I'm Lucky to Push my Bike

Got out this morning for a ride with Gretchen. I'd heard all week and even saw yesterday how awful the conditions were.


I'm stubborn.

I decided to try anyway.

The start wasn't so bad. There was some crunch and some slick, but not too much of either.

Then I started climbing. The trail was well hiked, so the snow was either packed, crunchy or slick - enough of a variety to provide traction yet not impede.

I passed three people hiking down. The first was some guy with a bunch of dogs. Most were on a leash except one.

The second was a kid. He was kind of in awe I think. He hardly noticed Gretchen stop to greet him.

The third was a woman obviously having trouble with the traction. So much trouble she felt the need to warn me how bad it was and suggest a route for me. I thanked her, or pretended to and continued my climbing.

At the top (for me anyway, the hill continues, but I turned off), I started across a traverse. This part was less hiked. The snow was deeper and crunchier. Here it got hard. It was like riding in aquarium gravel if you can imagine that.

Completely winded I stopped. Gretchen looked at me funny as I stood there chest heaving and wheezing (I'm sort of sick and definitely out of shape).

Time to push. The weather was nice and neither one of us cared. I pushed to the top of the traverse and headed down again. Down was definitely better. Momentum played well against the snow, but it was still slow.

And that's how it went for a while. Push the bike up. Ride it down.

There was some really hard packed snow, then it was like riding on a sidewalk. That was nice.
It was just tacky enough to not scare the crap out of you like ice.

Though the ice was almost better then the crunchy stuff. If you were real careful and real steady, you could mosey right along. One slip and you were down. I think Gretchen went down more then I did on the rail road bed, but she must have gotten the hang of it as it was me going down more in the fields.

It's days like these I kick myself for not having a set of studded two-niner tires. Eh. They wouldn't have helped in the snow, which was harder to ride then the ice.

We didn't get very far, but we did get out. Gretchen even got to play with another shepherd, which was nice for the both of them.

It's cool to see how relaxed and comfortable Gretchen is at Marsh Creek. She's been there enough for it to be like her backyard. Fortunately she's not barking at everybody that passes by like she does in her own yard.

- b