What a difference a year makes.

I rode the snowmobile trails in Wayne County today...actually, right in my old neighborhood. The land of wild beasts and wilder men. That beautiful, mythical place; North Huron. Now it's not just plain old 'Huron' mind you. Any son or daugter of this fabled land will be quick to reprimand you should you allow such a slip of your tongue. Not that we have anything against Huron. After all, North Huron is just a part of the larger township. But we North Huronites take pride in the fact that local historical records regard North Huron as having been the last bastion of untamed wilderness in Wayne County in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. This legacy has continued to be epitomized by the rugged farmers and other colorful residents past and present who hail from here. My travels today took me to Chimney Bluffs State Park. Chimney Bluffs is the local landmark that the Town of Huron identifies itself with; and most especially represents...North Huron. It hasn't really been a developed state park for very long, only about 5 years now; though the state has owned the land for many years. Some really beautiful snowmobile trails run through the park...one of them right out to the top of the highest bluff above the shore. The trails that I was on today are in rather stark contrast to those I've been riding in Cayuga County the past 5 weeks. The latter are primarily old rail beds, and though they go through some pretty territory, they are pancake flat and arrow straight. The trails I rode today traverse through much more varied terrain. Hardwoods, pines, open fields, expansive apple orchards, the frozen inland Sodus Bay; and constantly change direction even being twisty in some sections. The conditions were epic also. Practically the entire widths of the trails were very hard and rideable, absolutely no wind, and the temperature stayed just below freezing. On to the next photo please. They built the stone monument pictured above at the western entrance to the park. It's actually well executed and quite attractive in my view, and as you can see from the photo below it is intended to be a representation of the numerous eroding spires or 'chimneys' that characterize the bluffs at the face of the shoreline and give them their name. These formations can be found in many places along the southern shoreline of Lake Ontario, particularly to the east of Rochester, and have formed as the lake waters have eroded at the face of some of the hundreds of drumlins that blanket the Finger Lakes Region; some of which happen to extend to the shoreline. Chimney Bluffs just happens to be the most dramatic and interesting of those. Now I'm no geologist, so if you wish to learn a bit more you can click the link and you'll find an interesting explanation of these formations.

There's a reason I've posted two pictures of the exact same location, above. That reason is in fact captured in the title of today's post. The first of the two pictures was taken today. You can see how far out the ice extends from the shore. Actually, it has broken up quite a bit this week. It's very dynamic. Last week, when I posted Ice volcanoes, it extended very much further. Anyway, that second picture...that was the same spot last year. Now I won't lie. That was December of last year. But I assure you, that was how mild all of last winter was. Frankly, due to last winter's mild conditions I never really got the opportunity to fully appreciate just how much fun my fatbike is on packed trail.
Which is a perfect lead-in to my last photo for today. Somehow...I don't really think the idea of some jackass who doesn't know any better than to pedal a bike around in the middle of winter was what those who posted this sign had in mind. Do you?

I'd been keeping my eye on this trail...

At least ever since we started getting enough snow cover so that I was able to start riding the snowmobile trails on my fatbike. The problem with this section of trail had been that no one had ridden it with their snowmobile all winter. No snowmobiles = no packed track. No packed track = no fun for Pugsley. This trail is a part of the Corridor 4 snowmobile trail between Red Creek and Wolcott, and is too narrow and overgrown for the groomers to travel that the area clubs utilize. As a result, and because it is more suited to the speeds their machines are capable of, the snowmobilers opt to travel what's known as the 104 Trail; so named after Highway Route 104 which it follows closely along side of. The 104 trail is an ugly trail because it keeps its users in constant view and exposure to the salt, sand, road grime, and general filth that decorate the sides of all highways at this time of year. This is the reason I avoid it. I prefer the tranquil sights and sounds of the lesser used section of trail I'd been watching because it meanders on an old raised rail bed through fields, brashy wooded cover, and low wetland ground. Well due to a change in the daily high temperature from the teens and low 20's we had been experiencing of late to more tolerable mid-30's, I decided to ride my cyclocross bike into work. The section of trail I had been watching just happens to cross one of the roads that I travel on this commute; luckily as I passed this crossing I happened to notice that several snowmobile tracks had recently been made down this lonely section. Had I opted to drive my car into work I would surely have missed this observation. As soon as I got home I ditched my skinny-tired cross bike for my more snow-trail worthy rig, and immediately headed out to explore. By the time I got to my starting destination the temperature had dropped to just below freezing; making the conditions just perfect after the daytime thaw. Needless to say, I had a grand time. The photo directly above was taken just after I started, at dusk. I brightened it up a bit by editing with my Adobe Photoshop. The photo at the top of the post gives an idea of how dark and lonely it seems out there in the still quiet of the winter night. That's one of the reasons I love it. Unfortunately and in reality, you're never that far from the next road crossing or even the houses out of view beyond the fields and woods; but it sure is easy to imagine that you're alone and in a vast wilderness. And sometimes, that's all the escape you need...if only for just a while.

CONGRATULATIONS GBC!

