I spent this morning up in the mountains building a trail and riding some really fun singletrack. With everything going on lately, that adds up to a big training week for me - 2 hours today and a 2:15 run on Wednesday. I may be able to break 5 hours for the first time since July if I can manage to get out Sunday. Watch out Kris Freeman!
As is typical for fall in Colorado, we had a full assortment of weather conditions. I arrived at 9AM to partly cloudy skies. At 10AM the wind picked up, and at 10:30 it was snowing sideways. Raking, pulling stumps and digging drainage trenches kept us warm until it was time to ride the trail, so the snow just made it more fun. The snow brought lots of talk about ski season and questions about the ski shop. It was nice to share what I've been doing and see that other people are excited about it.
We finished working just as the snow squalls hit their peak. We packed up our tools, put on every article of clothing we had and rolled out into the snow on our mountain bikes. We had all brought typical fall cold-weather gear, but we were not prepared for snow with 40MPH winds. I ended up putting on a pair of sweatpants over my bike shorts and borrowing a set of gardening gloves that were sized for a small woman. We looked pretty ridiculous, but the snow was so thick that nobody could see us anyway.
The new trail was great and it is always fun to ride something that you helped build. This trail was special to us because we built it in memory of our friend who was killed while riding her bike earlier this summer. Unexpected tragedies are always difficult to process, and while there is nothing that takes away the pain, it feels great to remember someone by spending time with friends doing something constructive.
After spinning a couple of laps around the trail and doing a big loop of fun singletrack, we ended up back at the trailhead. The fickle Colorado weather ended the day appropriately: as I packed up my bike and tools into my car, my friend rode into brilliant sunshine to take a loop alone around his wife's memorial trail.
That little taste of winter was a reminder of what I love about life and why I'm doing all of this. Launching this ski shop has buried me in details and it has been very easy to get caught up in things like inventory, margins, technical specs, credit terms, etcetera. While everyday life is vitally important, we have to remember to take the time to enjoy it, be healthy and have fun. As you prepare for winter, I wish everyone safety, health and happiness as we pursue our passion for skiing, snow and life.