More of an update on me and not the jeep. I did button up the Jeep and install new 38" MT Pro XS tires at the beginning of July in order to be able to travel most of the month of July and then be ready to wheel when I got back, but unfortunately my plans have slightly changed and I will be sitting out wheeling trips for the next few months.
My update: My plan was to travel most of July. My youngest son returned from a 3 month hiatus in Europe where he was trying to find himself (I think the only thing he found was a taste for good beer and European night life) so we first went to Florida to visit my family before my youngest returned to work. We headed to the Daytona Beach area to visit my parents, sisters, and extended family, then we headed down to Fort Meyers to visit my oldest son. That trip went great, we got some great prices on beachside Airbnbs, and the wife's subaru got an average of 33.6 MPG for the whole trip, and I visited and caught up with most of my family. While we were traveling my youngest accepted a job and started working the Monday following our return home, it couldn't have worked out better. Then came my next big trip, a buddy and myself were going to do a 10 day van trip from Memphis out to Park City, UT and then back riding as much Mt Bike trails as we could on the way and back.
The first 7 days of the trip went perfect:
Sat -
We left on a Saturday. With two of us we could make good time and we got to Santa Fe NM Saturday night. We hit up a local brew pub and got dinner and slept in their parking lot.
Sun -
Sunday morning we rode the Winsor trail, we shuttled it using the city bus transit and it was a grand way to start a trip. From there we drove to the NM desert to San Ysidro and we rode the Dragon’s Back Trail. Totally different from the Winsor trail in Santa Fe. The Winsor trail was high alpine coming down from high elevation along a stream, it was wet and lush, and full of green. The Dragons Back was wide open and rock, it was like riding on what we would imagine the moon surface to be. It was white with some red, very little green. It was hot and it was fun. We were making good time, so we decided to head up to Aztec NM and we overnighted at the Alien Run Trail Trailhead. It was a nice trailhead to camp at, and we made a plan to get up early and ride early to beat the heat of the New Mexico desert.
Mon -
We arose early to ride the Alien Run Trails. We rode a mixture of hard pack through scrub oak and jasper trees, slick rock, and loose baby heads that slowed the climbs. It was wide open, no shade to see and full of turns, you were constantly turning, and no speed was gained. But it was different and that made it fun. An alien ship crash landing in the area was the story behind the trail name and it was fun to find the memorable that represented the history or told a story for suckers to believe. I do not believe it but I like to imagine that it is true, because that is how my mind works, it needs reason, but it enjoys the rhythm and rhyme.
From there we headed up to Durango, CO for resupply and to have a beer. We then headed towards Cortez, CO and found a campsite on BLM just east of Phil’s World trailhead. Another agreement to wake up early and to ride early to beat the heat. Up until this point, I would say that there was a lot of Rhyme to this story, things were falling into place, we were making good time, finding good camp sites, and the trails were fun and worth the time but they did not provide much rhythm. It was a rhyme that now needed some rhythm and that was about to come.
Tues - We were up early and at Phil’s Trailhead before 6:30am. We were surprised at how wet the ground was since we camped less than 6 miles away and we did not seem to get much rain. But apparently the trails did get some rain. I pedaled out a ways on Coco Race and the trail seemed good to go, a little wet but not sticky. Another rider pulled into the trailhead and stated that he used to live here and that his past experience was that after a rain like this that all the trails would be good, except for Lemonhead, and that he was going to skip lemonhead. This is advice that I should have listened to, but I chose to ignore. For I wanted to ride lemonhead so that I could take a picture of the “lemonhead” girl riding her bike that we found while riding years before. So off we go, and as was foretold when we got to lemonhead the trail had some mud and was slick in areas, but it wasn’t awful, it just put a delay to the rhythm that we would soon experience. The lemonhead girl sign was no more, it must have been removed or stolen, I was disappointed that we did not find it, but was surprised it was ever there to begin with, so just happy that I have the picture from years before. Coco and Lemonhead added to the Rhyme of the trip, it was like humming a familiar tune but we still had not experienced any rhythm with that rhyme. Well that changed when we hit the next few trails. Abajo was just the way to connect the rhyme to the rhythm, just a trail to get out to the fun. The Ledges Loop was a warm up, it got the foot tapping to a little beat, then the rhythm kicked in on Stinky Spring Loop. Fast flowy turns through fields to technical rock sections along the ledges. My heart was singing, my body was dancing, and there was more to come – Rib Cage! We entered Rib Cage and the Rhythm of the trip just exploded, fast, flowy, up and down, g-outs, and getting air over the top, turn after turn, up and down, it was music that possibly only I understood, but I think others do as well. The beat was knocked down a bit as we took a newly cut in trail called ebb and flow, it was fun, but needs ridden more to reach it’s full potential. Then we hit DRB ESB and the song of the ride picked up again and provided a nice rhythm to the end of a great ride. The rhythm was there, we were up beat, we were excited, it was time to allow the rhythm to flow and control the next part of the story, for we had the rhyme and now we had some rhythm, things were about to get good.
