Riding the San Jaun...

                So at the very end of 2012 I got a text from a buddy of mine asking if I wanted to hit up the San Juan trail with he and a few of his buddies.  I’ve had to say no to this guy way more times than I was comfortable with and was super excited that this time I got to say yes.  I was on vacation, the wife was off to take care of the kids and so I was in the garage that night prepping the old Santa Cruz Heckler.  For those of you not in the know San Juan, when shuttled, is primarily a downhill trail.  So I figured the Heckler would be perfect and I hadn’t been on it for nearly a year.  So I cleaned her up, put some lube on the chain and inflated the tires.  She was gleaming and eager to get going.

                We were meeting early and the morning dawned brisk, crisp, and clear.  It was going to be an epic day.  We met up at my buddies house, got the bikes switched from one car to another and all the gear squared away and off we went.  The starting point for the San Juan trail when shuttled is right outside of Blue Jay campground (yes Tyson the campground with all the flies…it’s an inside thing and another post).  We parked, unloaded the bikes, and promptly started to mentally compare bikes.  Watching Mountain Bikers….or any bicyclists can be hilarious.  First, we eye the competition and start to calculate how much the other guys bike might have cost.  Is that a SRAM or a Shimano parts group?  Is it a 29er? Then when we’ve got our facts straight and we’re feeling comfortable with our choice of bike the conversations starts. 

                “So how do you like that (insert bike brand/model here)”

                “What do you think of those (insert brake brand/model here)”

                And for this ride the topic of conversation most often brought up….adjustable seat posts!!  I was at the back of the group when we started off so I could gauge my skill level with the others without holding anyone back.  I was riding along marveling at the idea that I was actually riding with other human beings when the topic kept coming up here and there as we climbed and then dove down another decline.  I was having a blast but chuckling as everyone was fiddling with their hydraulic seat posts.  I’m old school, I keep mine at one level (unless it slowly drops like it did in Moab) and I ride with it there.  It’s old school but it’s also much cheaper than those fancy hydraulic posts.

                I pulled up the rear for the first couple of miles and made idle chat with a guy who was a paramedic at a pretty nice hospital in Utah.  He was a childhood friend of my buddy and his son was riding with us on a hardtail and doing pretty good at it to all things considered.   The trail was pretty rock strewn and I kept waiting for a pinch flat but my slightly worn Nevegals held up just fine.  We regrouped and my buddy called me to come up front and ride with him.  I got up there, let the group rest and then we took off.

                The next hour or two is a total blur.  We would fly down some sections where I was really pushing my skill level.  There were some ninety degree turns where I was grabbing all the brake I could just to make it. A HUGE thanks goes to my bro-in-law who did an excellent job bleeding my brakes nearly a year ago.  It was a blast of a ride.  We would fly down a section and then wait for the group to gather.  Then it was off again. The upper section was fast, twisty, and narrow.  Those are all the ingredients for some great times on two wheels.

                When we finally got to Champagne Rock (I’m pretty sure that was the name of it) we took a break, took some pictures and enjoyed the view of Orange County and the Pacific Ocean.  We snacked, chatted and then remounted to begin the long decent to the other parking lot.  This section was fun.  It was a little loose and had all kinds of switchbacks, ruts, and rocks.  It was honestly some of the best riding I’ve done since Moab/Fruita back in 2011.  We were flying along, grabbing brakes, riding out of the corners and then letting gravity take over.  The Heckler handled it like a champ.  I was doing fine and feeling light on the bike, right up until I grabbed to much brake, washed out the front tire right into a rut and over the bars I went!!  It hurt.  A lot.  I haven’t crashed like that in probably ten years and felt all 39 of my years at that moment.  I laid there on the trail staring up at the blue sky my right shoulder really hurting, my knees and lower legs scrapped up and bleeding.  Once I figured nothing was seriously broken I got up and checked out the bike.

                It was fine, thank goodness!

                I climbed aboard, a little shaky and with a right shoulder that was throbbing.  Nothing I could do about it at that point so off I went although much slower than before.  This last section of the trail required a lot of body English and a lot of braking.  My shoulder would scream at me if I turned just the right way so with the advice of my father ringing in my ears….I didn’t turn that way very often. 

