A Perfect Seattle Weekend – September. 30, 2024
I took a long weekend for a quick trip to Seattle to catch up with some dear friends, visit the city I spent many formative years of my life in, and catch some fall colors and cool temperatures. And of course to pack in as much biking as I could. Thanks to Jason and Martina for the borrowed bikes and great times. First time mountain biking at Raging River. Despite the 2,400′ of vertical climb followed by a pedal-less decent, I was informed this was not downhill. Just a great time. Answering my request for a gravel ride on the Tolt Pipeline my friend Donald found an ideal 35 mile loop from Duval out and around Marckworth State Forest. And perhaps the most fun of all was joining my friend Jim for the 42 mile Dirty Chilly 2024 route around Bainbridge Island that utilizes just about every bit of single track that you could find. Such a creative route. If you’re in a place with cooler weather soak it up, we’re still deep in summer temps in Tucson but this trip has me feeling dreamy about summer rides, very in love with my friends, and in need of a rest day.
Advanced 2 Nighter: Lobo Lupes Upper Lollipop – September. 23, 2024
I joined in this past weekend for Campfire’s Advanced Bikepacking trip through the White Mountains of Apache- Sitgreaves National Forest, current and traditional home of the White Mountain and San Carlos Apache. I particularly loved riding through the “Montane and Subalpine Grasslands”, as described by Forrest Radarian, teacher and creator of El Lobo Lupus, a bikepacking route of which we followed 110 miles of.
I rode the bulk of the Lobo Lupus route in June, minus this section, and it was a treat to see the rest of the route and get a better sense of orientation in these mountains. We also rode by my favorite mountain biking trail, Los Burros, where I once saw my first wolf, told someone I loved them for the first time, and have shared many laughs in the nearby campground with dear friends. I chose to share a photo from one of those past trips, out riding with a friend who has inspired me on the trails. I hope to get out there with her again to spend more time appreciating these mountains by bike. Thank you to all the incredible role models I have that allow me to see place as part of the adventure biking community.
A Contribution to the Library – September. 16, 2024
This week Campfire received a sweet gift from a customer who had heard we have a building library of inspiring bikepacking books and journals and thought we might enjoying this one. Thank you for thinking of us! Beautiful photos. Come by for a visit, have a seat at our table, and peruse the new addition.
Matchy Matchy – September. 9, 2024
In a recent Tidbit I highlighted our staff’s matching Panaracer tires. This week I’d like to point out our excellent fashion and my new matching rubber with Josh and Toby, Adidas Five Ten cycling shoes. Soon you’ll hardly be able to tell us apart.
New Fork Seeking Cool Summer Mornings – September. 2, 2024
I recently replaced the fork on my El Mariachi just in time to return to some morning mountain bike rides as it cools off here. I neglected my old fox suspension fork for too long on this 10-year-old Hardtail but fortunately due to the kindness of our customers and a passed along fork, I’ve been able to continue riding it for the past year. However, the increased travel on the borrowed fork threw the geometry of my bike off a bit too much. With a brand new one now it feels great to have this running back in its original fit, plus some upgrades to be able to share a wheel set with my Salsa Fargo. Hoping for more cool and cloudy mornings like this one.
In Bike Mechanics, We Trust – August. 26, 2024
I’ve been loving our new shop set up, each of us getting to tailor our work benches to our needs. The project is still coming along but allowing us better focus to take care of all your bike’s needs. Thank you Park Tools for your vote of confidence. And don’t worry, we still like to poke our heads out to say hi.
cuties_coyoties – August. 19, 2024
Finally dropping below 100 degrees in Tucson which means cooler mornings for hikes and rides before I head to work. I rolled down the Santa Cruz river path the other morning enjoying some extra cloud coverage and the feeling of pedaling fast. Until I was slowed by the site of these two cute little coyotes taking a rest in the cool sand of the wash below. Moments later I spotted a heron in a pool of water left from the prior evening’s rain. Excited to be back out riding after a long, hot summer.
Panaracer Love – August. 12, 2024
Have we mentioned how much we love Panaracer GravelKing SK tires? In fact I’ve never met anyone who didn’t love them once they tried them. Pictured here is our staff bike parking area… pure GravelKings in a variety of sizes, set up tubeless or with tubes, they perform great in our desert environment. Fun for hitting the dirt roads, efficient on the city streets, so much that we all seem to commute on them. I’ve even ridden a bit of the Arizona Trail on these and had a blast. It’s a pretty cute line up of bikes too.
Birthday Bikepacking – August. 5, 2024
As we enter into August I’m reminiscing about some of my favorite bikepacking trips. Early August is my dear friend Becky’s birthday. We met many years ago through community bike projects and over the years discovered our shared love of adventure cycling, bikepacking, and mountain biking. While we don’t live in the same state, we try to meet up when possible for our birthdays to celebrate with some adventure. For a couple years in a row we spent becky’s birthday in Southwest Colorado. This photo was from a trip where we checked out an “exploratory route” that had us bush whacking down a mountain on a hardly existent trail, pushing our bike up scree fields, camping at high elevation in a lightning storm, and finally riding a beautiful section of the Colorado Trail followed by one of the most fun descent I’ve ever done. I hope for many more years of birthday adventuring together.
Reorganizing the Shop – July. 26, 2024
Lots of exciting reorganization happening in the shop this week. Supplemental electrolytes are a daily part of my life in the Tucson summers. We’ve got a bunch of options now for keeping you (and me) hydrated and energized for your rides.
Coworker Appreciation – July. 19, 2024
Taking a moment this week to express appreciation for my coworkers at Campfire and all the mutual support I see through the busy and challenging times. Candid moment of Jake fixing Toby’s neck pains. I love working with these two.
FUGA’s Summer Vibes Block Party – July. 12, 2024
A shout out to FUGA (Familias Unidas Ganando Acesibilidad, www.fugatucson.org) for their recent Summer Vibes Block Party. When I left work to head over to the block party to help out at the mechanic station where FUGA was offering free minor bike repair, I wondered if the event would be called off. Monsoon storms had been hitting all day across the city and we seemed to be directly in another one. However, when I rolled up everything was all set up, the music was playing, and the street was full of people wet and laughing. FUGA really does know how to bring the good vibes. Check out their twice a month community rides and other local activities.
BICAS Summer Camp – July. 5, 2024
Last week, I co-instructed a week long Summer Camp at BICAS (www.bicas.org), called Youth Earn-A-Bike. Our group of kids ages 9-12 worked hard all week refurbishing donated bicycles and learning about mechanics so they could take them home at the end of the week after a test ride through the neighborhood. Congrats to the campers and thank you to Campfire for accommodating my schedule.