A wise friend once told me that when you receive a nice invitation, you should try hard to accept. So last winter, when the ultimate planning Ripper cast out an invite for a Canadian Powder Adventure for 2022, My fellow Ripper and I happily agreed to be part of the posse. At the time we accepted, we hoped beyond hope that the whole world would be vaccinated, and Covid would be in retreat. Fast forward to 2022, the coronavirus stayed put and we started to wonder why we were leaving the country. Crossing the border takes preparation. Canada is serious about testing. It requires a negative PCR test within 72…
Waste Not, Want Not
In these pandemic days, it is easy to become a hermit. This is not exactly why I have been absent from these pages since last spring, but it is why I decided to focus on family and my responsibility to be present for 16 young children in the classroom. All the while trying to avoid the Coronavirus, which so far, I have managed to do. I certainly did not stop thinking about the challenge of finding adventures near and far. As my fellow ripper faithfully reports, we are casting our net as far as we dare in new directions while also appreciating what is outside our front door. But now…
Seasons Change!
I love seasons. Doesn’t much matter which one. I get just as excited about the change from cold to warm as I do about warm to cold. Each season has its own attributes (and liabilities), and they each seem to last just about the right amount of time before the next one begins. Sometimes the transition takes longer than it should, and sometimes it comes too quickly. This year, finally, winter has arrived. It was too long a wait for us. After all, we live to ski. October started off in a promising manner. An early storm turned everything optimistically white. But then November hit. Temperatures back in the 60’s….
Gravel Bike Riding (Part 2)
After last week’s post, we hope many of you have had your interest piqued about gravel riding. So this week, I asked a friend, Randall Jacobs, Founder of Thesis Bikes (the bikes that Gail and I ride), to answer some basic questions about gravel bikes. We hope that this will help you understand what gravel riding is, and how gravel bikes can help fuel your adventures. SR: What is a gravel bike? Randall: The term “gravel bike” has been used to describe everything from road and cross bikes with a smidge more tire clearance, to de-facto drop-bar mountain bikes with huge tires or suspension. The former can feel light and…