Plan was to drive to Price UT and overnight in Price. In Price we would just take a rest day or possibly ride a few miles of local trail, there was really nothing special on the list, just a transfer point from Cortez to Park City. On the way we had to go through Moab, UT and decided to stop for a beer. I think the rhythm of the day is what had us stop and the rhythm of the day is what had me make the call. Coyote Shuttle Service to take us to the top of the Whole Enchilada, it was a bucket list trail, and we had the opportunity to do it and with that opportunity we had the time. Coyote Shuttle had a rhythm that didn’t quite match mine, but it was a rhythm that I liked and the plan came together to ride The Whole Enchilada on Wednesday morning. The rhyme and the rhythm were coming together to make a song and I was wanting to hear it, I could feel it. But first….. a bonus track of Arches National Park. Since we had some time to kill in Moab and I had never been to Arches, it was a good time to do a quick trip through to see the sites. It was like a bonus track added to the album, it was a nice surprise and glad to have it, but overall just a time killer. We parked in a gravel truck stop lot and set our alarms for 5:45am. The Coyote Shuttle was to take us to the top of Whole Enchilada at 6:30am and the song of the trip was building to it’s pinnacle.
Wed - (this may bore some of you, but it was such a great experience that I am going to go ahead and include it all, if you are a Mt Biker and never rode the Whole Enchilada from top to bottom, I highly recommend it)
I was in the van changing clothes when I heard them say that I had to hear this and I had to make the decision. The rain the night before could impact part of the Whole Enchilada trail, specifically, the two trails in the clay belt; Hazard County and Kokopelli. I was given the facts and understood that there was a possibility that the clay belt may force us to ride gravel service roads from the bottom of Burros to LPS skipping about 8 miles of trail. I felt that Burros was worth doing even if we had to skip the next section AND that it was worth the chance that the rest of the trail would be good to ride. The song was playing and I was hearing it, I had to go to the top.
The song delivered! The first section was up and down through wood and field. We crossed mud slush (ice and mud) at least twice, maybe three times. We then crossed the cattle guard to start the Burros Pass Trail. Soon after the cattle guard it was a push to the top of the pass. It was a hard push at elevation (pushing from approx. 10,300ft to 11,000 ft) but it was a push that I am grateful that I got to make, not only for the descent that we were about to embark on but the scenery that the push provided was one that I have never seen before. We were above the tree line in a huge steep meadow full of green grass and yellow and purple flowers. We were in a bowl with gray rocky mountain tops at the lip and the sides were made of the green meadow full of purple and yellow and the bottom was the tree line. It was nothing that a photograph could capture, only the human eye could capture the true beauty, and the slight suffer of pushing my bike up through the beauty at elevation with a slight gasp for air just made it better. Upon reaching the top of the Burro Pass, the wooden sign that marked the location and elevation was worn by weather so that you could no longer read it. I am happy that the sign was unreadable, because it would have provided a photograph that somehow may have been more important than the beauty of the climb itself. Yes, I was happy to be at the pass, at the top, but that was a climb that I hope stays etched in my memory and no photograph of the celebration at the top should replace that memory. There was rhyme and there was rhythm and it had a reason, to get to the top of Burro Pass to start our descent. The song was playing and I was ready to dance.
I knew that the descent from Burro Pass was going to be steep, tree covered, wet, rooty, and rocky. The area was not that long ago under snow and saw rain the night before, so I was expecting and ready for the wet and slick descent. However, the steep now changed the tempo and the rhythm of the song. We went from a long steep hard push up with the tempo of our gasps for air as we climbed and viewed the beauty, to dropper down, ass back, chest on seat, trying to maintain the correct speed that allowed for the wheels to turn and not slide but still be slow enough to navigate the wet rocks and roots. It was System of the Down Toxicity at its finest played out on the mountainside, for only us to hear and be part of. Burro Pass may have been my favorite part of The Whole Enchilada if I would have to choose, but luckily the trail doesn’t make you choose, it just delivers and you either find your rhythm and enjoy the song or continue on looking for reason. I had my rhyme, rhythm, and reason at this point and was enjoying the song. At the bottom of Burros Pass trail we came into a huge aspen field full of awesome color, tall green grass, with colorful wildflowers, the bright gray trunks of the aspens with the bright green leaves. We stopped to take a picture, but pictures don’t do it justice. It was the end of the first song of the day, and the DJ had more for us to play. Next up was a big climb at the start of Hazzard County Trail.
