider leading a weekly beginner ride at South Mountain (SoMo) for the ladies who live near SoMo. They saw that I was riding consistently and was organizing a few group rides here and there. I thought that would be fun, so agreed to take on that role. I’ve now been leading beginner group rides since September and have met a lot of other ladies (some of whom live really close by me!), improved my ride-leading skills, and have had a lot of fun.
A couple of weeks ago, the HBRO group had its “Galentines prom” event, which is one of its three major events for the year. We all got to dress up in fancy, prom-style dresses, enjoy going out to a nice Italian restaurant, and hang out with each other while we were clean and pretty and NOT wearing helmets! The big surprise for me that night was being crowned HBRO’s “Queen of the Mountain” (QoM). Essentially, the QoM is nominated by other HBRO members and the QoM title is awarded to someone who contributes to the group/mountain bike community and is a good mountain bike ambassador. Apparently, my weekly rides and a few other events I’ve organized are appreciated! It was a humbling but awesome experience to be acknowledged and appreciated publicly. Not gonna lie, the ladies made me cry! Also, that crown is HEAVY. It was a fun night that I’ll look back on very fondly!
Some difficulties with the crowning.Almost crowned…Newly crowned!With the HBRO founders: Robin on the left and Tiana on the right. Tiana is wearing her ACTUAL prom dress from high school! Tiana is also a LOT closer to high school graduation than most of the HBRO ladies!I had to take the crown off because it kept slipping off my head! I’m with two good mountain biking friends (Vanessa on the left and Gladys on the right). Group picture!
What’s coming up in March? Well, I have a birthday ride in Sedona and a jump clinic to learn how to “get some air” safely, along with my weekly beginner ride and Whiskey training rides. Stay tuned for more updates!
….and here is part 2! At the end of 2020, I joined a Facebook group called Hawesaholics Babes Ride On, or HBRO for short. HBRO is a VERY active ladies’ mountain bike group primarily based at the Hawes Trail System in east Mesa, but members are from all over the Phoenix area. HBRO is invested in supporting women’s mountain biking events and encouraging all women to ride bikes. One such event was the first annual Saguaro Soireé, which occurred in mid-November. Aravaipa Rides put on this event and it was an entire weekend dedicated to mountain biking at Usery Mountain: skills clinics for all levels, bike mechanic workshops, lunch and games, and a race. It was a really fun weekend and I know that everyone learned (or relearned) bike skills and challenged themselves to push a bit harder during the race. I think the thing I like most about women-only mountain bike events is the supportive atmosphere. I don’t mean that co-ed events aren’t supportive, but I’m finding that a lot of ladies I ride with start biking later in life and don’t have the same depth of background in riding as most guys who ride. We’re more similar in our (lack of) experience and approach to riding, so honestly, it’s more fun riding with other ladies. 🙂 The Soireé was a great time and it was fun to hang out with some of my biking friends. (For the record, I was not last in the race!)
(Photo 1: beautiful sky to start the day. Photo 2: posing in front of the finish line. Photo 3: me and my HBRO friends.)
Happy holidays, dear readers! Here we are at the end of 2021…already! I hope that this holiday season is a bit more “normal” for you than last year’s. I recall last year when we all were hoping for a “normal” 2021….well, parts of life went back to “normal,” but a lot of life was still — is still — affected by COVID and its family member variants, such as Delta and Omnicron. However, we need to grab hold of the things that bring us joy and sanity and for me, staying active does that. To that end, here is my first of several “catch-up” posts for your reading pleasure (yes, I know my last two posts were “catch-up” posts….apparently, I haven’t had a lot of time to document my outdoor adventures!).
Way back in November (haha, I know that isn’t THAT long ago, but it sure feels like it!), I went to my first mountain bike festival. I attended ROAMfest in Sedona mainly because it is an all-ladies’ mountain bike festival. What do you do at a mountain bike festival? So many things. You hang out with other people who like riding, you go on group rides, you eat great food, you watch films about mountain biking, you get to test ride fancy (read: expensive) bikes, you get to see all the coolest bike stuff…etc., etc., all in beautiful Sedona. The “vibe” was really positive and inclusive and, no joke, the portapotties were the cleanest I’ve ever seen in my life. There was even a hand washing station next to the portapotties, complete with a working faucet that you operated by foot! (I told my friends that the yummy food and clean facilities were no surprise because WOMEN organized the event!) I split the hotel room and driving with a friend and we made the most of our weekend, seeing and doing as much as we could. I would definitely go again. Let me know if you have any questions!
Waiting to enter the festival venue.One of many bike shuttles.Beautiful Sedona. I “demoed” (i.e., borrowed a bike to test out on a ride) a Pivot Mach 6.Heidi and I being dorky.The vegan meal option on Friday night. Kimchi!Movie night on Friday night.Mountain biking can be dangerous.There was a panel with several speakers who talked about diversity and inclusion in mountain biking.The Friday group ride.The Saturday group ride.Near the end of the Saturday ride.
reluctantroadie 