Colorado Christmas TR

Breckenridge delivered crowd congestion, traversing tourists, and deep fried twinkies.




Arapahoe Basin gets this leftover vid of my brother Lukie Pukie

Ward gives us a calorie burning XC/BC approach.

Beaver Creek had some tight trees for me to ski in.

Loveland offered up some windbuff and high altitude vistas.

Plus some follow cam of Professor Eetu

And Steamboat was freezing cold!

Dont forget the kiddos who had a great time at Howelsen Hill!

FLEA

Epic 45 miles of norcal single track delivered on a beautiful sunny winter day.

Huge group, no issues, perfect pace. Great ride!  Several riders were members of MTBR.com, so the ride was reviewed there.

2003 Toyota Matrix XR

This is what the street looked like after my trusty single owner 160k mile 2003 Toyota Matrix XR shot the oil filter out.

I heard a loud noise and then the oil pressure light turned on. Now I know why!  What I don't know is why the oil filter was released so quickly and violently without any oil leaks beforehand.  When it happened I was thinking a rock hit the oil pan, or the motor threw a rod through the crankcase.  Both of which would have been more expensive than a new oil filter!

This car gets 33mpg combined average fuel economy, fits 1 car seat, 1 bike and 1 pair of skis easily.  All without roof racks.  Its not fancy or built for expensive taste, but it gets the job done on the cheap.  And for this I say, "cheers, another beer"!

2010 Specialized Epic Marathon Carbon

Tonight will be the maiden voyage on a 2010 Specialized Epic Marathon Carbon. This bike is bone stock and weighs about 24 lbs with SPD pedals. The idea behind this bike is simple: go fast for a long time. 4" of travel is only activated by heavy impact, so the bike rides very rigid on most terrain. I'm guessing that the rugged trails will be pretty bouncy on this bike, but anything close to hardpack terrain will be at the rider's mercy.

I kept the bike for about 3 or 4 rides and then sold it. It only handles flat and bumpy terrain really well. I need to also be able to go very fast downhill. The 70 degree head angle and 100mm front fork prevented that.

My friend Chris rides this bike with a 160 TALAS with 15QR and it actually is a really fun combination. I loved it on 45 miles of norcal single track this weekend!

2007 KTM 400 XC-W

This is the weapon I chose to replace my YZ250. This bike doesn't have the same crazy fast power of a 450, but when ridden correctly it would only need that extra power in the sand or wide open desert.

2001 Yamaha YZ 250

I am lucky enough to have owned a YZ250. This bike is incredibly powerful, amazingly durable, widely versitile, and a handful of FUN!

The YZ two strokes can easily be adapted for true MX motocross track riding, open desert hare scrambles, or tight woods trail riding.

On my YZ250, I added hand guards, 3 gallon tank, 11 oz fly wheel weight, and FMF Q/FMF gnarly pipe combo. What an awesome bike!