I had no clue what Hazzard County Trail was going to be like, all I knew is that it was the start of the clay belt. Merrick, our shuttle driver, told us that the climb can fool us into thinking everything would be OK, and when we got to the top of the climb and started to descend if the clay was sticking to our tires that it would only get worse from there and that we should turn around and head for forest service road to LPS. As we started the descent, it was a little wet and you could see some dry but nothing was sticking to the tires so I let loose of the brake levers and let the bike descend through the huge meadow. Wow, Hazzard County Trail was unexpected, it was not only a fun descent with twists and turns through a huge meadow of green but the views extended miles and miles to the red rock below. At one point I was moving with some speed and looked up for a second and was blown away by the view so I came to a stop. I had to stop and enjoy the view. There was rhyme, rhythm, and wow what a reason. After a spectacular descent through the green fields with the twists and turns and rocks to watch out for and to hop over, I finally made it to the end of the Hazzard Trail and the last 20 feet of the trail was a ditch that climbed up to the forest service road and the ditch was still wet from the rain the night before and the clay gripped and stuck to the tires. This 20 feet provided us with the picture of what could have been and it would have been bad, the clay sticks to everything and makes the bike unrideable, even un-pushable, you would be forced to carry your bike. But for some reason the song delivered for us on that day and the trail dried just enough that morning for us to enjoy.
Up next Kokopelli double track. Again, we were lucky that the track was dry enough that the clay was not an issue. Kokopelli to me was just a doubletrack that I had to use to get to the next section of single track. It was not really that memorable, I know it was double track, I know it was in the open sun, I know it was starting to get warm, but I don’t really remember the track itself. The Kokopelli was the slight transition between songs, barely noticeable but needed.
Upper Porcupine Singletrack (UPS) was up next and it is split into three sections, upper UPS, middle UPS, and lower UPS. Again, hard to pick favorites on this ride because each section is so different, but the UPS was what I needed at that time. UPS is the first introduction into what I would consider Moab with the red and white slick rock and the short juniper and pinion trees, it just felt right. It was hard and it was technical; Tight, swooping, singletrack, over rock, and along cliff edges. Hard short punchy rock climbs with short steep descents as you turn around a juniper tree at the edge of a cliff. It was fun, it had it’s own rhythm, you understood the reason, it was bliss, it was memorable. We stopped a few times to look back up the descent from the cliff edge and what a view! If Burros was like System of the Down, UPS was like a good Zepplin song, Vahalla, I am coming!
At the end of UPS you start onto LPS (Lower Porcupine Singletrack) and there is a split; you can take either the double black rated SNOTCH or the impossible to ride NOTCH. Merrick our shuttle driver told us that SNOTCH is rideable if you have the skill, but it is a tough walk because of the steep slick rocks. NOTCH is not rideable but it is easier to walk because it provides you with “stairs” or “ledges” to walk down. We stopped and looked at the SNOTCH and WOW, I can see the rideable line, but it was not for me, high respect to all those who ride that line. We decided to take the NOTCH. The first part of the NOTCH was actually a very challenging, technical, rock descent, that I was very happy to have cleared, when I looked back, my partner had also cleared it which made it even better! Then there is the NOTCH, which is basically carrying your bike down a vertical 20 foot cliff, it is definitely not ridable, but there was a way tp climb down. Manipulating my bike down through the notch, I somehow ended up bending a rear rotor and also dropping the chain off the chain ring, but other than that, the NOTCH was over and we were back on the bikes. The Rhyme was there, it was playing in my head, the rhythm had been interrupted with that cliff walk, but the reason was clear, to the bottom we must continue!
Porcupine Rim Trail was up next and I knew the beginning was going to be a double track jeep road, but I did not realize how long the jeep road went on before it went back into singletrack. The jeep road was not easy, it was very rocky and you constantly had to pick your lines. I kind of relate this to classic Moab riding, which has slowly been replaced by actual singletrack. But I must say, if you have never done it, it is a must do. It is not easy, it is jarring, picking your line through rock and over ledges, there are short steep climbs, and you are in the open sun. You can find brief sections of speed, just to grab handfuls of brake to pick a line through a rock ledge section. It is thieves and liars, inside, outside, which side, you do not know. The song continues and it is still delivering the goods.
After approx. 7-8 miles of Porcupine Rim doubletrack you go through a gate and the trail starts to turn into singletrack as it turns towards the Colorado River. You can start to see the Colorado in the distance and you can tell that you still have a lot of elevation to descend over the next few miles. This last section of Porcupine Rim trail was pure fun, there was some exposure, some tough descents through rock, some steep quick ups, and there was some hike a bike. The rhyme and rhythm was like; Please allow me to adjust my pants so that I may dance the good time dance. And you knew the reason, it was to get to the bottom. There was rhyme and rhythm with one hell of a good reason! It all came together and it all made sense and it made for a memorable day!