                Finally we got down to the cars that would shuttle us back up to our starting point and the cars we left behind.  I was sore and in a little pain.  The paramedic took a look at it and was concerned enough that I decided to hit up the Urgent Care when I got back to town.  As we loaded the bikes we joked and laughed and reminisced about different parts of the trail and other escapades we’d been on in the past.

                The x-rays from the Urgent Care came back negative, nothing was broken or pulled.  A radiologist called me a few days later and told me the ligaments had been strained and that was it.  I took it easy for the last few days of vacation and tried not to use the shoulder/arm very much.  It’s gotten better but not 100% yet.  There is still a twinge here and there but it just reminds me of what an awesome ride it was.

                It’s really cool how this sport can bring people together.  At the start of the ride the only guy I knew was my buddy and by the end of the ride I felt like I’d made some great friends.  All of these guys have been hanging out together since they were kids and I want to thank all of them for never making me feel like an outsider.  It was an awesome day for a most excellent ride with some pretty cool dudes.  Nothing much in this world beats that combination!!

For the children...

               Recently it seems that the state of California is determined to shut down seventy-one of our state parks in an effort to stem their hemorrhaging money loss.  I could go into all of the politics behind it but in all honesty I’m not a political guy.  I’m just a guy who grew up going to some of these parks and has found myself working in the industry.   One of the parks closing down was the site of my very first camping trip with my family way back when I was around seven.  I’ve been to a few of these others but really why are we denying our future generations the opportunity to see these parks?  Why are the parks the thing to suffer here? 

                The parks systems of the states, local counties and cities are the backbone of our history and it blows me away that a state can simply close the doors and walk away.  The parks allow the future generations to experience things that are quickly being gobbled up by the fast food mentality, video games, Wikipedia, and apathy.  If we close these opportunities off to a generation that only got to get its collective toes wet by seeing images on their latest Wikipedia search there will come a time when no one in a given generation will ever set foot in a park. 

                The invention of GPS has already made the map reading skills I learned as a child obsolete.  Kids nowadays wouldn’t be able to find their way out of a paper bag without their GPS.  Parks give girls and boys the opportunity to learn about some of these ‘ancient’ ways.  Parks allow them to touch and see and experience history.  Those who do not understand history are doomed to repeat it.  Parks give a family the opportunity to come together and for a few hours, a day or longer be together. 

                “Alice algae and Freddy fungi took a liching to each other and now their relationship is on the rocks”

                Funny right?  I learned this from a park ranger at a park when I was around 10.  I have never forgotten it.  Why would we look to deprive our children on this sort of education?   I’ve used the saying in my Environmental Science class midterm essay.  I’ve used it to teach my own children and at least a few other times while working.  Seriously though how do we expect our kids to keep from paving over the entire continent if we don’t instill in them a love/appreciation of the outdoors?

                This love doesn’t have to be developed through nights out camping or even a hike.  The municipal park is just as important as the big national forests or state parks.  Locally, our municipal parks have been shut down due to funding.  Kids can’t even go to a park to play.  That is simply insane and wrong on so many levels I find myself speechless.   Have the politicians forgotten what it was like to be a child and go to the park with the family to enjoy a picnic, a romp through the playgrounds, or rolling around the grass? 

                In my work world I experience some really baffling behavior towards parks and while at times it can be exasperating I also see it as an opportunity to educate the public on what being a User of the park system entails and the responsibility they have to keep it clean and ready for the next User to come along.  I think that this is probably the most important aspect of my job and the jobs of everyone who works in the Parks, Recreation, or open space field.  Education.  We need to educate those who are to follow us.  Whether this is done through the parents or in our individual interactions with the children as they run through our parks is not the concern, the education is the important part.  I recently spoke to an individual who drove onto the grass at a park.  At first I was angry because I know how much work goes into the maintenance of that grass.  I spoke to driver of the car and treated them with respect while I explained why driving on the grass was not a good idea.  The driver hadn’t realized and was respectful and apologetic when he left.  My cynicism hasn’t quite grown to the point that I think he’ll just ignore me and do it again.  I feel like I got through to him and hopefully he’ll pass his education on to a friend or two and to his kids. 

                If we want to keep the Parks and Open Spaces of our cities, counties, and states open to the public and available to future generations we must make sure that the future generation understand what it means, enjoys it and wants to bring their children to the park.  That means we ALL must work together to keep them open.  Get involved on a local level, pick up bits of trash you might see lying along the path you’re walking on, find out if there are trail building days, participate, participate, participate.  Only by doing this and bringing your kids along will we be able to continue to enjoy the outdoors for generations to come.

