The Tour de Fat, the most awesome bike parade and festival, rolls into town on September 4th. Overland Mountain Bike Club provides 100's of volunteers for the day and is our biggest fundraiser of the year. Please SIGN UP to help. Questions? Contact Our TdF Volunteer Co-ordinator, Barb Allan
High Fives will be plentiful this Saturday. Tour de Fat CRUNCH time has arrived. Volunteers are still needed. If you signed up for one slot and can do two, please do so. If you signed up for two and can do three, please do... We're a little light in a couple of areas and could really use the help. SIGN UP HERE. It'll make you feel good!
A huge thanks to Steve Lacey for sharing his Colorado Trail Experience. You can read more about it HERE.
Congrats to Joe Perrin for winning this month's Patroller award!
And thanks to Catalyst for hosting our meetings throughout the year. Farewell.
Larimer County Trail Day - Adopt-a-Trail day #1: Foothills Trail
Meet at 8:30 at Rotary Park (east side of Reservoir across from Maxwell). Work day from 9am-2pm.
Lunch and refreshments will be served. Minimum of 10 people needed for Overland's Adopt-a-Trail commitment. Bring LONG PANTS (county requirement) boots, work gloves and water/snacks.
Register for Adopt-a-Trail day #1
Seems like when the college kids roll back into town, I see a whole bunch of folks on the trail without a helmet - especially Maxwell. And for those of you who were riding in the social ride on Wednesday, you know first hand that a helmet saved a life when a rider went over the bars and landed on top of her head on a rock. The dented and cracked lid now resides in my garage and will be used to educate others. And yes, Jen's been a bit sore, but she'll be back to ride another day. Patrollers and non-patrollers alike - please talk to people about the benefits of an intact skull.
I hate to say it, but I haven't found much time to ride in the past week. In fact, in the past seven days I've been out only once - much less than our pal, Steve Lacey, who's been in the thick of the Colorado Trail Race for the past week. For the middle of summer, that pretty much stinks for me. So, this week I've committed to getting out more. First off, on Tuesday, as penance for my lack of pedaling, I'm heading over to the Lory Mountain Challenge to get beaten into the ground while supporting high school mountain biking with my $10 entry fee.
Volunteers and Trails Enthusiasts! First, Curt Gowdy State Park trails are in its final stages of development. This year we completed Middle Kingdom trail, as well as a major downhill route, and a bridge. We have connected Crystal Ridge with Canyons trail, finished up the skills area near Aspen Grove, and created three new play areas. We added cattle guards and took down some gates.
Overland Mountain Bike Club's very own Steve Lacey is in the thick of the Colorado Trail Race. Go Steve! You can check Steve's progress on the Colorado Trail Race Website with live GPS tracking. As of Tuesday at 4:25 p.m. he looks to be in 7th place. Go Steve! Go!
Weekly revelations: Knee pads and elbow pads are a good idea. Emergency orthopedic surgery on a Saturday night ain't fun. Sam splints, ace bandages, triangular bandages, and a cell phone can sure come in handy on the trail. Thank goodness for 4-wheel drive ranger trucks, and you're more likely to patch a friend up on the trail than you are a stranger. Have you checked your first aid kit lately?
Got to spend some quality time with the Reverend Ballyhoo over the weekend. Good times. Hope you all enjoyed yourselves.
Patrollers: New challenge this month. We're looking for the most improved Patroller. Whoever has the highest increase in the percentage of patrols over last month will be recognized at the next meeting. Thanks for all the work you do out there. Please remember to log your patrols.
We've got a busy week:
Ahhh, Monday mornings...the work week begins and so do plans for the next ride. When will yours be? We do really have mountain biking heaven right outside our back doors.
I learned an important lesson this week. Don't assume swapping pedals is something anyone can do without a little explanation. That whole left/right specific thing might just be something worth mentioning. Aluminum threads are soft. Cranks are expensive. An extra five minutes can save time and money. Road biking just isn't as much fun.
The Overland Crew hit the trails at Curt Gowdy this past weekend. Anyone have pictures? If so, lets get them into the gallery. I can't wait to hear some tales at the meeting tonight.
If you haven't yet ridden the Ginny Trail at Bobcat Ridge, you really don't know what you're missing. One of the premier intermediate/advanced trails in the area, your are greeted with rocks, switchbacks, fast, flowy open areas, skinny rides, a wooden bridge and more.
The City of Fort Collins opened Bobcat Ridge a few years ago and the gem of the park remains the Ginny Trail. Just ask Doug Cutter and Steve Lacey, Overland Mountain Bike Club members who have personally adopted the trail and have spent countless hours adding alternate lines, fixing problem areas, and of course, riding the trail. Check out the cool photos.
