What a slacker I’ve been! Although the injury to my Achilles last August really put a damper on my activities, I don’t think I had to go quite this deep into hibernation. Between the injury, work, and a strange and seemingly long winter, it took something major to get me kick-started this year.  What about a trip to Moab?  That might just do it.

Moab has been on my “bucket list” for a while so when one of my travelling buddies decided to take a little time off from work during March, the opportunity was too good to pass up.  Flights were reserved, a hotel was booked, bikes were rented, and we’re on our way. With only a couple weeks before the trip, there wasn’t much point in training or preparation. We’ll just get out there, figure it out, and have a good time. Moab, here we come.

Being the “Mecca of Mountain Biking”, Moab certainly favors the prepared visitor. Fortunately, March is the beginning of their best weather so we didn’t have to deal with the tremendous heat found in mid-summer and the weather was perfect. After picking up the bikes, we did a bit of riding on the new “Pipe Dreams” trail just outside of downtown Moab. Not the most scenic trail in the area, but it’s certainly convenient. Saturday and Sunday were spent hiking around Arches and Canyonlands National Parks with a stop at Dead Horse State Park for some easy single-track in the afternoon.

A trip to Moab wouldn’t be complete without a visit to Slickrock.  Thinking it was only a couple of miles from the hotel, I decided to bike the and at least check out the “practice loop”. Six hundred feet in 2 miles may not sound like much, but when you been a couch-potato for 6 months, it gets your attention.  The “practice loop” was a blast but I certainly wasn’t up for any more.  If this hadn’t been the last day, however, I’d have been psyched to go back for more.

I certainly wouldn’t rule out a return to Moab.  I definitely enjoyed the riding, especially my short stint on Slickrock, and I’m convinced that with a bit more preparation and better bike-handling skills, I could have a really good time out there. There’s always next year…

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