I would like to express a huge congratulations to my racing sponsor, the Geneva Bicycle Center, for making the Bicycle Retailer and Industry News list of top 100 retailers in the United States for 2007! Recipients are selected based on elements of market share, community outreach, and store appearance. Along with his crew owner Jim Hogan, pictured above at the helm in the control room, have built the finest bike shop to be found certainly in the Finger Lakes Region of New York, if not the entire state. I say this in all sincerity. Jim and his top notch staff are like a family of riders representing many aspects of the sport; recreational, competitive, and utilitarian. They excel and pride themselves on their custom design, fitting expertise, and extensive service department. I can tell you that the latter is no joke. Jim is not afraid to stock repair parts inventory. What's that? Hard to find part? A left-hand threaded cranstor you say? They got 'em. Right-hand thread, left-hand thread, Italian thread, even Dave's Custom Cranstors for those hard to fit applications! If you're in or near Geneva, NY take the time to visit Jim's store on Exchange Street and check out one of the most unique staircases you'll ever see. Be sure to tell 'em the Champion sent you. The staircase leads up to the newly remodeled second floor edition, and features spindles made from over 100 bicycle top tubes supporting the hand rails. Some of these tubes are from very high-end carbon and titanium rigs, and were actually extracted from still living bikes in now outlawed ritual sacrifices to the gods of anaerobia while zombie-like european podium girls chanted and danced in a state of entrancement. Geneva Bicycle Center is also home to the only titanium/carbon fiber rear triangle toilet paper holder east of the Mississippi. If you happen to be in need of a good bowel movement while you're there, be sure to check it out. See how it softens out the ride, yet wipes out the competition with all the explosive responsiveness you'd demand of such a high-end racing machine!

Ice volcanoes

At least that's what I call 'em. Rode a short stretch of snowmobile singletrack today down to Fair Haven State Park and the shoreline of Lake Ontario. Perhaps a mile and a half worth. Tight and twisty...at least by snowmobile standards...through the trees. Stays pretty firm even though it's not a groomed trail, 'cause it's tight enough where the sleds all have to follow in the same track. They can't torque on those big snowtotillers either because the tight and twisty nature of the trail keeps their speed in check. I even ran across a few XC skiers. It's sure fun to see the surprise on people's faces to see a biker out on snowy trails.Anyway, back to ice volcanoes. I call them that because in the past I've seen ice formations on the shore that form much like a volcano; heavy wave action under the thick ice shelf that forms out over the water pounds up through the center of a hole. As the water comes down it keeps freezing around the perimeter of the hole, building up the sides over the course of a day or more. The sides of this ice volcano keep building up higher and steeper, forming a mini ice volcano about 10 feet high that spews water from its top every time a big wave comes in. Even though there were none of these to be seen today, the shore was still like a topographical scale model of the Himalayas with incredible ice formations extending way out over the water. In fact, its been so cold for so long recently that the lake was frozen out to beyond where I could even see the open water. I don't think I've seen it frozen this far out from shore in years. That first shot is looking straight out over the lake, towards Canada. If you double click on it and look at it full size, you will also see that it shows off quite nicely the stainless steel sheet metal screws that I stud my tire with. The second shot is looking Eastward, towards Oswego. I didn't get many pictures today because I forgot to charge my camera batteries. Felt cold today too...quite windy and right off the lake. Therefore I didn't really ride very far and only stayed out for about 2 hours. Mainly just fooled around on the trails staying pretty close to home. Being that my Blog is so new, I was also excited about getting on the computer to play around and make another post.I'm throwing in this last photo, above, just because I took it before I started this Blog and I want to share it. It's from a night ride I did last Monday night from Fair Haven to Cato and back...on the snowmobile trail. The round trip was 28 miles and I was out for 3.5 hrs. I was feeling awesome that night, even though it got down to about 10 degrees F by the time I made it home. I felt like a goddamn timber wolf out there tearing ass through the abysmal darkness of the woods, fields, and low swamps that those deep, snowy trails run through. I'll probably publish a few more pre-Blog photos in future posts.

My first post

What a beautiful day today. Especially after the run of weather we've been having lately. This is the first day that I've been able to ride without a jacket in all the weeks since we started getting hit with this season's serious snow. But then, I haven't minded the cold so much so far this year. After all the years I've been riding I'm finally starting to figure out how to dress for cold weather biking. Probably the fact that I carry around a little more fat than I did 4 or 5 years ago goes a long way in insulating me from the cold as well. Chalk it up to a slowing metabolism as a result of progressing age I guess; and the fact that I'm allowing myself to drink a little more beer this winter than I have in the past. Anyway, I started out with my Garneau Wind Dry Jacket and as seen in the photo above, ended up tieing it around my waist. Temp was in the high 20's I guess. Air was passing right through my two long sleeve jerseys and base layer. Actually this kept me nice and dry as opposed to the sweat build-up I've endured lately due to the extra layers I've had to wear because of the teen temperatures and steady winds. Funny, today the air felt like a 70 degree breeze blowing across me on an 80 degree day. Cool and refreshing, but never uncomfortable.
I started out at 1:00pm with the intention of riding the Fair Haven Rail Trail down to Cato and back. The Sterling Trail Tamers must have groomed last night, and not many sleds had been out. Those that had been on the trail had pretty much stayed to the middle, so the sides of the trail were still untilled from the paddle tracks. Real good riding! Once I hit the Rt 104 trail crossing where the Sterling Club leaves off and the Cato Trail Blazers pick up however, their groomer had not been out. The trail from this point was like fresh till, so I turned back and took C4 towards Hannibal when I got back to Sterling Station Rd. Encountered the same situation when I hit Wiltsieville Rd. More garden till from that point. Still, good milage...at least relative to snow riding...great weather, and got a couple of good photos. I'll probably hit it again tomorrow.