#followcamfriday picking up where we left off last week with Kyle Mears and Randy Sooter on two of the finer sections of the Arizona Trail.

The question still remains. Will we make it off of the mountain before we run out of light.... This was one of those rides that didn't leave much room for error. Unfortunately for us, errors were made. This is a relatively unrelenting section of trail, perhaps we will budget more time in the future. Tequila tastes the same in the day or night, so what does it really matter what time we finish... 

We showed you the top of this one on Bug Springs in last week's episode. Bug ends at Prison Camp and then descends Molino back to the road again before climbing for another 20 minutes to access Bellota. These two sections of the AZT are world class, no question. Plenty of sharp rocks to keep you honest and ensure a late arrival. 

Sometimes it just isn't in the cards to make it home on time. Sometimes a perfect storm of chaos breaks anything and everything possible just to remind you that things can always get worse. Sometimes drones fall out of the sky. Sometimes tires don't hold air. Sometimes these things all happen at once and they are out of your control. Could be worse. 

Randy has been living at the bottom of Milagrosa for many years and was quoted as saying " I have never ridden this thing in the dark before" The miracle of FollowCamFriday is delivering. I will be throwing a light in my pack in the future. Lessons that I already have learned but apparently needed to learn again category. 

I mean, we still had fun. We weren't going to let a little darkness keep us from pinning one of the most technical descents in Tucson. That would have just been rude. If I am being honest, the trail seems smoother when you can't clearly see the rocks that are trying to break your wheels. Next time I get into trouble, I am going to just close my eyes and trust my skill. Let er' buck. 

#followcamfriday sampling one of Tucson's finest DH tracks with the squad. 

Tucson is definitely making an impression on me. There is just something special about the realness and rawness of this town and the surrounding trails. This place is growing on me. I could live here for a few months out of the year, no question. It is WAY too hot in the summer, but riding in a short sleeved jersey in February certainly has its charm. 

I think I like the riding here so much because it is hard. The ground is abrasive, the rocks will slice your skin, and the cactus.... Don't even get me going on the cactus. There is a bunch of it, living inside my body as I type these words. Maybe I am just bored of riding manicured, feel good trails. I honestly couldn't be bothered. Lemmon is hard. This place breaks bikes, bodies and your spirit. I need more of that in my life. Suffering builds strong character and makes tequila taste better at the end of the day. Any time of day, for that matter. 

The ride is only as good as the company you keep. Feeding off of your friends energy and stoke is as real as it gets. Cut that shit with a knife, get it down your throat. The energy I can harness from my friends is surreal. Always surround yourself with good people. Always. Randy, Kyle and Jonny are keeping the levels up. Squad of legends, smashing down the hill, laughing the entire way. Nothing better. 

All I actually care about when I am riding is finding natural trail gaps. Sometimes they are only a few feet, sometimes they are twenty. Sometimes they are over sharp shit, often they are for no other reason than to make the person behind me laugh. When I hear that laugh, I pull up harder off of the next one. And so the game goes. Always pull up. Fucking always. Always make your friends laugh. 

Randy Sooter is such a legend. Randy is the only person I have ridden with in the last 6 years that doesn't use Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Youtube, or any of the other white-noise distractions that we are all so addicted to. I love this about Randy. He is too busy living in the present to give any fucks about social media and it's negative impact on our society. Legend. 

Technology isn't all bad. If you would have told me 5 years ago that I would have an autonomous drone chasing me while I ride my bike with an electronic drivetrain, I would have laughed in your face. And here we are. What a time to be alive. The Skydio 2 drone really has been a game changer from a filming perspective. The technology that allows this thing to chase us, keep us in frame, and not crash 47 times is mind numbing. The footage coming out of this thing truly does justice to the amazing landscapes that I am fortunate to find myself enjoying on the daily. 