Get some balance...

                I will bring balance to the Force.

                Well maybe not the Force or the world but I will bring some semblance of balance to my life.  It would seem that at some point during the endless battle against the fates I get sucked into this all or nothing mentality.  I obsess over an item, a hobby, a change and it sucks me in and absorbs every last bit of my attention.  This usually means that for a month or so I am going to change the world!  Then I get stagnant, I get burnt out and my attention is absorbed my some other golden trinket lying around.  I totally Homer Simpson it.

                I’ve done this with riding in the past, I’ve done it with my iPad, I’ve done this with the laptop I’m typing on now.  Yes, I’ve done it with my writing and I truly believe that this inability to ‘Bring Balance to the Force’ is why I have, for the most part, failed at most major under takings in my constant sludge through this knee deep pool of poo I call a life.  I do believe that my Midichlorian count is too low to become a true master at all.  Of course this won’t stop me from banging my head against a wall.  What is that saying Yoda likes to hurl at us padawans?  “Do or do not, there is no try.” Yep that’s the one.  I really hate quitting but I’m pretty good at putting it off.  So I get the ‘do’ part just fine I just may not ‘Do’ things in a time frame the little green Muppet is happy with.

                All kidding aside the other day I realized that I had spent several hours sitting at the desk staring at a computer screen, angered by a change at work and pissed off that I had chosen that same time to try and jump start some half hopeless attempt at a writing career.  I was depressed, mad, and generally just a complete crab-apple.  I needed a change.  I think we all do when we get to that stage in life when our mundane little existence no matter how much fun it is just becomes tedious.   I’ve noticed that a lot of the authors and mtn bikers I follow who started out doing it all as a hobby and then try to push it into something more become somewhat disenfranchised about their chosen hobby/activity the more that activity/hobby becomes job like in nature.  Those who are dedicated trainers know this and do things to break up the monotony.  They run, they plan a huge mtn biking trip to some far away land, they go snowboarding.  Anything to break the crap up. 

                I keep my road bike in my office where I can drool over its sleek carbon fiber lines.  (I have another free wall and the thought of also storing my mtn bike in the office is never far from my mind…it looks so sad out there in the garage.)  I kept staring at it and coming up with one excuse or another to not ride it.  You see a month ago I’d burnt out on the riding thang too.   So there I was burnt out on the two things that keep me motivated and depressed about changes at work that were entirely outside of my control.  I woke up on a Thursday to a whining daughter who wanted to be driven to her friends house so they could walk to school together.  Since I am such a cool Dad I finally agreed and was up earlier than normal.  My road bike was gently calling my name each time I passed her.  She wanted to stretch her legs….and to be honest so did I.  With only minutes to spare I scrambled to get my gear together (thank you Mom for that whole…’a place for everything, and everything in its place’ mantra you drilled into me) and we were out the door only 1 minute late. 

                I won’t bore you with the details of the ride (80 minutes, 19.34 miles, 978 ft of elevation change…ok so I will afterall) but suffice it to say that although I didn’t push myself I had a blast and some of the depression and burn out was lifted.  I rode down a few roads I don’t normally hit and enjoyed a beautiful SoCal spring morning.  (Anyone know where DeLuz road behind Murrieta goes?)   It’s amazing how a little change to a morning routine can alter your perceptions of the world around you.  Change (like at work) can be scary but they can also be good for you.  We should never do that thing we love to the point of burn out.  We can push ourselves to get out of that safe zone but we should also make sure to mix it up.  I know that starting now I will make sure to make time for riding so that I don’t let myself down with my yearly goals but also so that the Muse gets a break from constantly staring at the monitor.  The Muse won’t grow unless it’s taken out and given a walk.  Let it play in the fields and while you may have lost a few hours of writing time you may have gained a whole day of free thinking.  As I said on Facebook that morning after the ride, “It’s amazing how mixing up the daily routine a little can bring balance to the force….er life.”  Now what are you waiting for?  Get out there and Git Sum!!!!  Happy Spring.

Gettin' my geek on at Wondercon...

                I love comic books!



