Another Weekend....

The snow keeps rolling into Vermont. We had one of the snowiest Octobers in recent memory, and though it's raining out my window right now - it's snowing up high on the summits. So while it's been a consistent 30-45 minutes of hiking to snow recently, we've been consistently rewarded with fun turns. A few pictures from Mad River Glen this weekend:November always means lots of really cool mist and fog rolling in and out.

We had a good group out to snag some turns off the double chair.
You can almost ski to the base........winter is close.

It's Only October...Really?

We've been treated to some early season snow this past week in Vermont. What fell over a week ago as super heavy "powder" settled into a nice spring-like corn snow. Taking advantage of the long weekend, I got out with some friends for some sweet turns. With an Indian Summer rolling in today though the skiing is over, at least for now. Time for some last minute bike rides after work...yikes, it's hard to think I'm going to have to get back on the indoor trainer soon. Anyone got any good trainer movie suggestions? Anyway, here are a few highlight shots from the weekend.

Shoulder Season

I'll admit it; I haven't been terribly motivated to get out on a bike recently. The weather has been colder, my allergies and asthma have yet to subside, and works been rather busy. Plus, my body and mind are feeling pretty tired on a bike these days. Something about all those training and racing miles that I put on this summer. So, I've been looking for some distractions. I've got some carpentry projects going, and we're building a mountain bike skills course in the back yard, which is going to be pretty rad. There has been some brewing and lots of bread baking. But the distraction I was really looking forward too finally rolled in yesterday. Sure, it was nothing more than cold rain in the valleys........but up high it was another story. An early wake up got us to a rainy parking lot. But after hiking for a half hour or so we hit skiable snow. Way up high we were treated to some truly awesome skiing, with a wind loaded snowpack of 2.5 feet and more. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures up there, but really, it's true. The first deep knee bend tele turns of the year were pretty amazing. A few whoops for sure. Time to start oogaling over some big fat backcountry boards. Hmmm.......

Pretty sure the snow will be gone by tomorrow. Should be a few more good riding days to go before winter totally sets in. As one friend described it, "hiking up was like hiking into the future." Yeah. It was pretty sweet too.

Kingdom Trails

I headed up with some friends to the Kingdom Trails in Burke, VT for some riding and bike testing. The awesome folks at Trek were holding a demo day; gotta love the chance to rage on some fun carbon wonder bikes. The new Superfly hardtail is so fast it's silly. Really. I also got to have some fun on the Fuel EX. I don't really ever ride little wheels anymore, but it was pretty fun on the berms and the pump track (and other places too). Can I have both? Not even gonna let myself check to see just how big my credit card limit is. Anyway, the day was picture perfect VT fall, the trails were dry, the company was awesome. Bikes are so sweet. I'm stoked we have another month or two to hit up the pump tracks and trails before the snow is really here.

Vermont 50 Report

So, what does a secret recipe bacon-apple pie have to do with my last race of the season. Well, the Vermont 50 let me know loud and clear what I'd sort of known for weeks: my body is tired and ready for an off season rest. Actually, my legs weren't terrible. Especially given that we started at 6am in the dark and I only managed like 2/3 of a cup of watery coffee. Bummer. There were some fast guys at the 50 this year (like Team Jamis men Aaron Snyder and Jason Sager), so the start was wicked fast, but I jumped on the train to see what happened. Well, breathing not so good. Inhaler use 1. Then it didn't get too much better. Inhaler again. Then again. By mile 13 or so I was okay-ish, and I managed to make a move for the front end of the race until about mile 25 or 30. That's when my inhaler fell out of my jersey pocket while I tried to eat. Crap. 2 or 3 minutes I figured this out. A red inhaler in a trail full of red and yellow and orange foliage? Not gonna happen - I thought. Apparently everyone and there mom saw it on the trail, so it wasn't actually that hidden. Double bummer. So of course the breathing got terrible quickly, and so I limped the final 20 miles to the finish wheezing and granny gearing. Oh well. One of these years I'll actually race this race. Gorgeous scenery though, and lots of friends. So you've gotta love it. Plus, Vanessa rocked it and won the women's sport class. Rad. So, what did the race plus the colder weather put me in the mood for: some calories. Enter said pie. The recipe needs some refinement. But that's what winter is for right!

Fall Vermont Riding

It's been a pretty rainy week around here, and between the weather, work, and other commitments my training has been less than ideal. Yesterday though, was gorgeous. Though I didn't get to ride quite as much as I would have liked, I did get out for a late day cruise. The riding this time of year is really just phenomenal. It really makes you forget the fact that you're behind on training/life. It's just nice to be out spinning the pedals, catching the afternoon light, and exploring some swimming holes.
Oh yes, and gathering. We stopped on the roadside for some sumac flowers for sun tea later this week.

Veggies

It's that time of year - all of Vermont just seems to be edible. Okay, maybe we're a bit passed peak harvest season, but the fresh veggies just keep rolling in. An easy and fun time to eat well and healthy, that's for sure. The other day's dinner included tomatoes, carrots, leaks, potatoes, onions, and some other fresh goodies. Potato soup was made, fresh tomato sauce got stashed in the freezer for cooler months (coming soon, yikes), not to mention stir fry. Yum.