Sans Words....

Haven't had time to write, nor even think much about words lately.
It's been all about the primal, the mtb pedaling, the hoofin' it, the lessons of braaap.

Once the temps fall and the days grow shorter, will have a few posts to include....the selection and breaking in of ol' Kicker200 2-stroke, oh lawd.

Too Busy to Articulate....

Perhaps once the temperatures drop, I'll have more time (or interest?) for me to "use my words", for I do love words.  But for now, my noggin' is all about the visual. And the smells.  And the feels of wind and dirt and alpine air and pine needles and even of the branches as I slam into them in my clumsy descents of sweet so sweet singletrack.  But today it's all visual...all that I can muster to convey in this post. As such, all I have to offer are some pics today, and the subject matter....divine!

Or, is it a laugh that you seek?
Wanna hear a mountain joke?

Sure, but you won't get over it.

Badampbambam....


Speaking of mountains, some wholesome ones were romped around this summer.  So on w/a few pics to hopefully spread the stoke...

Colorado Trail....ahhhhh....

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Amazeballs. Alpine lake @ 12,400'. Ummm....cold!
(Pic: by uber cool chica @tooley )

Looking south into the Weminuche, the high CT winding thru and some old ruins. And Lil Donkey125 is parked down below at the pass (road, right).
Oh, and some views.

All days aren't bluebird skies and rainbows. Montrose mud.....sucks.
Bikey no likey.

Cool cool uncle showing me a "trail"....yah right.

Fun lil independence wknd shuttle w/the baggie shorts crew...fun!

Watched these lil guys from the day they hatched til they flew off. 

 Speaking of new ones, loved this sunny high-elevation walk with my favorite new mama, her baby chica and of course Turner-dawg!

Yes, in July.

Snuck south to the roots for warmer temps and some family time! Me and the mama on the Gulf.

And for some bike rides w/the mama and aunties.

Then, back up toward the sky about 13,000 more feet.....

Miss @tooley getting ready to JUMP IN that ice cold water! 

This guy knows some stuff!

One of my favorite spots. Zoom in, scroll around, pics never do these places justice.
Can see a lot from here...lots of CT to include those "flawless" switchbacks;  Weminuche, 
Lots of 13ers and 14ers, basically 360d of ooolala.  Meh :)
Schilling, et al, we shall ride (errr HAB) this, 2016.







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Whirlwind Month in Pics....

A whirlwind past few weeks...

From prepping for another phenomenal summer (to include spending most of it in the Rockies, kicking bootay at the Breck Epic and some XTERRAs)....to major OUCH, to ANOTHER knee surgery (2nd in 8 months...ugh), lots of tears and why-me-pity-parties to being lost w/out goals, exertion, stoke...to switching gears, reflection, appreciation, lots of rehab, legs propped up, more tears, more fat, new body, tears, to hanging w/friends and family, swimming, paddling, reading, writing, trainer "sessions", eventually some flatland pedaling, a new lens, some camping in CO, then finally to some dirt, even some lung-sucking, grin-producing climbing...boom!

Blissful reunion.   Giddy in fact, not to mention that it was way up high above the treeline.  High-altitude...my bliss.  No ball-busting paces and still no techy singletrack but some epic rides/views nevertheless. I've even found some doubletrack worthy of praise!  Still a long way to go, still no running (sigh), still being very cautious, and perhaps never hit hard efforts again. 

But....summertime keeps ya dreaming, keeps stoke alive, esp that Rocky Mountain high.

Patience and restraint....lessons of summer 2014 (so far).

DH pedals for the roadbike (needed flats to layoff the tender hammie).

No QOM hunting this summer.....just hunting for self-earned wind in face, epic views, HR above 70 (finally!), some solitude,.....score!  

Bedrest led to walks, to trainer sessions, to some flat-land pedaling to some climbs and eventually....Colorado Trail!

Giddy....trail, flow, elevation, wildflowers, pow!

Embrace the day!

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Makin' Lemonade Outta Injury/Recovery...

Well, knee surgery has come and gone. 

I was on the bike the very next morning.  Of course it was just a stationary trainer at the phys therapist's office, but I was surprised (and excited, and scared) that they'd wanted me on it so quickly. Seven whole minutes.  

I was pretty optimistic the first week.  But it's been three now and it still hurts.  The worst of the pain is gone (the bone fragment that had gotten lodged in the joint), but the bone-on-bone dead front/center of the kneecap....ouch.  Trying to be optimistic, trying to be patient, definitely being conservative.  I realize this is NOT one of those times to "suck it up" and push through it, as doing so would just fracture the bone further. I've been super lucky to be in the hands of the team at Athlete's Performance, although they can't help when it comes down to my impatience, my "wear and tear" and now travelling again.

