Hello Fall, Nice to See Ya

I'm not a fan of cold weather and certainly not snow, but "cooler" weather is welcome just about anytime.  Fall bike riding, regardless of the type is loads of fun and quite relaxing too.  You start off with a chill, but rather than working up to near heat stroke, you work up to high-energy comfort... at least I do.  Looking forward to a Cold November Rain ride in a few weeks and yes, GNR will be on the playlist.  So, with beautiful photo ops in abundance, go crunch some leaves and enjoy one of the best times of the year for outdoor exercise.

The Other Bike

Okay, so it's not all Trials all the time.  I do take to the mountain bike trails from time to time.  Actually, I've enjoyed quite a bit of time on  a bike with a seat lately.  It's easy to do when the cooler days arrive.  I took a couple laps on the Corby North trail during my lunch hour yesterday.  I titled the first lap "Squirrel Pinball" as the little critters were running and bouncing all over the place in front of me with some very close calls. The second lap was a nice game of "Pick-up-sticks" as I tried to clear the trail of bunches of fallen tree limbs that I encountered on the first lap.  Had a great time and got some good exercise.

Prepping For A Demo... That Got Rained Out

Exander and I were scheduled to perform at an event in Shawnee Mission a couple weeks ago, but the weather had other plans for that morning.  We were a bit frustrated after hauling our trailer and gear to KC only to get the bad news as soon as we rolled up.  Thankfully, our good friend and fellow performer, Will, invited us to Lenexa for some nice rain riding.  Exander showed great skill and surprised us with some bold moves.  Fun day for sure... Take that, Mr. Rain!

I had a great time at the Devils Den comp in Arkansas this past Saturday.  The weather was amazing!  Many, many thanks to Tim  Scott and crew at Devils Den State Park for making us feel so welcome and supporting our sport for so many years.

I'm so proud of Chandler Wilson, Levi Ballou, Matt Graham, Will Haden and Ryan Bratton for giving the spectators a show to remember.  You guys are awesome!  "The Wall" section pictured above was certainly a crowd pleaser... and pushed our 3 expert riders to their limits requiring not only strength and endurance but creativity as well.

This past Wednesday was one of those days in which you feel fine, but for whatever reason, the riding skills and abilities were not there.  Sure, it was really hot out, but I don't think that was the problem.  The up side... it's just a couple days from the Devils Den competition in Arkansas, so perhaps I got my "Bad Day" out of the way for the week.

Built a simple demo set-up to use at the 2013 Spiderfest event at Smithville Lake.  Great day of trail riding, performing and giving tips on riding Observed Trials.

2012 Krug Park Trials Comp - May 19, 2012

We're just a couple months away from our 3rd comp. St. Joe Trials is proud to be one of only six NATS Championship events for 2012. Can't wait to see everyone again.

2011 Krug Park Trials Comp

2011 Krug Park Trials Comp

2011 Krug Park Trials Comp

A few photos from the 2011 comp. Some great riding and awesome fun.

New Rocks at Krug Park - Part 1

Thanks to the City of St. Joseph, there are a bunch of new rocks at the park. The rocks were removed from the landfill to create more space for garbage.
The goal of this rock placement was to enhance all of the sections by tilting rocks at angles to create more variety. A new section was created on the side of a hill to create an even greater challenge.

New Rocks at Krug Park - Part 2

New Rocks at Krug Park - Part 3

New Rocks at Krug Park - Part 4

Krug Park Trials Comp May 7, 2011

OK... we're at the 10 day countdown. Looks like we've got 5 pros so far with potential for more as we get closer. For those that aren't familiar with trials comps in the U.S., having more than 4 pros at an event is a very good thing. Especially when one of them is 9x National Champ, Mike Steidley http://www.mikesteidley.com/

2011 Krug Park Trials Comp

Just over a month away. Can't wait to see you there!

The New Little Echo Bike

Exander got his first trials bike. He's off to a great start... let's see where he takes it.

Seriously... January?

Temps in the mid-40's... hard to resist a day in the park.

Trials + Family = Fun

Yes, it's a staged photo, but only for the purpose of getting the kids to stand still long enough to get a photo. Otherwise, they try to ride on the rocks as best they can... which isn't much at such a young age, but at least they try... and for that, I love them all the more.

Trials Demo at Landahl

I was fortunate to have the opportunity to join some fellow trials riders to perform a short demo at the annual Take a Kid Mountain Biking day at Landahl Park in Blue Springs. Got to meet some great kids and observed several parents with some nice trials skills. Fun times for sure.