I don’t know why, but even though I’ve been mountain biking on and off for 15 years, I’ve never taken the time to go to Moab. Maybe it’s the fact that I’ve hitherto harbored no love for the desert. Or that I simply have never taken the time. Or both.
Either way, last weekend was a foray into the unknown.Despite that unknown, it was a wild success.
Originally the plan was to bring the wife and kids as well as Caren’s sister and her family. Her husband, Riley, and I often bike together and he’d been to Moab and knew his way around. But they canceled at the last minute so we forged ahead alone.
Early Friday morning I decided I’d better hit Slickrock right off the bat. You can’t go to Moab and leave Slickrock unridden. I biked the 4 miles to the trailhead. Not a bad ride, but I would have been happier with a shuttle.
Those of you who live and breathe Moab will likely chuckling inwardly at some of my descriptions, but be that as it may I still have to point out that this one crazy ride—unlike anything I’ve ever ridden.
Armed only with the trail description, I wavered while planning on whether or not my six year-old daughter could handle the two mile practice loop. Fortunately I didn’t pursue that thought any further as it would have been an unmitigated disaster. (My daughter doesn’t fall in with the crazy nut-jobs that ride rigid single speeds on purpose—it’s just that’s the only thing she has to ride.)
With Slickrock being the epicenter of desert biking, I was surprised to see that I went close to 20 minutes before I saw anyone else on the trail. The first two riders I ran into looked to be completely new to the sport as both were riding $150 Wal-Mart rides and one was even wearing jeans. I have no idea how far they made it, bless ‘em. Good on them for trying.
Just prior to the beginning of the loop and just after a particularly technical hike-a-bike I was surprised to find someone heading the opposite direction. It was, after all, only a half-hour after sunrise.
“Wow, you done already?” I asked.
“No, this is my first time on the trail and if everything is going to be like this, I’m calling it quits.”
I admitted that this was my first Slickrock ride as well, we talked for a few more minutes and I invited him to ride with me for a little while and see if we could make a go of it.
He agreed and we headed out. Turns out we had lots in common. Both Utah county citizens, both fathers of four, both work on the web (me front-end and marketing, he back-end Java coding), and both were new to Moab biking.
We had a blast. It was nice to ride with someone who has a similar outlook on riding as myself: no competition, easy riding and a healthy respect for the technical.
By the end of the ride we had both decided that, while Slickrock is fun and all, we weren’t huge fans. Forest singletrack has so much more appeal than does rock. I have since reconsidered and want another go at it.

Slickrock Sunrise

Me

One of the many canyons

Drew at the intersection of Slickrock and a jeep trail

Taking the stairs

For me, an impasse

Riding the edge
More to come…