Fate or Forgetfulness?

 I realized it as soon as I parked my car at the trailhead and stepped out. I mentally facepalmed myself. I had forgotten to grab my helmet. I know we used to ride bikes without helmets. Even the first mountain bikers.

But nowadays I don't even cruise the side walk without a helmet. I'm definitely not riding a sick day at Left Hand without a brain bucket. At least I was by myself so I wasn't ruining anyone else's day. I accepted the fact that I wouldn't be doing any hardcore riding and resigned myself to some trail maintenance. It was still a beautiful day and I was in my favorite place, so I headed up. I thought about the judgement I would receive from other mountain bikers, but no one lectured me about head trauma. Then I stashed my bike and became a hiker anyway. 

The last time I rode Indy I did notice lots of loose rocks. In my thirty-plus years on a mountain I've realized that loose rocks on a trail are just as sketchy then as they are now. I've also realized that saying I've been mountain biking for thirty-plus years isn't as impressive as I think it is. Lots of people have been riding that long and many even longer. So this is the last time I'll mention it until I can say forty-plus years of mountain biking.

Loose rocks and raw, natural terrain is the essence of mountain biking I can accept that on my big alpine rides I will ride the trail no matter the condition. Often we follow the tracks of moto riders so loose rocks are all over. But Left Hand is different, or at least it should be. I like to ride Left Hand, especially the Indiana Jones Trail as if it is a section of slopestyle hidden in the woods. When a trail is full of features, the focus should be on the features. I don't want someone lining up for a big send off a drop and having a loose rock kick their front wheel over six inches right as they are taking off. That's a terrible reason to crash, especially in a place with lots of excellent reasons to crash.

Speaking of, I met a rider at the top of the trail who told me he slid out on the wet mud and had just gotten a concussion. He was slowly working his way down to his riding partner, so  I wished him well and continued hiking. Later I caught up to them at the bottom of the trail and asked how he was feeling. He asked, "did you see me crash?" I said, "no you told me you did" He said, "really? when?" I said "ten minutes ago I saw you and you said you got a concussion." 

At this point his friend started laughing and said, "ok, maybe it's time I get you down"

When I kick rocks off the trail I get a very Zen Garden vibe. I feel like, clearing debris off the trail and making it wider opens up new lines. A trail can hold several line options, but if one is clear and the other has some pine cones and a stick on it, no one will ever take that line. I'm also doing it out of my own self interest because often I like the alternate line but the majority likes the other line. This means my line gets filled with debris while the other stays clear.

For example here are two available lines off the third drop on Indy. Most of the world goes left, but I like to go off the rock on the right. Because I am in the minority, my side of the feature gets all the loose rocks. I picked all the bigger stones off and stacked them on the side. Then I swept the pine needles away and made it clear that the trail had two obvious choices for anyone tackling this feature. No longer would riders be obligated to follow the masses. Mountain bikers are individuals, with free will and the power to make our own choices. I will blaze my own trail! I will make my own tracks! I will...oh shit, someones coming!

I ducked off the trail at the sound of an approaching rider, he was the first rider this year to be presented with a clean trail, full of options. He took the left line.