2turntables
09-09-2009, 07:52 AM
So my good buddy came to NM to visit from Bama. We were old mountain bike buddies and he needed to get a good fix. I decided to put together a sweet itinerary and show him the goods in the 505.
We were fortunate enough to hook up with many good fellas who shared the stoke and added to the delightfulness of our experiences. I came away from these 4 days of riding realizing how much I take for granted and how lucky I am to live in beautiful northern New Mexico.
We did everything… Big shuttle XC rides, Multi-shuttle downhills, All day XC epic, and Lift-served downhill/freeride.
I’ll let the pics do the rest of the talking…
Day 1- Santa Fe - Friday Sept 4: trails - Aspen Vista > Raven’s Ridge > Windsor > Serpent > Dale Ball
Riders: Dave (Crash), Trent, TJ
My awesome sister was kind enough to shuttle us to Aspen Vista trailhead. Climbed Aspen Vista into a raging hail storm. Had to hang out in the ski patrol shack for an hour and wait for the storm to pass. Once the rain/hail cleared enough we dove into a wet, rocky, rooty Raven’s Ridge. That trail is pretty f-in’ intense when it’s wet…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01186.jpg
Trent, being from the southeast, was pretty comfy on the wet roots & rocks…. He was, however, a little worried about the barbed-wire fence…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01197.jpg
That’s all the pics I have of that, but pics of us on Raven’s Ridge are all over the internet anyway at this point.
Day 2- Santa Fe - Saturday Sept 5: trail – 2 shuttles on the world class Rio en Medio.
Riders: Dave(Crash), Trent, another Dave, Steve, Bruce, TJ
It was time to show my Bama buddy what real downhilling in the 505 is all about. Once again, my sweet sister shuttled us up for the first run.
Bruce on the log ride:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01207.jpg
Bama, representin’:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01212.jpg
Me hitting the rock wall drop:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01218.jpg
Trent diving in:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01216.jpg
Dave:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01221.jpg
Bruce:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01227.jpg
Bama Boy!:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01237.jpg
Flyin’ Dave enjoying the last ride on his Trek…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01241.jpg
Bruce is NOT-A-KNOB
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01262.jpg
Bama Trent launchin’ it!
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01265.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01267.jpg
Cerveza time. It was a good day…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01276.jpg
Day 3 - Taos: Sunday September 6: trail- Trail 1 (Elliott Barker) to South Boundary.
Riders: Dave (Crash), Trent, Bryan, Greg, TJ
There ain’t nothin’ like catchin’ up with a good ol’ Taoseno for good times at the house and on the trail. Greg offered his home to us for the evening, poured up some awesome home brew and even cooked us breakfast! That guy can hammer too! This was about a 7 hour ride.
We waited out the rain at Greg’s casa in Arroyo Seco then hit the trail when the weather cleared.
Trail 1 is STEEP. Greg showing us his climbing legs:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01293.jpg
Getting higher:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01284.jpg http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01307.jpg
Some tired dudes…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01312.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01325.jpg
The Taoseno with the custom salad dressing bottle flask… only in New Mexico
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01331.jpg
Day 4 – Angel Fire: Monday September 7: trail- Lift-Served at Angel Fire Ski Area
Riders: Dave (Crash), Trent, Bryan, another Dave, TJ
Labor Day was the last day of lift-served mountain biking at Angel Fire for 2009. I haven’t been there this year, but realized I should have gotten off of my a$$ and hit it more this year. I forgot how sweet the Angel Fire downhill trails are. They are totally different than Pajarito and just as good in their own way.
We assembled our crew after camping out and hit Angel Fire with a bunch of free lift tickets that Bryan scored for us. Since Crash had already destroyed one bike this week, he rented a sweet DH bike from the shop at the ski area. It didn’t take him long to lose his security deposit on it, but hey, that’s Crash – that’s what he does best. The good news is he rented a SECOND DH bike, fell in love with it and made a purchase that will have him sleeping on the couch for a while, once his wife finds out.
Bryan wastes no time getting’ down to business:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01336.jpg
Neither does Crash – He’s got a security deposit he needs to lose:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01339.jpg
Me hitting one of the stunts. This drop eventually claims a victim later…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01361.jpg
Crash rollin’ in…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01347.jpg
And… He’s down!
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01349.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01354.jpg
Bryan and Crash on a log skinny:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01364.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01366.jpg
Then we saw this sweet drop from the lift that we had to hit (Me, Dave):
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01373.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01377.jpg
The long log skinny with an arc at the end:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01409.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01413.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01414.jpg
The day ended with Crash taking a huge swipe on the credit card to pay for some damage and a new big hit bike!!!! Congrats, Crash!
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01421.jpg
The views on the way home were not bad either…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01464.jpg
This was a good 4 days in the 505. My Bama buddy is ready to sell everything he owns and move. I have a renewed perspective on how fortunate I am to live in this beautiful region. I know that I will never be able to leave the mountain biking lifestyle, as it has touched my heart more than I could ever imagine. The places mountain biking allows me to go and the people it allows me to spend time with are rewards that cannot be measured.
