Today was a tough ride. After not having ridden over 9000 ft. ever until two weeks ago, I rode the out-and-back Kenosha Pass to Georgia Pass ride for the first time, topping out at 11,800 ft. Very painful, especially on the climbs on the way back to Kenosha. I thought I was in shape, but I was humbled.

My MTB ride in Breckenridge to check out Loop 2 of the Breckenridge 100 is now in the books. It was tough, but rewarding. 33+ miles, 5:45hrs on the bike, and climbing above 11,200ft. twice.

My new Yeti ASR 5 did it’s job nicely, albeit with a new layer of dust and plenty of little creaks that I’ll need to wash out. I adjusted the rebound on the Fox F120 RLC FIT 15 after a frustrating ride up the rocks at Deer Creek Canyon on Friday and it’s much tamer now on the rocky climbs.

So with my new extra awesome bike, new found confidence, and an understanding wife, I’m branching out of my comfort zone and doing a true hardcore (by my standards) ride this weekend – Loop 2 of the upcoming Breckenridge 100. Up to now, I’ve mostly limited myself to the familiar rides in the Denver Foothills, and weekend rides at Buffalo Creek. Now I get to see if I can handle the stuff above 11,000 ft. It’s gonna be interesting to see if my body and brain can handle the extra 2 hours of riding and 1000 ft. of climbing beyond what I’m used to.

Last week I purchased a Yeti ASR 5 from the Singletrack Factory in Denver. I was going to wait until next year to replace my 5-year old Cannondale Scalpel, but then my brother bought an ASR 5 and my original plan fell apart quickly. As soon as I moved to Denver from Indianapolis 3 years ago, I knew that the Scalpel wasn’t really suited for my riding along the Front Range. I’m old, I don’t race, and I needed more travel in back. But I waited patiently (until last week) to make a change.

Specs:

• Suspension:F120 RLC FIT 15
• Headset: Cane Creek S-3
• Crankset:Stylo 3.3 44-32-22
• Front Der:SRAM X7
• Rear Der:SRAM X9
• Shifters:SRAM X7K
• Cassette:SRAM PG970 11-34
• Chain:Shimano 116 links
• Wheels:Stans ZTR Olympic UST
• Tires:Continental Mountain King 2.2 Tubeless
• Brakes/Levers:Shimano M575 / 160 rotors
• Handlebar:Stylo
• Stem:Truvativ AKA
• Grips:Yeti Lock-on
• Saddle:Fizik Plateau
• Seatpost:Truvativ Hussefelt