adept @ adapting

Troops of the Coalition,

Hopefully you all had another grand of a wknd. I know I did! Sometimes, I almost feel guilty, living a life where I can participate in an activity that captivates my capacities in such an amazing environment and at such an elevated level. Fortunate, is the only word that comes to my mind...so be thankful and captivate folks!


After getting over my initial discontent, with having to take the first hit on lap one last week,(2 weeks in a row people...) another epic midweek adventure was had. The pics snapped, showed the troop was in shred mode, down JG on the rocks.

Some of the crew were stepping it up and I believe the following snap catches Kirk hitting up the SLF gap for the first time. Way to go Kirk and thanks for those post ride bevy's last week!

Lap 2... we hit up the TDUB and it's obvious that every one's familiarity with the trails, and technical riding on a weekly basis, is reflected when tires are a turning.

We typically use the, "team pil" van and trailer for shuttling and apparently the setup has taken a little too much abuse, over the summer. On lap 2, we snapped one of the leaf spring mounts on the trailer, severely impeding our request for a 3 lap minimum. This is not supposed to be a funny situation, but somehow we turned this catastrophic shuttle issue, into an op to prove our adaptability and share some humour. Issue resolved in record time, with some sorting of all the collective suggestions resulting in a temp fix, involving a rock, SWAK of duct tape, pil can and 2 tie downs. Yep, Adept @ adapting.

We figured it best to not push our luck and switch to van shuttling and save the trailer for the ride home. So we plucked a row of seats and loaded up the van(s) for our 3rd lap. This was to be a true dusk run, lights not really necessary but an advantage if you were so equipped and several Coalitionights were. Toothless was the trail of choice and our 3 lap minimum was in the bag.

Tuesday looks to be AOK in the weather dept and full steam ahead for the Coalition. 5 @ CC, 5:30 @ Cougar ridge, or 6:30 @ Station Flats. As always a heads up is appreciated. Have lights bring lights situation.

Cheers,

Reg

Go ride!

Hello Coalition,

Tonight, it's game on as usual!

Meet @ 5 at Calgary Cycle, Cougar ridge for 5:30ish or Station Flats for 6:30. A heads up if your coming out is always appreciated. Ride incentives, for tonight's photographers!(you know what this means)

Sorry for the delay in the blog here, but I was out of town, in the beautiful kootenays, until this morning. Ill update about last weeks, 4 laps pursuit, at a future date. Lets just say, "we win"!

It is the peak riding season people.... get out there, soak it up, shred it on the down and throw a checkmark or 2 on that summer riding wish list.

Cheers,

Reg

Coalition Ambitions

Yo troops,

It certainly is evident that, "Fun is the easy part" here at the Coalition. We have been growing as a group on a weekly basis, but the same theme keeps shining on, and everyone keeps contributing to that. Way to go troops!
Our three lap minimum streak is alive and kickin. We almost went for four last week but it likely would of required lights to get er done. Speaking of lights, we have had discussions of this being a viable option, to keep riding later in to the summer and fall. So, if your interested consider that seed planted.

Last weeks fest of shred saw the Coalition on ROS, JG on the rocks and toothless.

Mint is the only flavour that comes to my mind, when thinking of the conditions of these trails right now. So, go get em!

Toothless is likely the, "Less traveled" trail on the mountain. Sure, it's techy goodness, loose steeps, intimidating name and tight corners will keep you on your toes, but it's trails like this that polish those skills and fuel that progression. Sometimes you gotta take the trail, "less traveled" and mix it up! If you haven't been on this trail and have some teck skills and a dental plan, than best give it a go.

It was great to see the Bennett family out last week! Welcome aboard and hopefully we can get the whole family out this week.

Tuesday we ride! Same dealio as before... CC for 5 or Station flats for 6:30. To keep on top of the logistics, a heads up (VIA email) if your planning on coming out is much appreciated.

See you all tomorrow.

Cheers,

Reg

Getting hip with the Coalition

Howdy Troops,

Last Wednesday's Moose laps yet again proved to toss big ear to ear grins amongst the crew. The Coalition is getting hip with several new additions to the troop. Welcome aboard! Great to see everyone showing up eager, ready to ride and catching the, oh so contagious, and awesome group dynamics.

After ironing out some last minute logistics, we were able to get in our three lap minimum. Laps one and two were both a shredfest down Race of Spades. It was just a month or two ago, that the majority of the crew first started riding this trail, but are now preying on it's flow like they are perched at the top of the flow chain. Kacraa to that!

Fortunately, we where able to give thanks in person to a couple of the core builders... Justin and Mike! Who where giving the trail some new berm action on a left corner in the gully. Mmmm Berms..... why do so many things that start with B bring such joy?? (Berms, Babes, bikes, beers, brapp,.... that list goes on....) Anyhow, Anyone reading this, please seize that opportunity to say a big thanks to builders and ask if there is anything you can quickly be of assistance with. Many hands make light work and the coalition was able to round up a bunch of rocks for them in a matter of minutes. This could of taken one person 10 to 15 times as long. Offer, even if it you only have 5 minutes. Everything helps and there is nothing worse when riders just zip by like the builders countless hours of sweat and dedication mean nothing. Sorry to get, "all ranty" but this does happen!

Lap 3 request was down good ole Tdub! It was getting a little dusky by the bottom and we did experience a minor rubbing of elbows with the rowdy balboa gully... but one grand rip was had. We put on a big session at the rock drop and attempted to capture some decent footage but the lighting was a little too lacking at that point. Next time we will capture that style Ryan.

Whoever is putting in some work on Tdub your efforts are not going unnoticed. Finally, a decent skinny across that old fallen log, just previous to where the gully gets tight, and lovin the strategic rock placements.

Next week, it's game on again folks for Tuesday night! A quick reminder that I need to know who will be showing up previous, so that we can keep the efficiency levels up, to ensure we obtain those minimums. Please send a quick email to regmullett@hotmail.com and give me a heads up on where you plan on meeting @. Knowing the numbers will ensure we show up with the proper shuttling tools.

Don't you just love democracy! Next week, riders riding in coalition shirts, don't get their number put in the hat for lap one hit. Bikes requiring tinkering at the top, get their owners a friendly but lonely shuttle to the bottom. Days are getting shorter, so we have to be one fine tuned shuttling troop. Be prepared.

Thanks again Phil for carrying the team in the photography department.
It's the long weekend, I can't wait to hear about all your epic riding adventures, so get out there and get your shred on.

See you Tuesday, same time, same place.

Cheers!

P.S I have your helmet jason!