MIGHTY MOBILE: Epic Thanks

It's usually around this time of year that I take the opportunity to thank all my customers who keep Mighty Mobile Bike Repair up & running and out & about providing me with my big dream of running a small business.

To all.... a thousand Thank You's!!!!

This year, however, I'm also going to send out some thanks to all the people I get to ride with during the summer. Thanks for all the memories, good rides and good times. Past experiences bring a smile to my face and the thought of future rides keeps me motivated for the days to come.

I should also throw out a little thanks to some of you for understanding in the simple fact that sometimes you have to break a few epic ride eggs to have an epic ride omelet. For all of you that keep coming out to ride knowing that today will likely take longer than expected, we'll get home later than anticipated and we'll probably run into at least a few things we didn't account for.... Thanx.

But.... isn't that what it's all about.

Jesse

Upper Pioneer Trail

The unexpected.

Aaron Breitbard

Spaulding Lake Trail

The unique experiences.

Dave Pasewark

Fordyce Dam

The memory that sticks because it trumps all others....

Aaron Breitbard

Doolittle Trail

To me, these pics remind me that sometimes it's not all flowy singletrack through fresh blooming wildflowers.

Mark Chavez, Geoff Rocky, Matty Larsen

Burlington Ridge

FTR 2009

But it can be.

Justin Scharp

Warren Lake Trail

Epic rides materialize most times by accident. A rides mileage alone doesn't necessarily qualify it for an epic (although it usually helps). I've done some 60 mile mountain bike rides that were simply just long rides. I've also been at the far end of a 23 mile out and back in an unexpectedly blinding snow storm while riding huge sections of catwalk on the NID water supply. For a relatively short ride w/ almost no climbing, it certainly gets catalogued in the "epics file" of my mind.

Nikki Wagner

NID Water Supply, on a nicer day

Throw in a wrong turn, inclement weather, or some major mechanicals and you only have the ingredients for an epic experience. For an epic to take its true form, it also needs to have the right people with the mindset to process the current adversity into a positive direction. Sometimes you have to push the envelope of comfort and normalcy beyond the usual experience to make the event stand above the others for years to come.

Aaron Breitbard & Mike Nunes

Pioneer Trail

Riders who understand that just because there's a trail on the map, doesn't exactly mean there will be a trail.

Sako Kapano & Nate Arnold

West Shore, Tahoe

Think you're immune to dealing with underestimated or unexpected trail conditions just because you're my girlfriend. Ha... think again.

Megan Reeves

Bullards Bar Trail.

These two guys. Always up for an adventure. I usually don't even have to ask these guys if their into some "bonus" trails.

Aaron Breitbard & Nate Arnold

Nevada City, Ca

"This is my spare tube."

Mechanicals can often turn a standard ride into a trailside group discussion with resources getting pulled from all sides. This is when it's good to have people in the group with a combination of ideas, ingenuity and some spare parts.