adventure daily.
I turned 27 on Monday, celebrating another year around the sun with a long bike ride, food and beer baby, and a movie in bed before falling asleep just after dark. I've always liked my birthday, but not in some sort of narcissistic look-at-me-and-how-great-I-am sort of way. I just like the time of year during …
I find snow to be very comforting. Somehow, when the desolate winter world is suddenly encased in white, it seems a lot less barren and lonely. The night looks a little brighter. Everything feels softer. The sensation of delicate snowflakes hitting my face. The satisfaction of creating the first tracks in fresh powder, whether is …
Caleb and I have been talking about doing a century all summer. I'd never done one on my own bike. I've done a 100-miler and the 200-mile ride to Thanksgiving on the tandem with Evan, but somehow I feel like that's different. I needed to do one myself. Caleb had never done one either. I …
I'm going to risk sounding like an egocentric, self-obsessed, narcissist for a minute here. I love this photo of myself. Of all those that exist, it's remained a favorite ever since it was taken in November 2013. Evan and I had decided to ride from our cabin to town via the shoreline of Raystown Lake, a …
Another Dirt Fest has come and gone, and, as usual, it was a big blur punctuated by highlights. It was my third year helping out with the event, and it seems as though every year I become farther removed from the participation aspect and more closely intertwined with the organization and making-stuff-happen aspect of things. …
Spring is in the air, I can feel it. Despite the fact that temperatures have still been way below freezing the past week, something seems a little bit different. The birds are chirping more, the sun feels warmer when it shines, and the weather report confirms that next week, it will indeed rise above freezing, …
If Saturday's ride is at all serious, Sunday's is anything but. Rather, it's wheelies and derbies, costumes and skipping stones. It's a party on bikes, no endurance needed. There are lots of stops, laughs, and log ride attempts. And everyone wins. The venue changes from Rothrock State Forest and Martin Gap to the Allegrippis Trails …
Continue reading "Frozen Fat, Day 3: Shoreline Shenanigans."
Well, we did it---the around-the-lake ride we'd been planning and anticipating for weeks. On Sunday, six of us ended up partaking in the day of grueling climbs, leaf-strewn descents, and all-around good times. It couldn't have been a better group---a fun and tight-knit bunch of like-minded individuals. For some, it was a harder ride than …
This was written in June 2013, but never posted. I just found it in my drafts and thought it would be timely to share, as I am planning my second around-the-lake ride for next weekend. Riding a bicycle all the way around Raystown Lake seems like no small feat. To go all the way around …
It began in frustration, perhaps even a tiny bit of anger. Mostly at myself, for things undone, feelings unjustified. I pedaled out of town, determined not to come back until I felt better, until the burning of my thighs and the pounding of my lungs and the wind upon my face had fixed whatever it …
helena kotala 