Well I finally started riding again. Since I was eight years old, I've known how much riding my bike could make me feel free and uninhibited. There's no better feeling than the downhill rush of a fast turning switchback or catching air off an unexpected boulder while you're barreling down the mountainside. Meanwhile, all your problems were left at the trailhead and somehow you know this ride will never end. It was the blissful simplicity of riding that I had been missing all this time. I'm half past 27 now and I've just rediscovered the joy of riding a bike; thanks to a little help from a friend who helped build my new rig. These days, I'm fortunate enough to have three days off of work each week and, of course, I spend as much time on my bike as possible. Here in Las Vegas, the sandy and rock infested desert trails can be quite unforgiving. Sure there are some established trails and mountain bike parks in the area, but setting up the bike rack and loading up my Civic can be a pain sometimes. Usually, I just pedal out my garage and head for the nearest mountains; only a half-mile ride uphill from my house. A lot of these trails are mostly ridden by dirt bikes and quads, and some horses too. On what I call my daily downhill run, you can find long sets of whoop-dee-doos, crunchy rock strewn switchbacks, fast but cratered straight-aways and the occasional desert tortoise. The funnest part is hanging on tight and seeing what happens; it's almost like watching a movie and hoping the hero makes it through (and you know he always does.) When I'm not pedaling aimlessly in the dessert, I like to switch it up with a short ride to the neighborhood skate parks. Carving bowls and jumping over box jumps on my hardtail is a real blast. I get funny looks from the bmx and skate kids but I like to think I hold my own pretty well with 26in wheels. I've been riding bmx bikes for about 20 years and my newest mountain bike is also my first and only. It' outfitted with high-rise handlebars clamped down to a burly bmx stem and also bmx platform pedals. Feels like a grown up bmx bike that you can ride forever past the hills. Anyway, skateparks are a great place to work on balance and handling skills. I also get the opportunity to pass my experience on to younger kids and learn from their new ways of thinking, too. I call it the "cycle of life." For anyone out there that is thinking about getting a bike or cleaning up the dusty ride in the garage, I say do it. Ride anytime you can and as often as you can. The health benefits are obvious but the feeling you get from a long ride or a day at the skatepark is priceless. There's a real community of people out there who love what they do and when it comes to something as simple and basic like a bicycle, you can't help but do right for yourself. My camelback is staring at me so I think I'll fill her up now and pedal out the garage. Happy trails!
