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You're not a whimp at all IMO when you trust common sense to be your guide.
Except where managed by the liberal/politically correct, the trend out west tends to be to not clutter our wilderness/wild places with signs, etc that should not be necessary for anyone with a lick of common sense. Mountain and dirt biking, 4wheeling, hiking, even just sightseeing in this area can be a very dangerous pastime if you don't recognize or ignore the dangers that are always present in the outdoors. Folks just need to know there own personal abilities and limits, then stay within them to not turn what was a fun day into a nightmare. That holds true anywhere, when doing anything.
Haha, I doubt many bro, but who knows. I would expect most mtn bikers who go to a free riding zone in Utah know to be careful. Ill be careful as heck, Im not a super skilled rider by any means. Gettin decent, tho
Honestly many of the trails here seem way more dangerous. Im sticking to the easy and intermediate trails.
Along with the rugged beauty and endless wide open spaces of the wild west comes plenty of dangers of the extreme natural kind (the land itself, weather, the creatures and plants) that in a heartbeat can hurt or kill you. But like with anywhere else, when you grow up in that country any danger is taken in stride. You respect it, but you are not afraid of it because you learned early on how to handle it, any emergencies it might create and survive it. Some might think the uninitiated to this harsh and unforgiving environment (visitors) are the most at risk. Sometimes they are and pay the price because they are uninformed/careless. But that doesn't always hold true. Locals that play hard quite often pay the price for doing so when they let their guard down or let ego, booze or drugs cloud their judgement. The west was my playground all my life, so I am very comfortable with all of it's dangers. It would be the same for you as well in your home stomping grounds.
While Bartlett is intermediate, it can still jump up and bite you. Ride safe Tim, and have the time of your life there. Pics/video is expected eventually.
Dead horse has some nice trails, and I am camping on Willow Springs Road tonight so I rode on the Klonzos for a bit. Amazing. Tomorrow Klondike, wed Bartlett, then slowly slother home.
The thing to understand too is that mountain biking is just dangerous, period - honestly, extremely dangerous. You can get hurt badly going super slow speeds on easy terrain even, if you get careless. Many if not all sports are dangerous but this is one of the most IMO. Anyone who gets on a bike has an obligation to ride safe as I see it and within their limits, if not for their own sake then the sake of others. Someone scared the bejeeboes out of me today when he came screaching around a corner,
Sloth understands nature well, ADKs are quite rugged and I spent a year living in a tent in the mountains. So rest assured that Sloth respects nature very much, and rides to enjoy her, not to conquer.
Moab area is my favorite so far. It is paradise here. The only problem is it is impossible to not vape sand.
The thing to understand too is that mountain biking is just dangerous, period - honestly, extremely dangerous. You can get hurt badly going super slow speeds on easy terrain even, if you get careless. Many if not all sports are dangerous but this is one of the most IMO. Anyone who gets on a bike has an obligation to ride safe as I see it and within their limits, if not for their own sake then the sake of others. Someone scared the bejeeboes out of me today when he came screaching around a corner,
Sloth understands nature well, ADKs are quite rugged and I spent a year living in a tent in the mountains. So rest assured that Sloth respects nature very much, and rides to enjoy her, not to conquer.
Moab area is my favorite so far. It is paradise here. The only problem is it is impossible to not vape sand.
Dead horse has some nice trails, and I am camping on Willow Springs Road tonight so I rode on the Klonzos for a bit. Amazing. Tomorrow Klondike, wed Bartlett, then slowly slother home.
The thing to understand too is that mountain biking is just dangerous, period - honestly, extremely dangerous. You can get hurt badly going super slow speeds on easy terrain even, if you get careless. Many if not all sports are dangerous but this is one of the most IMO. Anyone who gets on a bike has an obligation to ride safe as I see it and within their limits, if not for their own sake then the sake of others. Someone scared the bejeeboes out of me today when he came screaching around a corner,
Sloth understands nature well, ADKs are quite rugged and I spent a year living in a tent in the mountains. So rest assured that Sloth respects nature very much, and rides to enjoy her, not to conquer.
Moab area is my favorite so far. It is paradise here. The only problem is it is impossible to not vape sand.
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"Moab area is my favorite so far. It is paradise here. The only problem is it is impossible to not vape sand."
Somehow I knew Moab would be your easy favorite
, and you've barely scratched a rough edge of a very small portion of that area. You can spend a lifetime exploring the SW deserts and still never get to experience it all. Why would you expect anything less than a gritty vape from a place that seriously demands that it's visitors have a healthy dose of grit themselves?
Great pictures, thanks for sharing.
I am not a user of social media other than youtube, but if I was, I would use instagram and use hashtag #grittyvape for all these pics 
I trusted your judgment, it is one of the main reasons I decided I simply must spend a few days here. Thank for that."Moab area is my favorite so far. It is paradise here. The only problem is it is impossible to not vape sand."
Somehow I knew Moab would be your easy favorite
Why would you expect anything less than a gritty vape from a place that seriously demands that it's visitors have a healthy dose of grit themselves?
Great pictures, thanks for sharing.