I was thinking of buying a small piece of land adjacent to Lemmon. You know, one big enough to park my van on, and with enough space for a few more. Maybe a garage and a yurt. Maybe some jumps and a swimming pool for Pete. You can get 10 plus acres here for what a 1/3 acre lot costs where I live. Might be time to cash in some of that Dogecoin. Pete will thank me. 

#followcamfriday taking on the infamous Lemmon Drop with Tucson loc-dog, Randy Sooter. 

You always remember your first Lemmon Drop. Aspen Draw, Sunset and Incinerator Ridge are all distinctly different and amazingly rad, especially trying to chase Mr. Randy Sooter around on his home tracks. This is all under snow currently as I type these words, but this is not to be missed if you find yourself in Tucson, Arizona. The ski area actually opened last week as the terrain above 8000ft got dumped on. Tucson can always use the moisture. 

Incinerator Ridge is one of the finest pieces of trail I have ever ridden. Straight jank, top to bottom. After riding this thing, Milagrosa looks..... smooth. Incinerator is an absolute fist-fight. Not everyone's cup of tea, an acquired taste for sure, but unlike anything else I have ridden. So good when chasing Randall down the proper lines on this one. Like riding through a sea of microwaves. My happy place. 

Randy Sooter owns a gymnastics studio in Tucson. His mat stills come through in his riding. Tumbling routine on lock. Pommel Horse champion. Randy even crashes well. This goes to show that having a solid foundation in gymnastics does volumes for your riding skill. You had better start training if you intend to keep up with Randall. Legend!

This part of Sunset is fun because you can die here. Like any trail worth riding, mandatory exposed traverses with consequential moves always keep things interesting. Don't fall left, don't look left, heels down, eyes up. Great success. Randy is a ninja. 

I really do need to get back to Colorado one of these days. The riding and weather have just been too good to leave. I will take 70 degree days in January over a low-snow year in Colorado any day. I am very fortunate to be able to make the most of the seasons. Like the saying goes, make hay when the sun shines. I am almost out of tires though, this place is hard on gear. Almost time to head home and restock the levels. 

Riding more animals than a carnie in Tucson, Arizona with Bryce Straka, Kyle Mears and Randy Sooter. #followcamfriday petting zoo edition. 

So basically, it goes like this. You start on Wild Burro and climb up to Wild Mustang, ending on a descent down Javelina. All of the animals get their turn, none are left out. This petting zoo in the Tortolita's is lined with rocks and cactus. Perfect. 

As it just so happens, Pete is scared of donkeys. I found this out last year when I was in Vegas and some wild burros scared him good. Ever since that day, Pete has not been friends with the burros. Enemy's for life. While Pete is far too old to run on rock for 10 miles, he would have stayed behind anyways, for safety's sake. Good Boy. 

Kyle Mears, Randy Sooter and myself were lucky to get the tour of this Tortolita classic from Tucson local legend, Bryce Straka. Interestingly enough, Bryce is from Wyoming and went to school with one of my oldest friends Eli, from back in the DH racing days. My what a small world the cycling community is. Bryce has more skill in his little finger than I have in my entire body, so needless to say, we had fun. Thanks for the tour amigo!

Now that Kyle has a van and can travel around with me, he can nose pick every turn until he blows off of the trail. Loves front wheel champion. Weather I am riding in front of Kyle, or he is riding in front of me, we are basically trying to make each other laugh the entire way down the trail. Every nose bonk is worth ten points, every huck to flat is worth twenty. Break a bike part, win the game. We make party. 

People that ride jank constantly can always get their euro-turn game on. This is absolutely mandatory technique down here, not just to get around the tight ones efficiently, but to keep all of the parts from being smashed off of your bike. The inside-line rock game here is next-level. A clean exit keeps you from running into cactus. Proper form on display above from Bryce. Come in hot, grab a fistful of front brake and pivot like your life depends on it. Dial. 

Cheers Mears. Until next week. More trails will be smashed. The rocks are already fearing the wrath of Kyle's rear wheel.