#followcamfriday exploring a moist Mountain Lion with James Weingarten

The first time I rode this trail was in the snow. It was way below freezing and I was wearing a down coat on the climb. I could barely feel my hands, barely see the trail, but still had fun on my bicycle. Perhaps I am doomed to never ride this one in normal conditions. If conditions were normal, it would be too crowded to enjoy, so I guess I will keep trying to find the worst of days to ride this one. 

I remember commenting to James on the climb how un-burned in the lines were. Chunder everywhere. It looked as though it hadn't been ridden much this year. Well, that was because it hadn't been. I am sure that this is all melted now, but last week there were still a few piles of snow to remind us who the boss is. Sometimes you ride into the pile of snow and go over the bars. Snow is softer than the ground, may as well send it. Penguins don't hold back, why would James. 

Mountain Lion is located in Golden Gate Canyon State Park, enabling a 10ish mile loop with some solid climbing and tech. I am a man who can appreciate some old-school tech. If I am being honest, riding mtb specific, bench-cut groomers is low on my list of priorities. Long live the jank. The more eroded and technical, the better. This one gets a ton of hiking traffic, making for plenty of exposed roots and rocks to keep us honest. Making flow from jank always makes me smile. It's like when you are about to lose a game of chess, and you make one move that changes everything. Success tastes better when death is narrowly avoided. 

It's been a long time since I have been rained on during a bike ride. As this is my job, I guess I have the luxury of picking when I ride and usually can avoid this sort of thing. Well, you win some, and you lose some. I still didn't have to put my jacket on, but I came close. Fortunately the decomposing granite surface that this trail is mostly comprised of does remarkably well with the moisture. Kitty litter has amazing grip in the wet. No mud to be found, just slippery rocks and roots and wooden bridges. 

Riding in the rain is actually quite refreshing. As long as you aren't damaging the trail, I don't see any reason not to. We get way too many sunny days on Colorado, so why not make the most of the change in the norm. The best time to ride is when there are no other users on the trail. I purposely time these things to avoid people anymore and rain ticks that box nicely. Sure, there is water all over my lens and the footage is barely usable, but I do enjoy the feels and lack of people. 

There is just something special about the dark, dank woods that never ceases to amaze. Just the pitter patter of tires on the ground and the occasional squeal of wet brakes to bring you back to reality. This isn't typical in Colorado, so make the most of it while you can. Moisture is life. 

Sampling Colorado's newest, directional, bike only DH trail on Maryland Mountain in Black Hawk with Dacre Dunn. What a time to be alive. 

I honestly don't have any idea where the name for this new trail came from. But if I was a betting man, I would guess that it has something to do with the current state of trail politics in the state of Colorado. Nothing is easy for our collective user group, but let me tell you that this is a giant step in the right direction for the Colorado MTB scene. Directional, purpose built MTB trails? Really? Are we in the PNW? Whistler? New Zealand? The future looks bright. 

Gary Moore from COMBA shot me an email on Saturday. New trail he said. Directional, DH, it will be fun he said. Gary was looking to get eyes on this project that he has been working on with the city of Black Hawk for a couple of years now. I basically cancelled my plans and made this a priority. Interestingly enough, this was the first I had heard of Maryland Mountain and had no idea that Black Hawk was trying to offer something more than well...,  just casinos. Black Hawk built this amazing trailhead, complete with statues, fancy bridges, and a hiking trail to the top of Maryland Mountain to promote some outdoor rec opportunities in this casino economy. Gary approached the town asking for some MTB specific opportunities and they obliged. As this was city property for the most part, many of the usual hurdles of dealing with land management that has been unwilling to accommodate our user group  was out of the picture. And so this project had legs. 

Gary asked me to come and film "Hard Money" This trail was designed by Black Diamond Trail Designs and High Country Conservation and has had the finishing touches put on it in the last couple of weeks after the snow melted. This is the product of thousands of hours of volunteer work, blood, sweat and tears. The passion is very evident and the end result is a work of art and will be well loved and well used by the MTB community. The grand opening is Memorial Day Weekend. If you are looking for some fun next weekend, this is the place to be. 

 They built us jumps. The people celebrated. Fun was had. Again, I can't reiterate this point enough. These trails absolutely do not build themselves and take thousands of man hours and dedication behind the scenes. COMBA and BMA are hugely responsible for holding all of this together. I urge you consider donating to these local Colorado trail organizations. If you don't have the resources, you can come out and dig. Better yet, try and do both. Most of this is made possible by donations, so please help these wonderful organizations that are fighting the good fight for our user group. Everything helps. Follow the links below to show your support. 
COMBA             BMA

The end goal of this project is to have 4 directional, mtb only trails, culminating with a true double black DH track. There are currently 12 miles of amazingly fun and unique riding on Maryland Mountain. This place has some Floyd Hill vibes, and will surely be a favorite with the Front Range crowd. There is a climbing trail so that you can basically do as many laps as you want, have a snack at the car, and get right back out there on the trail. Each lap is roughly 1000ft of vert. 

