Happy 50 - As in Years

Hit the big Five Oh today. As in Oh My and 50 years old. Sobering and comical at the same time. 50 is a weird age. I know people 50 (and older) who still appear to be overgrown 30 year olds (or even younger). Then other 50 year old folks are already part of early bird special dinner crowd.

Me? I'm hoping to remain part of the overgrown kid crowd as long as possible. Bicycles are key ingredient in remaining a "kid". So, with that, some mountain biking was in order. We have some new neighbors on our street, nice folks. They ride bikes a bit as well. So, we all headed up to Duthie Mountain Bike Park for the day. First visit for them, one of many visits for Ian and I.

Weather was spot on perfect. Sunny and in the 70s. Since I'm now officially old, the theme of the day is all about kids. When we arrived at the park, a mountain bike class for 6 - 8 year olds in progress. Wheelie Fun Dirt Camp is a multiple day deal to introduce kids to mountain biking. A joint venture between the Cascade Bicycle Club and the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance. A popular gig with a waiting list as proof. A very nice program indeed.



Kat Sweet instructing the class. Kat is very involved with teaching mountain biking, especially for kids and women. I've run into her at various events and chatted a few times. Very nice woman. Oh yeah, she also races downhill. She could probably kick your ass, no problem. Click here for a cool video by Kat.

The kids circle the open area of the park during a riding exercise. Mixed in there is my Trek pal Kurt's son, who took the class today. Total coincidence running in them, but always fun to talk with.

Our 8 year old neighbor Caleb in action. He's new to trail riding, but did great. His dad, Dave, also seemed to have a good time. We buzzed around the park for a few hours, together and separately. Ian racked up 20 dirt miles on his speedo. I'd guess Caleb did at least 10 miles. Nice job. I did a few fast solo laps of the XC trails myself. Duthie has something for everyone.

Neighbor Dave manning the camera, the three kids pose for a parting shot. One "kid" a little older then the rest, but had just as much fun. We all hit Chipolte on the way home, our usual post Duthie ride ritual. Wife and daughter baked a nice birthday cake later in the day. Somehow they seem to put up with all this bicycle nonsense.

This weekend I have a little more demanding 50 year celebration planned. Marked off a 10 mile lap in our local woods and plan to ride 50 miles of singletrack with a few friends. It's my 50 for 50 ride/party. Depending on how I feel, may shorten it to 50 kilometers.

Hey, it's still 50 - plus I'm getting old ...