I trusted your judgment, it is one of the main reasons I decided I simply must spend a few days here. Thank for that.
My judgement can be scary at times, in this case maybe questionable since I didn't know what technical level you ride at. I've always been fearless so had an EKS mentality most of the time that if I tried something really dangerous and survived it, I would probably try to do it again. Have the scars and internal hardware from some reruns, but didn't try those again a third time (fearless, not certifiably stupid). EKS... Evel Knievel Syndrome.
I'm very happy to hear that it's working out well for you after the long haul to get there, then back home. Reliving some of my other life, maybe helping you out a little has been a nice change from a boring routine that drags on endlessly. One of those 'wish I was there' things, but I've been reassigned by a fast life, the above and age to just being an observer now days.
Love the pictures that bring back fond memories, thanks, and look forward to your videos.
Well, yesterday did me in, I am taking today off from riding. Several days of riding back to back has taken its toll with fatigued muscles and more importantly saddle soreness. I may do a sunset ride, but thats it. Oh and also, the sun has taken its toll on a forest sloth. Need a break in the shade.
I am taking the opportunity to do laundry and work on a vid, I will try to post it today. It won't be great but it will basically just be POV footage with beautiful scenery. I just want to post it. Not my usual though with lots of different kinds of shots, so it may come across as a bit boring.
When you are exploring tho, and time is limited, I found it hard to stop and get cool third person shots etc. So, boring ol' POV, but the scenery is nice. Tinkering with a new laptop to run the higher quality footage. The one thing I can say is the footage looks dayyum good.
Yesterdays ride was about 20 miles in the Klondike Bluffs area. Best trails I have ridden, many more technical than I thought I was comfortable with but I shredded them. This trip has done wonders for my confidence.
ETA I saw dinosaur tracks out there, WOW!!!
I am taking the opportunity to do laundry and work on a vid, I will try to post it today. It won't be great but it will basically just be POV footage with beautiful scenery. I just want to post it. Not my usual though with lots of different kinds of shots, so it may come across as a bit boring.
When you are exploring tho, and time is limited, I found it hard to stop and get cool third person shots etc. So, boring ol' POV, but the scenery is nice. Tinkering with a new laptop to run the higher quality footage. The one thing I can say is the footage looks dayyum good.
Yesterdays ride was about 20 miles in the Klondike Bluffs area. Best trails I have ridden, many more technical than I thought I was comfortable with but I shredded them. This trip has done wonders for my confidence.
ETA I saw dinosaur tracks out there, WOW!!!
Vid is produced, I just threw it together quickly...whatever, Im on vacation. Once laundry is done I will find some wifi and upload it nothin special, but a nice supplement to the pics.
Eta there is much more footage, so another vid will use more of it further down the line as well.
nothin special, but a nice supplement to the pics.Eta there is much more footage, so another vid will use more of it further down the line as well.
Nice nolly silhouette at the end! Some of those trails look kinda sketchy, I almost fell off my computer chair watching the thin rocky single track. Thanks for sharing!
Lol, I left out the part where I slammed on my brakes rounding a corner and peering off the edge -
sketchy AF!Natural shade is scarce on the desert when the sun is high. Heat exhaustion and dehydration are serious business on a desert. When you need a break from the exposure you often have to make your own shade out there. There is some water out there too if you know how to find/harvest it. May not taste great, but you can survive on it.
Nice start, will be watching for more.
The more technical the trail is the more sketchy it becomes. It's not a good idea to make the wrong turns when you are many miles from nowhere in an unforgiving habitat, or waste effort on a trail that suddenly ends or is far too technical for you to pass safely on. Sometimes you literally have to stop, look or walk around to find it again. Can see that happen some in the Moab vids I posted above.
Nice start, will be watching for more.
The more technical the trail is the more sketchy it becomes. It's not a good idea to make the wrong turns when you are many miles from nowhere in an unforgiving habitat, or waste effort on a trail that suddenly ends or is far too technical for you to pass safely on. Sometimes you literally have to stop, look or walk around to find it again. Can see that happen some in the Moab vids I posted above.
Lol, I left out the part where I slammed on my brakes rounding a corner and peering off the edge -
Can get your attention real fast when brakes are only marginally effective on hard pan, worse on hard pan with fine sand on it or if wet from storms. It's like skating on black ice with a skiff of snow on winter roads in the frozen north. It can be fun to pull a Brodie sometimes in both environments, but not on the edge of very high cliff's.
Another ride you might like... some technical, but not many places you'd have to be concerned about high and lofty.
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The journey home hath begun. Man. 2500ish miles of dealing with idiot drivers. Woohoo
Desert, Sloth will be back, likely in 2 years. Next years trip we are heading up to Papa L's neck of the woods
Here is a last pic from some free riding in Fruita:
Desert, Sloth will be back, likely in 2 years. Next years trip we are heading up to Papa L's neck of the woods
Here is a last pic from some free riding in Fruita:
Dude. At least half these people on I70 do NOT deserve drivers licenses
I simply dont understand, driving is not difficult, yet noone seems to know how to drive.
I simply dont understand, driving is not difficult, yet noone seems to know how to drive.
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