It was a damn good 4 days, for sure.
We were fortunate enough to hook up with many good fellas who shared the stoke and added to the delightfulness of our experiences. I came away from these 4 days of riding realizing how much I take for granted and how lucky I am to live in beautiful northern New Mexico.
We did everything… Big shuttle XC rides, Multi-shuttle downhills, All day XC epic, and Lift-served downhill/freeride.
I’ll let the pics do the rest of the talking…
Day 1- Santa Fe - Friday Sept 4: trails - Aspen Vista > Raven’s Ridge > Windsor > Serpent > Dale Ball
Riders: Dave (Crash), Trent, TJ
My awesome sister was kind enough to shuttle us to Aspen Vista trailhead. Climbed Aspen Vista into a raging hail storm. Had to hang out in the ski patrol shack for an hour and wait for the storm to pass. Once the rain/hail cleared enough we dove into a wet, rocky, rooty Raven’s Ridge. That trail is pretty f-in’ intense when it’s wet…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01186.jpg
Trent, being from the southeast, was pretty comfy on the wet roots & rocks…. He was, however, a little worried about the barbed-wire fence…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01197.jpg
That’s all the pics I have of that, but pics of us on Raven’s Ridge are all over the internet anyway at this point.
Day 2- Santa Fe - Saturday Sept 5: trail – 2 shuttles on the world class Rio en Medio.
Riders: Dave(Crash), Trent, another Dave, Steve, Bruce, TJ
It was time to show my Bama buddy what real downhilling in the 505 is all about. Once again, my sweet sister shuttled us up for the first run.
Bruce on the log ride:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01207.jpg
Bama, representin’:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01212.jpg
Me hitting the rock wall drop:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01218.jpg
Trent diving in:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01216.jpg
Dave:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01221.jpg
Bruce:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01227.jpg
Bama Boy!:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01237.jpg
Flyin’ Dave enjoying the last ride on his Trek…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01241.jpg
Bruce is NOT-A-KNOB
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01262.jpg
Bama Trent launchin’ it!
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01265.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01267.jpg
Cerveza time. It was a good day…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01276.jpg
Day 3 - Taos: Sunday September 6: trail- Trail 1 (Elliott Barker) to South Boundary.
Riders: Dave (Crash), Trent, Bryan, Greg, TJ
There ain’t nothin’ like catchin’ up with a good ol’ Taoseno for good times at the house and on the trail. Greg offered his home to us for the evening, poured up some awesome home brew and even cooked us breakfast! That guy can hammer too! This was about a 7 hour ride.
We waited out the rain at Greg’s casa in Arroyo Seco then hit the trail when the weather cleared.
Trail 1 is STEEP. Greg showing us his climbing legs:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01293.jpg
Getting higher:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01284.jpg http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01307.jpg
Some tired dudes…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01312.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01325.jpg
The Taoseno with the custom salad dressing bottle flask… only in New Mexico
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01331.jpg
Day 4 – Angel Fire: Monday September 7: trail- Lift-Served at Angel Fire Ski Area
Riders: Dave (Crash), Trent, Bryan, another Dave, TJ
Labor Day was the last day of lift-served mountain biking at Angel Fire for 2009. I haven’t been there this year, but realized I should have gotten off of my a$$ and hit it more this year. I forgot how sweet the Angel Fire downhill trails are. They are totally different than Pajarito and just as good in their own way.
We assembled our crew after camping out and hit Angel Fire with a bunch of free lift tickets that Bryan scored for us. Since Crash had already destroyed one bike this week, he rented a sweet DH bike from the shop at the ski area. It didn’t take him long to lose his security deposit on it, but hey, that’s Crash – that’s what he does best. The good news is he rented a SECOND DH bike, fell in love with it and made a purchase that will have him sleeping on the couch for a while, once his wife finds out.
Bryan wastes no time getting’ down to business:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01336.jpg
Neither does Crash – He’s got a security deposit he needs to lose:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01339.jpg
Me hitting one of the stunts. This drop eventually claims a victim later…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01361.jpg
Crash rollin’ in…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01347.jpg
And… He’s down!
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01349.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01354.jpg
Bryan and Crash on a log skinny:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01364.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01366.jpg
Then we saw this sweet drop from the lift that we had to hit (Me, Dave):
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01373.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01377.jpg
The long log skinny with an arc at the end:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01409.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01413.jpg
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01414.jpg
The day ended with Crash taking a huge swipe on the credit card to pay for some damage and a new big hit bike!!!! Congrats, Crash!
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01421.jpg
The views on the way home were not bad either…
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t33/fiestastreet/DSC01464.jpg
This was a good 4 days in the 505. My Bama buddy is ready to sell everything he owns and move. I have a renewed perspective on how fortunate I am to live in this beautiful region. I know that I will never be able to leave the mountain biking lifestyle, as it has touched my heart more than I could ever imagine. The places mountain biking allows me to go and the people it allows me to spend time with are rewards that cannot be measured.
It was a damn good 4 days, for sure.