Tree Farming

We had a pretty crappy summer, weather-wise, but Mother Nature is sure making up for it now. I woke to another gorgeous Indian Summer day, and the temperatures proceeded to climb into the mid-60s. It was a great idea for Di, Marty, Nick, Dave and I to meet on the East side of the state to work on the new MMBA brochure, but it was an even better one for us to get a ride in first.

The venue was the Tree Farm. I had never been there before and I was excited to try out a new trail with guidance from people who knew it. I was not disappointed. With 10 miles of singletrack, complete with a pump track, a "crater" and a fair amount of log piles, it's a fun trail. I challenged myself to ride some of the things that were a little scary for me, although I admit I didn't try the crater. (I do try the pump track, though.) Maybe next time, since I definitely want to go back.

It was fun to ride with a group, which is something I rarely do anymore. We rode at a nice, leisurely pace and stopped often to wait for each other (okay, they waited for me). I haven't had that much fun riding since Iceman and before that I don't remember when. Dave, who is the trail coordinator, led the way and told us a bit about the trail when we stopped.

Afterward, we attempted to undo all our hard work riding with pizza and beer back at Dave's office. (No, I didn't drink the beer.) As we ate, we got down to business brainstorming and coming up with copy for the brochure. Well, Di came up with copy and the rest of us commented on it and offered suggestions, when we weren't talking about other stuff. All in all, it was a very enjoyable day.

In late afternoon, I headed back home, and to make an already outstanding day even better, watched my Spartan hockey team complete a weekend sweep of the arrogant and blue before a crowd of more than 7,000 screaming fans. The only thing that could make this weekend better is a little Kisscross. Hmm ...