Finally catching up on processing photos and stuff from our trip to Moab. Organized by our friend Noli, we had about 30 riders for three beautiful days in the desert. Locals included Adrian, Sarah, and Berkeley ex-pat Ashley.
I haven’t been to Moab since something like 2017 and it was great to be back.
Day 1: Mag 7/Bull Run
This was a new trail for me, up north of town near Dead Horse Point. It was a shuttle ride, with a pretty long shuttle, but we didn’t lose so much altitude, maybe 800 meters. Started out with some rocky shelves and boulder gardens, and then finished up with some flowy desert singletrack.
Day 2: Porcupine Rim
It’s hard to beat Porcupine Rim. The last three times I rode it I came off the trail thinking, “man, that has to be the best MUni ride I’ve ever done.” Amazing scenery, crazy obstacles, long technical sections, and lots of side options. It’s a real epic.
At the beginning of the ride we had to deal with the fact that an enduro mountain bike race was using the trail. The shuttle up took longer because dozens of people were biking up Sand Flats Road. But by the time we got on the trail, the bulk of the race had passed, and the people who were catching us were mostly pretty casual cyclists. We didn’t see anyone on two wheels try the Notch, but Erick got it.
After the Notch there’s a ton of beautiful singletrack along the rim.
When the trail crosses the mesa, there are a number of sandstone side options. Unfortunately, while our top riders were playing around on one of those, Erick sprained his ankle quite badly. At first I thought he’d broken it the same way I did mine last year, but after some care and with some help he was able to walk out, and he even rode a little the next day.
The most fun we had was on a less crazy tower lower down, which Will climbed up and looked at half a dozen times until we convinced him to try it. Then everyone else in the group, including Sarah, did the same, and everyone made it the first time they committed. It was a great Moab moment.
The last three miles of the trail are the best part, heading down to the Colorado on flowy desert singletrack punctuated by short uphill challenges and complex technical obstacles. Really amazing riding.
Day 3: Amasa Back
Another of the classic Moab MUniFest rides, Amasa Back starts with a big, messy rock pile, then climbs up a narrow canyon mostly over rocks and boulders.
There’s a great view of the Jackson Hole formation at the top. Canyonlands National Park is the background.
Our organizer Noli had chosen this trail, and put it on Sunday, because of a particular 5-foot drop he wanted to try. He didn’t want to break his unicycle or himself too early in the week.
We hung out there for a while, and the two best riders (Ryan and Brandon, with Erick hobbled) made the drop, though for Brandon it was after he won Best Biff for the weekend on his first attempt. (See video below). Noli didn’t break himself or his unicycle but didn’t quite land it after six or so attempts.
Since I was last here there’s been a new trail built along the creek which makes for a beautiful finish to the ride and the weekend.
All photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/tholub/albums/72177720298525145/
Will Streets, one of the organizers of the S.T.O.M.P. MUniFest in Alabama, made a nice video showing some of the top-level riding going on. Our locals have some cameos.
We will be back!