Dacre Dunn is an absolute beast. Riding trails that you have never seen before, at full speed, being chased with some jerk wearing a GoPro is no easy task. Basically, go as fast as possible, hit all the blind jumps, don't die. No big deal right?? I always joke that everything is JRA (just riding along), but it takes a special breed to make things look as smooth and effortless on the first go as my man Dacre Dunn. On this particular day, I watched Dacre tomahawk himself between two aspen trees and shake it off like nothing happened. Pure legend status. I would have had to go to the hospital directly if I hit the deck like that. Legend. 

 So, to sum things up, you are definitely going to have fun on Maryland Mountain. I am very thankful that the concept of directional MTB only trails is catching on in Colorado. There is a time and place to ride dangerously fast, and a trail devoid of other user groups is ticking that box off nicely. I can't wait to see what the future holds for this place. Again, huge thanks due to all of the people that have poured time and energy into this project. Love your work!

#followcamfriday keeping the levels right where they need to be with Marty Schaffer and Dacre Dunn on Chimney Gulch in Denver. 

Energy is infectious. Riding is always fun, the trails are always interesting, but there is just something special about the chemistry among people that makes things that much better. When people are actually having fun in real life, it translates to an amazing experience and video. You can't fake this sort of thing. The energy coming from these guys is palpable. It is undeniable. It is real. 

Nothing in any of the videos I have ever produced has been rehearsed, staged, set up, or given much thought for that matter. Everything is organic. What you see before you is as raw and real as it gets. I don't session sections, searching for the perfect line, practice trails, or make a solid plan ever. This is the only way to capture real riding . That is why this formula works. This is first run for Marty and despite living relatively close by, Dacre hasn't spent much time on this descent. This is the formula that I enjoy most. You can't make this shit up. 

Marty Schaffer is a Canadian citizen, professional ski guide and fellow Yeti Cycles ambassador. As the border is still closed, Marty is probably as close as I will come to Canada this summer. Just hearing him repeatedly say "soury" every time we pass someone puts a smile on my face and makes me miss the Great White North even more. 
When Party Marty isn't shredding bikes, he is running Blanket Glacier Chalet. Go heli skiing with Marty HERE. 

Dacre Dunn works for Yeti Cycles and manages the ambassador program. He is technically our boss I suppose. Here you can see Dacre aggressively managing Marty in this turn. Got to keep tabs on those damn ambassadors in the wild. Making sure we are influencing properly, that sort of thing. Dacre is influencing the ground with his rear wheel mostly though. Good man that Dacre Dunn. I haven't met a Yeti employee that doesn't absolutely crush it on the bike. It all makes sense now. 

I honestly don't know how much longer this can continue. The dirt for the last 3 weeks has been unreal. The brownest of pow, the stuff of dreams. I have basically been planning my visits around the weather and I have yet to be underwhelmed. Back to the "levels" thing. Perfect conditions just amplify the levels, so when you get a proper squad extra hyped with a fun trail and perfect dirt, there is just nothing that compares. Again, this is something you can't fake in editing, or tell people to do. This is real. This is energy. 

My friends lift me up. Levels. I am fortunate, no question. Recently, life has been dictating that I squeeze in quick rides by myself, and I do enjoy that. But... there is nothing like riding in a tight train with some legends. Live for it. 

#followcamfriday with that hero dirt timing once again with James Weingarten on Apex

I don't ride Apex very often. If I am being honest, I have always gotten a very bad vibe from the other user groups at this trail system. This is a vibe that I have not experienced anywhere else on the Front Range, or in the world actually. For this simple reason, I usually avoid the place. No sense in riding where I do not feel welcome. It basically ruins the ride. Last thing I need when I am trying to enjoy myself is catching attitude from entitled trail users. I have never encountered as much, as I have at Apex. And that is unfortunate, because the trails are absolutely amazing. 

I do my best to avoid busy times and try and time things as best as possible to avoid as many other users as possible. We started at 6pm for this ride for that very reason. Let's be honest, crowded trails are not fun for anyone. That much, we can all agree on. Hikers don't like being run off the trail by bikes and bike rides aren't actually that fun when you have to stop every 15 seconds to let hikers pass. 

So, all that said, I see the even-odd day split to be a huge step in the right direction. Bike and hike only trails would be a better answer, but we are living in Colorado and that seems to be a pipe dream due to land management and its continued resistance to address the need for trails specifically to mitigate user conflict and provide a positive experience for our user group that is only growing. So, Kudos to Jeffco for implementing the even-odd day situation and improving the experience for everyone. 

I am not sure that we could have timed this one any better. We opted to not ride the top of Enchanted because of snow on the trail but did manage to ride the bottom bit. The dirt couldn't have been better. Endless traction. There are some places on the Front Range that are unrideable with this much moisture. Green Mountain for example, right across the road was surely unrideable at this point. The soil and high sand content at Apex do amazingly well with moisture and this was as good as I have ever seen it. Powder day. 

It's no wonder this place is so popular, the trails are amazing. We are very fortunate to have these places to recreate, so close to a major city. We all need this outlet, more today than ever. I am pleased to report that I didn't feel any tension from other users on this particular day. Everyone we encountered was pleasant and smiling, just as it should be. The even-odd day thing seems to be working. In the 6 or 8 times I have ridden Apex over the last 20 years, this is the first time I have ever felt welcome. Thanks Jeffco, keep up the good work. It's a wonderful start, now if you could just start working on some MTB only trails, that would be great.