Emperor's Royal Guard



                That probably comes as no surprise to those who know me but to those who don’t I’ll give a brief background.  I’ve been collecting comics in some form or another since I was about 8 or 9 (that’s around 1982 or so for those of you keeping track) and trading GI-Joe issue #25 (along with a gazillion other comic books) back and forth with my best friend on the front porch of his house.  Back then we were quite upset when the books went from sixty-five cents to seventy-five cents.  Comic books were my gateway drug to the science fiction and fantasy books I took up in my late teens and continue to worship at the age of 39.  There was maybe a year or two around 18 that I stopped but it wasn’t all that long of a period of time.  I read them, I read about them and I listen to podcasts about what’s going on in the industry.  I’m hooked. 

                Over the years I’ve gone to about seven comic-cons in San Diego.  (Once I went to a Star Trek convention but that’s another story for another blog post) Back in the 90’s the San Diego comic-con was a fairly humble affair but really fun with great deals to be had and new products to ogle.  Slowly it has gotten to the version we have now; a large four day orgy of pop culture.  I took the family two years ago and while it was fun and filled with eye-candy galore it was PACKED!!!!  The San Diego International Comic Convention has reached epic proportions, which is cool for the industry and awesome if you have the time and patience for it.  I have neither. 

                So along came a new year and a growing desire to check out a comic-con.  I didn’t really care if it was San Diego or not.  I just wanted to attend one.  I did a little research and came up with Wondercon 2012.  The Wondercon is a yearly affair but usually held up in San Francisco.  Due to some construction on the hotel it’s usually held at they decided to move it down here.  (According to rumors running rampant there is a more sinister reason for the move but I won’t go into that here) For twenty dollars a single adult could go. (kids under 12 are free which as a father of three I think is just awesome…great way to take a relatively inexpensive family day)  So we got two tickets and the time off and prepped to venture out into the unknown.



Our Badges and Lanyards!



                The con ended up being on the one weekend this winter that Southern California has had a ‘real’ storm.  It rained, and it rained hard and, though the walk from the car to the convention hall was relatively short, we got soaked!  All was not lost as the kid’s flagging enthusiasm regained momentum at the sight of about a dozen stormtroopers in full regalia just inside the convention doors.  I believe I read they are from the 501^st but don’t quote me.  Whoever they were the costumes were simply awesome.  There was also a volleyball tournament and a cheerleading competition going.  It was quite the site to see all of these people mixing in the foyer.  Cheerleaders sharing a hallway with geeks made for some pretty hilarious looks.  The Geeks seemed shy and unsure how to look at cheerleaders and cheerleaders looking at the cos-players (people who wear costumes of their favorite heroes/heroines) as if they had some sort of skin disease.    



Bumblebee & Optimus Prime anyone?





Blair Butler from G4



                We got our badges and headed into the Con and let me tell you, I was excited.  The best part of the day?  The convention didn’t let me down.  To be honest it was pretty much perfect.  I’d have liked to see a few more of the comic companies there with slightly bigger displays but everything I wanted was there.  We had stars (I saw Blair Butler, Kevin Pereira, Jim Lee & a host of lesser known comic book artists), we had cool cosplayers (I already mentioned the 501^st but there were also some other really awesome costumes like the Baroness, Bumblebee, Optimus Prime, and Han Solo), and there were the deals.  It was nigh on perfect.  It really took me back to some of my first San Diego cons where the aisles weren’t totally packed and the dealers were friendly.  Artists were smiling and generally everyone seemed to be having fun. 



                I have to admit I’m a little bummed that this is a one-time deal because if it wasn’t I’d already be planning my trip for next year with an extra day to attend so I could go by myself one day and really get into the artist alley.  With the kids it was a little difficult to do much more than skim the surface which was fun, but getting deeper and chatting with some of them would’ve been the icing on the cake.  There were also a bunch of panels that I just couldn’t get to because the kids would not have wanted to sit still that long. 


                In the end though the Twins had a blast and I think even the Five year old enjoyed himself.  My wife is always supportive of my comic book love and I think she too had a great time.  She doesn’t read the comic books but we’ve been married for nearly 19 years and she’s picked up a nugget of information from me over the years.  All in all Wondercon 2012 was a roaring success from this comic book loving fathers point of view.



A very cool nearly life size Hulk sculpture from Gentgiant Studios



Some replica props from the upcoming Avenger movie.



A very cool Shadow Trooper from 501st



Zantana (Zartan's Sister), The Baronness, & a Cobra Soldier (I think they might've been looking for the Joes)