Crew: Sam, Sam, Grant, Marty, Stephen, Leo, Collin, Anders
Beverages: New Belgium Ranger IPA, coffee, Steel Toe Dissent and Rainmaker, Fireball. NOT ENOUGH H2O
Route: Sam's house near MCAD to the Greenway to the West River Road to the Minnehaha Dog Park
My biking buzz has gotten duller this year a few different times due to the mass amounts of snow and extreme cold and the fact that my favorite commuter bike has a broken fork. Usually I like this weather as it amps up the level of badassery. I've never felt as hardcore and tough as I do when I venture out into the urban tundra on a bike that Minneapolis can turn into in the winter. My go to commuter and speed machine in the past has been my dad's old REI special tour that I converted into a goofy looking but fast fixie. I really learned to like this bike due to how fast it got me from point a to point b (even in the winter with slick skinnies). The fork snapped not too long ago and the bike has been quarantined on my porch for the time being until I get my act together and buy a new fork or bike to replace that trusty rig. Ive resorted to riding a single speed 29er all winter. These bikes are fun to tool around and hit big terrain and obviously a blast for single track but they are not the cream of the crop when it comes to commuting. I feel sluggish and out of shape when I ride either of my ss 29ers. The gear ratios are really low and I have recently dubbed myself Sir Spins A Lot when I'm on one of these monster trucks for long rides. The advantage 29ers provide is the ability to rip on any random trails I encounter and hop curbs and other obstacles. In short, riding this type of bike on any commute or road ride longer than a mile or so feels too laborous especially when its snowy and I end up feeling like a snow plow. This issue has bummed me out and I feel ashamed that I am not as eager to ride everyday as I used to be when I had the fixie in working condition.
These negative vibes are where my pals and the Fire and Ice experience comes to play. I have been reinvigorated to be an everyday and enthusiastic bike rider as a result of the fun times I have had with the Fire and Ice crew and guests. I think about where our next ride is gonna be all the time as well as what I want to bring on the ride and what I want to drink during the ride. I have become more obsessed with group rides than ever. This is good! I don't ever wanna lose the fire to ride!
For our second official Fire and Ice ride we got a little ambitious and again started a bit later than we would have like. We arrived at Sam's house and got the good moods stoked with some tunes and coffee and beer at Sam's house. We headed out from Sam's house in the mid afternoon and had another fun crew. We felt great and the sun was warm even the air temps were chilly. We booked it on the Greenway and did some neat drifting and snow bank thrashing. When we got to the eastern most end of the Greenway, we had some group decisions to make; did we wanna find a spit close to our current location on the river or keep riding south towards the Minnehaha dog park. We opted for the second. We found some sweet packed down hiking trails (with occasional bike tracks) jutting off from the bike path on the West River Road. It was super fun to shred those trails and surprisingly rideable on any bike because it was fairly packed down by other outdoor enthusiasts. Finally after a stop at the liquor store our sweaty and tired crew got to Ft Snelling State Park. We took a breather and then ripped down a steep and packed hill. All of us were cruising even those of us on roadies and fixies. We encountered loads of k-9s and their owners and decided to slow down because we are respectful and like animals (all of us except for Grant and Marty; they tore it up like some greedy gnar addicted tools). Eventually we found some quieter trails and were able to regain our desired speeds. The terrain was packed and prime for riding hard. There were fun bumps and and drops and we even had the chance to hop a little running creek. I was so jacked at this point even though I was also exhausted. We explored on our 2 wheelers for a little bit longer then settled down in a low spot near a creek and away from all of the rambunctious dogs. We started building a fire and at this point some of us realized how tired and dehydrated we were. I was definitely bonking. We got a good fire going and enjoyed some nice Steel Toe brews which is a legit brewery from St Louis Park as well as the mandatory Fireball.
Finally it was time to put out the fire and head home. We cleaned up and headed out of the woods to the light rail. We all got off at different spots and I think almost all of us crashed almost immediately when we got home. The day was fun but there were some tough lessons learned too. We need to hydrate and fuel our bodies with more than beer and whiskey. Bonking sucks. Eat food! Any food is better than no food. Finally: HYDRATE YOSELF B4 YOU WRECK YOSELF!
Most importantly: ride your bike ya goof!
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