Back in Action - We Ride Again

Even though the ol' blog has been under radio silence for the last few months, there's been a bit of good ol' bicycle activity percolating in the background.  My favorite riding pal - that be my 15 year old son Ian - mentioned some interest in riding again.  This after a year or so of barely riding at all, following many years of riding and racing.  Cool, no pressure - let's get you set up equipment wise once again.

I should mention he's had a crazy growth spurt over the last two years and now stands around 6' 2" tall.  That meant new everything - bike, shoes, shorts - the whole enchilada.  My previous trick of moving parts over to ever larger frames ain't gonna cut it.  Time for something new. To give you some perspective on the recent growth curve, he was racing a 52 cm 'cross bike in 2012.  Welcome to Crazy Town, I'll be your Tour Guide.

On top of the garage full of old Bikes 'N' Parts being too small, he wanted to try full suspension after only experiencing hardtails and 'cross bikes.  Fair enough. The search began with much bike shop cruising and test riding.  Kudos to many Seattle area shops we visited and talked with over the phone, all of 'em super friendly and customer service oriented.  I wanted to buy a bike from a few different shops, just because they treated us right.  Bike shop folks are cool folks, but you already knew that.

Mixed in with this was the 27.5 verses 29er debate.  After numerous test rides, Ian not fully digging the 29er wheels.  No problem, 27.5 it will be. 26" wheeled higher end mountain bikes now on the endangered species list.  And of course, the Trump family we're not, so budget constraints eliminating carbon frames and XTR dreams.

Long story short, Element Cycles scored us a killer deal on a Santa Cruz Bronson.  XL frame to now match his XL frame.  Aluminum model, mix of Shimano Deore and SLX to keep the cost down.  Nice Fox suspension still included.  Six inches of travel front and rear, VPP design for pedaling efficiency.  Cool bike and it rides fantastic.  Ian is psyched and digging it.  He's not the materialistic kid at all, so fun to watch him enjoying this.

Since we picked up the bike a few weeks ago, been hitting our local riding spots.  Saint Edward/Big Finn Hill and Paradise Valley a few times. Besides the occasional noodling around on my 'cross bike, also been a good excuse for me to ride more often.

Video above from recent after work ride, Ian demonstrating some new trail features in our local woods.  Photo below from the same ride.  Some quality Father 'N' Son time via two wheels.

I think we're now officially back in action, will hopefully crank up the blog reports along with it.  Thanks for reading...

Welcome to Paradise

Racer Boy Ian and I took the short drive over to Paradise Valley for a little mountain bike action.  We hit this place last year and had a blast, with a vow to return.  Today was the day.  

Loaded up the race ready '94 Camry Wagon (envy of the neighborhood...) with bikes and gear and off we went:

The map to it all.  Place isn't all that big, but enough twisty fun singletrack to satisfy.  Met some nice guy in the parking lot, riding a sweet Ritchey 29er in single speed mode, and we all cruised together for awhile.  Why is it that so many cool nice folks, ride mountain bikes?  Must be a DNA thing.  I'll contact the institute for a little grant dough and we'll get to the bottom of this theory.

My trusty 29er rests against sign pole.  Too bad it can't read.  It can ride though and does that pretty damn well.  I've been using this rig for two years now, no complaints.  Felt great on the rooted out, muddy singletrack; which this place has in spades.  There's even a few wooden stunts to attempt, most of 'em pretty tame.  This park is really about XC fun and frolicking.

Ian balances small rocks on the giant, moss covered trail side boulder.  A fun diversion, complete with some Clif Bar chomping.  Another fantastic father/son day out, bicycles being the secret key to it all.

Ian in action, he kicked my ass today.  Was riding smoother and stronger then old bike geek dad, since I was dragging a bit.  Eventually all rides will revolve around keeping him in sight.  He gets older and stronger, while I get older and slower.  That's okay.  At 50+ years old, I ain't doing too bad.  I would guess in the general population of semi-old dudes, only a small percentage of 50 year olds are splashing through puddles on a mountain bike for 2 hours.  I'll take it.  I like not being normal.  Normal is highly overrated.  Trust me.

Fun ride with 2+ hours of cruising around.  We don't know these trails well, so some backtracking and doing a few sections twice (or more).  Wet and muddy, all singletrack, Roots-O-Plenty, tight turns and plenty of smiles.  Ian enjoyed hitting somewhere new for a change.  Me too.

Great place, we'll be back...

Paradise Valley - Woodinville Wonder

I got two tickets to Paradise. Pack your bikes, we'll leave tonight...

Excuse the cheesy wordplay on the Eddie Money song. Eddie Money? Yeah - that Eddie Money. We did visit paradise however, this version located in the wilds of Woodinville. This little gem located only 12 miles from home - and I've never visited until today. What a find.

Son Ian's last day of summer today, school starts tomorrow. He ain't too happy about that. Daughter Amy however, is looking forward to it. Must be a boy verses girl thing. I suggested a late afternoon mountain bike ride to cheer him up. He was cranky about hitting St Ed/Big Finn area yet again - our neighborhood woods. I was cranky about the prospect of loading up the car and driving somewhere. We've been meaning to try out Paradise Valley, so he won - loaded up the car and headed out. Short drive later, we're ready to ride.

By sheer coincidence, while unloading the car - Tom and Scott - Old Guy Ride regulars pull in the lot. Their pal Doug also in for the fun, aboard a new Ibis Mojo HD. Damn nice. Wound up being a group ride with Scott acting as ride leader. Paradise Valley is a pinball maze of singletrack, so having a knowledgeable guide show us around for the first time was a bonus. Scott also raced expert class XC back in the day, and he's still plenty quick. Additional fun fact: His son Max is a junior world champion longboarder. Cool, eh?

Paradise Valley wound up being a surprise - the place is a total blast. Tight 'N' Twisty singletrack, full of roots for added technical fun. It's basically flat, no real climbs, but some Ups 'N' Downs. The occasional wooden structure to spice things up. The Roots-O-Plenty reminded me of my East Coast roots (pun intended. Ha!). There's not a lot of mileage, but the technical aspect more then makes up for it. Brain needs to be engaged for most of the sections. It was dry today, technical level would jump up a few notches when wet. Nothing like working your way over a maze of wet roots. Yes please.

Ride wound up being huge fun, due to the terrain and unexpected biker pal tour guides. Fantastic. I brought a camera and never took one picture. Call me lame. Too busy riding. Trust me, it's pretty cool. I'll grab some pics next time. There will definitely be a next time. Place is too much fun and really close to home. Score !