With smiles on our faces and hi fives all around, we headed back to town via road and rail trail. Packed up our stuff in the van and off to our next destination, which was Park City, to ride with another friend and character in this story for the next three days. Off we go!
Thurs, Fri, and Sat -
We rode around Park City. We rode three big days with the first two days being full of elevation. Day 1 consisted of a Big 9 mile climbs up to Wasatch Crest, then some technical traversing, before we hit some fast and flowy descents. Day 2 was another big day where we climbed approx 5 miles on Park City Mountain side, then traversed over to Deer Valley, then rode some fast and flowy sections before bombing it back through Park City Main Street to get back. Day 3 was not as much elevation gain but it was in the valley and hot, it took a lot out of us. It was long days on the bike, but well worth it.
Sun-
Plan was to take a rest day for our legs and to travel to Fruita, CO. We were going to ride 18 road area on Monday morning and then head to Buffalo Creek over towards Denver to ride a big loop at Buffalo Creek with friends on Tuesday. We departed Park City morning and arrived in Fruita late afternoon We hit a city market grocery store to resupply and then a local mexican restaurant for dinner. We then headed out 18 road to find a place to camp. We quickly found a great place to camp and noticed that the Joe's Ridge trail was pretty close to our campsite and we made the decision to go for a quick spin to see how it was. That is the last thing I remember until I awoke Monday afternoon in an ER bed in Grand Junction. I don't remember starting the ride at all, but apparently we did put our helmets on but since it was just going to be an easy spin didn't take our hydration paks, our garmins, and we wore street clothes.
The wreck – I can’t remember anything about it so I can’t provide much detail, I don’t even remember starting the ride. Everything that I know about the incident from Sunday – Monday has been told to me by my friend and by doctors, I have no recollection of anything until Monday afternoon when I awoke in an ER bed and they were pulling the incubation tube out.
But here is what I know:
-There was two of us on the ride, we were in Fruita, CO and were riding Joe’s Ridge off of 18 Road.
-Luckily I was in front by about 20 seconds when I crashed.
-My ride partner did not see the crash he only saw me on the ground when he came up 10-20 seconds later (luckily he was behind me).
-When he found me, my neck was bent a funny way, I wasn’t breathing, and I was turning a blue/purple color.
-My buddy immediately went into trauma mode and cut my helmet off which the strap appeared to be strangling me and called 911.
-911 had him do CPR on me until the EMS arrived about 20 minutes later and took over.
-They sent Search and Rescue, EMS, and Sheriff’s department and then they called in the helicopter to life flight me to Grand Junction CO.
-I was incubated and heavily sedated to go on the helicopter.
-Upon arrival at the ER Trauma unit they did Xrays and CT scans and found that my C4 in my neck was cracked but my brain, heart, and lungs all seemed to be fine. Later MRIs showed the nerves and tendons around my C4 to still be good and in place.
-I am heavily bruised on my whole right side (shoulder, arm, side, leg). I have a bloodshot eye that is full on red. A lot of pain in my rib area due to the CPR and then just general pain all over due to impact and bruising.
-I have a lot of pain in my neck area due to the C4 and having to wear the brace.
Mon-Wed - I was in ER in Grand Junction. I was released Wed morning and in lieu of trying to make the long drive back in the van I flew back to Memphis while my buddy drove the van home. It was tough travel with a neck brace and in a lot of pain.
-On Friday I went to local Neurosurgeon and he evaluated my C4, took new Xrays, and evaluate the MRI done in Grand Junction and said that he does not see anything that would prevent me from full recovery and that I just need to wear the neck brace and take it easy over the next few months. I have my next follow up with him on Sept 11.
It still was an epic trip, the riding that we did was great, people we met along the way were awesome, hooked up with some good friends out in Park City, beers shared were plenty, etc.... It just unfortunately ended up with fluke accident on a quick spin before bed.
It has now been two weeks and 1 day and I will be in the neck brace until at least Sept 11. My employer has given me the allowance to work from home until I get the neck brace off and am able to drive. I still can't get comfortable to sleep at night and I am sleeping on the recliner in the living room (most likely will be until I get this neck brace off). However; I have made great improvements, I am no longer taking any pain meds (including over the counter), my eye has turned from blood red to white, I am standing up without getting light headed, I am able to move around pretty good and am actually cooking in the kitchen and am walking the neighborhood every morning before it gets too hot. So, overall I am good. The only bad thing is that I am missing a wheeling trip to Windrock this weekend and another wheeling trip with Jeff the following weekend. I was looking forward to both trips, but happy to be here and to be disappointed because the alternative would have sucked for my family.
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Wheeling will have to wait.
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