Was so hard to go from all day of riding/playing this summer to nada, zip, zilch.  All that altitude/base/climbing work...gone.  The positive, however, though is that AT LEAST I GOT SOME AMAZING RIDING IN THIS YEAR!  Keep having to remind myself of that!  Colorado multiple times, Chile/Andes and home sweet home Arizona.  Definitely earned some good dirt this year (and a few podium spots somehow).  I'll savor that, but we all know it's really all about TOMORROW.  So, I'm hopeful I won't have to rely on past memories.

And not that I like lap-swimming (hate it!), but I was really looking forward to getting the stitches out and at least getting back in the pool. Was craving getting my heart-rate up again.  The the Dr said "no"...wait another week for the ports to close/heal up.  Ughhh.  

So, I loaded up the truck with my bike/trainer, all the cold-weather clothes I own and my buddies' dog who I was supposed to dog-sit for anyway (I love me some Turner!), and headed back to Colorado.  I figured I could sulk at home or sulk at 9500' elev and w/a new view; also knew I would never go there if I weren't injured as I hate the cold and feel limited in snow.  So, this was a perfect time to see its awe, pedal in place and try something new. 

In the interim, some random shots of what kept me occupied before/during/after surgery.  Thank goodness for good friends and amazing canines! :)

Buddy Jen & me. Two desert rats trying out some SUP (paddleboardin'). 

Looking for wild burros out on the paddleboard the night before surgery. (A redrockchica "tradition" it seems.) 

One of the several loose bone fragments Dr pulled out.

36 hrs later on trainer. John/Jen's back deck...w/loyal ol' Kelly-dog.

Loaded up and heading to the Rockies. Turner-dog in tow.

Of course, a blizzard hit immediately. Turned out to be kinda fun.

Vid - Turner lovin' it!

The next morning.  Ooo la la.

Then back to AZ...

My first "real" ride.  My buddy Schillingsworth gave me a tour of some of the canal routes and hung back at my snail's pace. Flat but at least outside!  Happy to have wind in my face again. (Don't mock the kit, I was out of practice and it was surprisingly freezing down in the valley. Whatevah!)

Extra big thanks to the crew who put up w/my injured ol' bootay and who cut me some slack on me being jealous every time they talked about their adventures outside!  Especially thanks to Jen, John, the girls, Dredd, Ed, RE, BP, Matt, MB, JZ,...gracias!!

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Rambling...

 Looking up toward (and longing for) Four Peaks.

for those with whom i've been slack on comms recently....sorry.  no valid excuses.  just some insight....

w/this injured hinge, i'm living inside a body in which i'm not familiar, not at home.  it doesn't do what the rest of it wants to do.  it wants to sprint up a mountain, pedal over a crest, a million other things that it doesn't even yet know it wants til it gets its urge.  

but now it's just a shell that the girl inside is trying so hard not to be mad at, trying to stay loyal and thankful because that same shell -- and broken hinge -- is pretty much solely responsible for the best days of her life, biggest/hardest lessons learned in life, and surely for some of the biggest grins ever.  

the heart and soul and legs and lungs and wild eyes want to run as hard as i can, but the hinge won't have it. that little millimeter of "ouch" is a meteor-size NO!   so while i have all this time on my hands, it'd seem easy, practical actually, to just take advantage of doing other things, and perhaps to get to know someone/something new.  but it's not that easy.  i dont want someone learning this version of me.  i dont even like this version of me.  it's foreign.  it's so far out of my element and comfort zone.  it's a lot to handle up in the ol 'nogin.

spoiled i must sound, and spoiled i surely am.  my life has been about movement about freedom about doing what the body wants....and now the emergency brake is on and i dont want it to be.  time is ticking and i've got to relearn a rhythm...hopefully a temporary one in hopes that this is fixable, that I myself will be fixable.

i rely on no one but myself for contentment, for fun, for grins, for satisfaction....and right now i've let myself down.  but i can't be mad at that little worn-out hinge.  i've surely abused it, and i'm sure it's already given me, in my short lifetime, far more than most would ever dream of.  so woe is me and my spoiled rotten little pity party, haha.  i'll survive.  it's not cancer, i realize. life is not over.  but it is a big deal for me and showing myself in this light is ill-advised.  while yes, it's the real me, it's not the best me, and it's really not even a passing grade.  i'm too distracted w/HEAL HEAL HEAL...

in the interim, there's a big ol purty world outside and i need to admire it...and figure out how to either get me running on its ridgelines and/or just exploring it while letting the lil hinge heal up.

And finally, the sun setting upon Four Peaks....a special few moments of pure chance that I was able to see the sunkiss upon the peaks in the one saddle where the peaks peaked through.  A sweet ending to a sweet day....