Moving

It's been a while I know.

I'm actually moving. Being more direct. Writing about my new home.
Still about the things I love.

You can find me here, http://sapphireadventurebeforebreakfast.blogspot.com.au/

Still trying to live the Life.

Todays Ride- Wolumla Peak

The ride from home to Wolumla Peak and back. It's a ride I've been meaning to do for some time, and with some rain forecasted for the next couple of days, today seemed like the right time.

The ride over to Mandeni and then down the first downhill was fun as always. I had decided to head cross county to the beginning of the main climb. The advantage of this method was that within a matter of minutes I was in natural bushland, with towering trees either side of of the trail. The downside was that there was a fair bit of climbing before I even got to the main Wolumla Peak climb.

The first part of this climb was a bit up and down, with some steep pinches, until I turned onto the main Wolumla Peak road, a gravel section which quickly turns more 4WD type territory. So followed a pretty sustained climb, up until the last km, where the trail got rockier, and steeper!

It was a section where I was my full limit and only going about 6km an hour! Probably could have gone faster walking.

Finally the top came into view, and what a view it was. Even on the overcast day, the views of the surrounding National Park, farmland and coast were spectacular.

Of course, what goes up must always go down, with the ride back home full of those moments of 'going a bit fast into this sketchy corner', all with a smile on my face.

A nice day for a bike ride...

Moments

I'm getting old.
That's not a depressing statement.
Old is good.
As long as it presents wisdom, thoughtfulness, acceptance.
As long as the recognition gets you out of your slumber.
Gets you moving.
In the right direction.
I'm getting old.
There may be more days behind me than in front.
That's fine. It just means I have to start clocking off more moments.
Moments of inspiration.
Family.
Love.
Moments to fill the memories.
A picture frame in the mind.
A peaceful mind.

A long ride

A long bike ride

Is about the lead up. Excitement that builds as you plan the day, who may be going, the route, the gear list.
Is about the start, fresh and full of anticipation as to how the day will pan out.
Is about getting into the rhythm of the journey, sucking in the views, sucking in the air on the hills, smiling on the downhills, chatting to good mates.
Is about the moments when it's a struggle. You're hot, out of water, there's another hill. Ironically, these things make the journey that much sweeter.
Is about enjoying your bike, listening to the sounds, flowing.
Is about the last few km, knowing it is about to end. You have done it.
Is about the satisfaction of finishing. The memories of the many moments that happen over the course of the day.

A long ride is brilliant.

Beaches

Sand beneath your feet, fresh air in your lungs. The waves lapping up on the shore, or breaking hundreds of metres out in cosmic cylinders. Tide ramps form the perfect jump off. Shells to find. Kick a footy. Bravely walk towards the water, then retreat as the waves break just in front of you. Too cold to swim just yet. Give it a few more weeks. Love that smell of sunscreen. Sand between your toes. Rocks to climb on the point. Rock pools to investigate. Warm sun on your back, eyes squinting in the bright light.
Fun, discovery, joy.

Free.

Do Differently

Simply put, you can have more predominately fast twitch muscle fibres or slower twitch muscle fibres. So sprinters have an above average level of fast twitch- that is, their muscle can contract with incredible speed.
So what?
For fast twitch fibres to stay 'fast', you can't train them too much. Short periods of intense training followed by long periods of rest.
So what?
Sprinters are well known for genetically having very fast twitch fibres. So someone like Yasann Bolt is genetically predisposed for this physiology. He is also well known for being a very lazy (relatively) athlete. That is, he likes his rest! Given the training program required to keep fast twitch fibres fast, his laziness probably assists his training.
Conversely, professional soccer players, many of whom have a genetic predisposition to these fast twitch fibres, have to partake in team training, where endurance is of importance, long training sessions, small recovery periods. Perhaps it is this training that leads to the research into soccer players in the Brazilian league which found that very few of the athletes exhibited fast twitch fibres.
So what?
Fast twitch fibres mean speed and agility. Lost to the soccer training regime.
So what?
Conventional wisdom may tell you something. A way of doing. That's how we always do it. It usually has a lot to say. Mostly wise things.

Sometimes not. It's worth looking at things again. seeing whether the outcomes are what you want.
And if not.
Think differently.
Do differently.

Jindabyne Riding

A weekend up at Jindabyne was a perfect excuse to load up the mountain bike and spend a little more time seeing what the area had to offer. Even in winter the town of Jindabyne is usually still warm enough to get out on the trails, even though you will find plenty of snow 30 minutes up the hill.

Saturday morning I rode straight from our accommodation down to the multi use path that runs along the foreshore of the lake. The early morning sun reflected off the still water with not a breath of wind to be felt. It was a good morning for a ride. My destination was the trails just to the east of the dam wall, leading all the way to Tyrollean village on the opposite side of the lake. After losing the trail and having to ride a couple of km on the rode, I cam to the trail head.

There is one loop trail in this section that is all about flow. Wide single track with the odd rock jump around but nothing too technical meant that you could let things run out and really push into the manicured berms on display. It was ear to ear grin time!

There are a series of side trails with names like Felicity and She'll be Apples that saw the speed drop as you negotiated rock gardens both big and small and some tight squeezes through trees. All the time the views across the lake and to the snow capped mountains beyond gave plenty of excuses to stop and pause for a photo. I didn't take a map with me which meant that my ride was a little disjointed, but with map in hand and/or a few more rides there you could put together a really fun loop.

Riding back towards town I found the link trail, which again was wide and flowing as it skipped along the foreshore towards the town. I could see the traffic backed up all the way through town, skiers and snowboarders caught in a traffic jam heading for the mountains.

I had had the trails to myself, and it didn't cost me a cent!

There are big mountain biking plans in the pipeline for the whole area as powers that be see the dollar that the sport can bring. With some well maintained single track, the downhill at Thredbo and the options of heading back country for some epic all day or overnight rides, it has all the ingredients to become a mountain biking destination of choice.

Lets just hope we are not caught in a traffic jam heading to the trailhead in a few years time.