It’s been a bit too long since the Church of the Holy Alliance of Mooseknucklers convened and celebrated bringing the knuckle out of the closet whilst worshipping the great big whatever that happens to be out there somewhere, maybe, or whatever. That’s just a long way of saying we got together and rode our bikes and it happened to be on Sunday.
It was the first Sabbath (well not really, this was Sunday) that I had off and KB and I weren’t scheduled to be somewhere that wasn’t here. Again, not entirely true. We were scheduled to be on Cedar Mountain. The call went out sometime last week and a few of the “good” people responded. The plan was hatched to ride some lifts and run some shuttles. Pretty much the opposite of what the Alliance usually does, but as Kenny put it, we pretty much just want to have fun on our bikes.
I had to work on Saturday, but KB hooked up with the Casa Zen Mobile and the three of them went and rode the Scout Camp Loop on Steroids. When I finally met up with the group, they were sitting in the parking lot at the resort drinking beer and ready to have some dinner. Quite honestly, I was surprised they had actually waited for me. I was expecting to show up to a bunch of empty bottles and maybe one piece of pizza with a bight missing and my name on it. Nevertheless, they had greater stamina than I thought and were relaxing albeit ready to eat.
After dinner was devoured, we retired to a hobo camp off of Mammoth Creek Road. It’s a secret spot that KB and I frequent all the time. Actually, it’s not all that much of a secret because most of the time there is someone else there and we have to find somewhere else to go. This night wasn’t any different and we ended up camping just off the side of the road. (There’s sure a lot of lying going on in a post about going to church for the first time in months) There wasn’t a lot of conversation other than it’s time for bed.
I stayed up a bit later than the rest, sipping my rye and watching as the dark clouds rolled through and the few stars that were to come out that night, poked their little heads out and let me enjoy their light. And then the moon came up.
The plan was kind of loose. Meet sometime before 10 at the Navajo Lifts in Brian Head. The head count was somewhere between four and 73. We planned to do some gravity assisted riding and then do some more gravity assisted riding but with cars involved. Not exactly what you would think a spiritual weekend would consist of, but don’t forget all of this was happening around 10,000 feet.
The party rolled on through till morning and KB and I found ourselves in the parking lot with Brother and Sister Meinkey, Benjamin Crane, Cason, and Casa Zen Mobile (also known as Kenny and Heather). Lift passes were purchased, tires were squeezed and we rolled up to the lift to the thing that we usually don’t, not ride uphill.
Brian Head is currently in the process of finally updating its lifts. Giant Steps is currently completely tore apart. Luckily, they built a few runs on Navajo so that’s where we rode. And by a few runs, I mean three. One of which we didn’t even try and one that was fun. Navajo will be the “easy” side of the mountain when they have both lifts open. This means we had an intermediate trail to ride. And we rode the shit out of it. We rode until it was time to eat.
Pizza and beer were once again in order and they were had in plenty at Pizanos. There was the added bonus of being able to watch the World Cup Final as we waited. Once food was secured and we were all ready for some more riding, we made our way over to the top of Blow Hard. This trail was not only new for Casa Zen Mobile, but they had been unaware of its existence. Both of them were stoked to try something new and were smiling all the way down, as is their custom.
For those of you unfamiliar with the Hard that Blows, it drops from the top of Cedar Breaks all the way down into Cedar Canyon. This takes you through several ecosystems and over 3,000 feet. There are a couple of short uphills but for the most part you are using your brakes and not your pedals. We coasted and coasted and coasted, with a little bit of pedaling. We laughed. We crashed. We lost sunglasses and then we were where Brother and Sister Meinkey had left the Zen Mobile. High fives were certainly in order even if none were thrown.
Then we drove back to the top.
In keeping with the motif of this weekend, KB and I stayed in a hotel Sunday night. I’m sure you are all upset and yelling at your computer screens to tell me that that isn’t very hobo of us, but it was free. And when you can stay in a nice hotel for free, you do. Even if that means that you check in wearing your Mooseknuckler Alliance Cutoff Sleeveless Cycling Jersey and a pair of cutoff slacks. And you entered the Jacuzzi wearing the same, I’m gonna say we get a pass.
And I am proud to report that we have found an amazing bar to spend some time at when you are in Brian Head. The Grand Lodge has a huge outside patio with two big fire pits where you can sit, be served beers and enjoy the lack of oxygen and nice temperatures.
Yes, it was a heavenly weekend. I think we’ll have to go to church more often.
P. L. and R.
