Mud-life Crisis

I recently had a mud-life crisis. Yes, you read that correctly, "mud-life." I have been riding dirt for as long as I can remember. And my friends have been bugging me to get a full suspension bike for ages. It has been a running joke among my friends. I make excuses......I am a gravel rider. I don't really like mountain biking. I am not good at mountain biking. blah, blah, blah. But something changed recently. I started riding with a new group. They are certifiably insane. In a good way. And they love to ride mountain bikes. And through them I joined NEHSCA. It is so bizarre how connected this biker community is. Joining NEHSCA and riding with the coaches and the kids made me feel like a kid again. I am not even joking. It is funny how that works. It is why I coached Lacrosse for so many years. I ended up at NEHSCA because my daughter aged out of our local lacrosse league and it didn't make sense to coach or be on a board of a league I didn't have a kid in. 

My good friend Jim Grimley reached out to me about it last August. I had heard so many good things about NEHSCA but really it was the last thing on my mind. But as any of my friends who know me will attest it is easy to get me #hyped. It only took a few meetings for me to join NEHSCA and become a board member. When a friend asked me to coach I was like sure. All the while knowing I am a terrible mountain biker. Ok that isn't true but compared to some of these kids I am. They have so many skills it isn't even funny. They have zero fear. It is awesome.

I joined the Wild Ones a really cool team based at Hale. My dream was to create the Cutler Cutters in my own back yard but that dream may have to wait a bit.....the Wild Ones have kids from Needham, Dover, Westwood and the surrounding area. NEHSCA is set up a bit differently. The teams are regional which I think is actually really cool. High School sports are great but it is nice to have a group that is from a bunch of different towns. I first started riding with the team at the end of CX season. We would meet at this farm in Sudbury and go on these hilarious CX training rides. Again these kids are so talented on a bike. None of these kids rode CX before. And they were ripping it up. A bunch of them raced Ice Weasels and had a blast. I can see a LOT of NEHSCA kids trying CX next Fall!

Now I loved my old bike. It was a beautiful steel Zank hardtail. I love that man like a brother. But I am not ashamed to admit I am too old for a hardtail. I just get so beat up by it. I still love how it rides but my body can't take the beating. I went to KT a few summers back and rented a bike and that really was the beginning of this mud-life crisis. I saw what a huge difference a modern FS bike makes. And I demo'd a bunch of bikes. OK that is kind of a lie. My friend Matt Myette did all the demoing. It was kind of a hobby of his. I did test ride a Santa Cruz Blur and loved it. And my friends SWEAR by the Ibis Ripley. So it was really down to about three bikes. My friend Matt is a huge Niner fan. And one of my favorite CX/Gravel brothers from another mother is a Niner evangelist. So when it came time to finally make the call it was easy. Plus this one came in orange. I LOVE orange bikes. They are the best ones. Don't let anyone tell you any different.

The trip up to Chainline Cycles in Laconia was worth it. Seeing Eric's process on how he builds a bike and how he sets it up was impressive. And I have been around PRO level bike mechanics and builders for the better part of two decades. I highly recommend talking with Eric. He also is one of the funniest guys I know. We spent 2 hours going over the set up and talking about gravel rides. I know, I know even when I am having a mud-life crisis and getting my first FS bike I can't help talk about gravel. Gravel and mountain biking are where so much energy are coming from right now though. They just have breathed new life into the sport that honestly felt like it was dying a bit. The energy just feels a bit like it did back in the '90s. I just want to ride. Racing is cool and all but really all I want is to go into the woods with some rad friends and have fun.

About the bike. I have only ridden it once. Once was enough to realize just how sick this bike is though. Wow. I got the trail version so it is 120/100. Perfect for how I ride. And more importantly the PERFECT 24 Hours of Great Glen bike. I was nervous riding it at first. I had no idea what to expect. But it seriously just carves. The thing I noticed first about FS compared to my hardtail was how much better it climbs. I know that doesn't make sense but in New England the trails are just bombed out rock and root covered "trails" It is often hard to tell what is a trail and what is not. Often the rocks are the trail. New England is more rock biking than mountain biking. It has taken me years to accept this. And I am ok with it now. Although I will not lie I prefer a loamy, bermy serpentine Singletrack over some rock drop huck fest. But that is just me. Even in the midst of a mud-life crisis that won't change.
For now (in the grayness of mid-winter in the NE) I am dreaming of summer and VT, hitting Big River with the Big Man and just finding every chance to get out and get rad.