Rosie's first post here!
A pillow fell off the bed and onto Sammy this morning. Sammy badger don't give a care! Actually, I think he is missing his favorite sleeping spot under the bed--here there are too many underbed storage bins for Sammy to make a dog cave. He has tried to get under the bed ruffle, so the pillow might be welcome shelter.
My old roommate and dear friend Ryland and I are on our first summer chairlift together ever! It was a free pass day to have a specially adapted chairlift haul your bike up to the newly finished bike park trails at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (you ride one of the standard chairs before or after your bike goes up). Taking the lift instead of biking up was perfect for getting used the altitude and for getting lots of practice on the downhills! Pat got to practice harder trails than Ryland and I.
I super scored: I signed up for a clinic to practice downhill technique and was the only one: private lesson with Christina, an amazing downhill biker and teacher! I think I improved more in one lesson than I did in a whole season of mountain biking before I moved away from the valley. Then, I got back from the clinic to find out that I won a North Face backpack with hydration system. The JHMR tent folks recognized my name as the girl out on the solo clinic and held the pack for me, even though winners were supposed to be present at the raffle drawing. What nice folks and good luck!
This image only from http://www.jacksonhole.com/mountainbiking.html, where there is also a video of biking in their park trails.
The downhill subculture of mountain biking was interesting to see more of. The past year or two, I'd seen some downhillers (I have to do some research to find out what term they use for themselves) riding down Teton Pass in body armor, giant helmets with face guards, and goggles. Some even have wider tires. On the Pass, they usually shuttle a car so they don't strand a car at the top after biking down or they hitch back up to get the car. The sport is about the downhill aspect of mountain biking--large, flat pedals with small cleats keep their feet from skidding off but aren't suited to huge uphills. As my instructor explained, and I saw for myself when I demoed body armor for my clinic, the armor isn't great for uphills either!
Downhill biking is more like downhill skiing in standard alpine bindings and stiff boots: great for the downhills, but probably best if you have a lift or a car for the uphills. The more pure cross country mountain bikes (like Pat's and mine--although mine has full suspension and is pretty burly) are like telemark or alpine touring skis: flexible for uphills and downhills, but not the best for huge jumps, drops, or rocks. But that's okay with me; on bike or skis, I'm never one for the biggest jumps!
