Making Memories

Jj and I were standing at the top of the second 'major' climb of the day, a series of lovely switchbacks on the Colorado Trail when I announced: 'This ride isn't going to take us 7 hours, is it?'  We were a solid two hours in, and while we weren't setting any land-speed records, I felt we were making good time on a ride where we'd intentionally factored in dawdle-time.  Jj checked the GPS, we were 16 miles into a 50 mile ride.

Jj looked at me incredulously,  'You don't remember this ride, do you?'

It had been two years.  It was the first ride that Jj and I had done together after she'd sent me an email out of the blue: 'I read your blog.  Want to go ride?'

I remembered bits and pieces of the ride.  I remembered a long valley, I remembered a rocky, rowdy descent, I remembered dirt roads with some impressive rollers, I remembered the ponies.  I remembered getting hailed on and not being able to feel my fingers.  I shrugged, fully convinced that Jj was dead-wrong in remembering that the ride took us 7:15 two years ago.  50 miles, it wasn't going to take us longer than 5 hours.

(If I had to caption this picture, it would be: Dear Bicycle - why is it such a chore to make you move right now?  I can't breathe!)

I had planned this ride not as an anniversary ride but as a sparkler-hunting ride back during my week of non-bikelove.  So many times, if I can return to a place that evokes so many happy memories, I can channel that energy and draw myself out of whatever funk I was in.  While my head got the Happy-place-time memo and I was entirely stoked to be out, my body didn't get the memo.

 

I blame it on the smoke.  Apparently all of Arizona and New Mexico are on fire and a strong south-west flow was directing the smoke directly over the Front Range.  Big views were shrouded in haze and many a time I was forced off my bike by a simple inability to breathe.  I guess there had been health advisories in effect all day.  Whoops. 

Still, the rocky descent was just as rowdy and grin inducing, even on a fun-hater, and I was fully convinced we could knock out 15 miles of dirt road rollers in an hour.  It took us 1:45 but by that time, the winds had picked up, cleared out some minimal amount of smoke, cooled the scorching temperatures and we hit the final 6 miles of single track refreshed.

We got back thoroughly cooked.  But giggling.  Jj asked: 'So how much of that ride did you actually remember?'

 

I thought about it, section by section.  'The first climb, the first downhill, the second downhill, the third uphill, the fifth downhill, 20% of the road, and the stem part of the lollipop loop.  I completely forgot about the gradual dirt road climb, the switchback climb, the long miserable part in the middle, and the really steep rollers, plus the long hike-a-bike.'  

Which goes to prove: I have an incredible talent to forget suffering and have a very good selective memory for fun.  Or maybe I just remember the parts that I take pictures of.  Case and point: I already want to do the ride again next year because the fun parts are so stinkin' fun.

 

Comments

[Dave Harris]

That selective memory can be a beautiful thing. But be careful, it can get you in trouble too!

[Ed]

If you can't remember it, the ride is a brand new experience every time!!

Ed

[jenyjo]

Tee-heee!!! That was a rollickin' good time. And I think we need to go out and make yet more good memories of the place... and route ... smoke FREE, please. Good god, that smokey part was not as much fun for the lungs/energy, eh? Remember when I said: "i wonder how much damage we're doing by breathing this all day long"...? yeah. where did you see the 'health advisories'? they have such things?

if you want to do that route in 5 hours, then we will have a different kind of fun with it next year ;-) A different kind of fun memory.... and, that will give the boys something to shoot for. gotta keep them motivated somehow i suppose ;-)

lovely ride, miss Ez..... thanks for all of it. and the steak and beets afterwards at the car. mmmmmm....

jj