Category Archives: Washington (Western)
Fun was in the Cards at Stinky Spoke (Woodinville, WA)
Last Saturday promised rain, but the only thing unleashed that morning was a massive crowd of dirt-loving cyclists, hailing their friendly fury down on the trails and streets of Woodinville. All manner of mountain bike–from XC to big rig, plus … Continue reading
Working the New Line at Tokul East (Fall City, WA)
Trails don’t make themselves—that’s the job of the forest gnomes. And the gnomes were out in droves today at Tokul East (despite the concurrent Seahawks game). We discovered them digging in the dirt, sawing logs, building berms and working their … Continue reading
Skill Building on a Rainy Day in Paradise Valley (Woodinville, WA)
It was raining, but we had a plan: wet-root riding and puddle play on the twisting trails at Paradise Valley Conservation Area. There’s nothing too crazy out there—no real climbs, no big drops, no fast descents to coat a rider … Continue reading
Nearly Mud-Free Riding at Black Diamond, WA
This Sunday I was poised to join a group of friends for a mountain bike ride at Grand Ridge in Issaquah. But the thought of spinning my wheels in traction-less mud (like a Hanna-Barbara cartoon character running in place to the … Continue reading
Meet Me on the Climb: Winter Riding at Grand Ridge (Issaquah, WA)
There’s something lush about Issaquah’s Grand Ridge, even in the summer when the trail is dry. And in the winter, when the singletrack up the ridge and down through the creek bed turns to peanut-butter mud, it’s just as green and … Continue reading
Snow Patrol at Tokul West (Fall City, WA)
Crunchy snow = crazy good traction. Who knew? And it’s not ugly, either…I guess winter’s not so bad. On Sunday, a group of us intrepid riders scoffed at the idea of heading to the hills with skis or snowboards. Instead, … Continue reading
A Model Mountain Bike Park is Born
This blog about the grand opening of Duthie Hill Mountain Bike Skills Park has been posted on Mountain Bike Magazine’s MB Word blog, so you can read it there. What I wanted to do on my ‘ride’s Blog site is put up … Continue reading
A Hub of Activity at Duthie Hill Mountain Bike Park (Issaquah, WA)
It was raining. The trail was thick with mud. A stagnant swamp stood in my way. But I had decided to ride up Issaquah’s Grand Ridge trail to check out the latest building efforts at Duthie Hill Mountain Bike Park, … Continue reading
Charging the Towers of Power (Renton, WA)
The small but singletrack-packed area encircling Puget Power’s transformers in Renton, Washington, offers mountain bikers an introduction to small built stunts while putting their other skills to the test. Requiring short, anaerobic charges uphill and challenging, twitchy descents, the “Tapeworm”/”Towers … Continue reading
Ride Like a Girl: Test Riding at St. Ed’s (Kenmore, WA)
For the ladies who want to try out mountain biking but aren’t sure they want to invest thousands of dollars in equipment (don’t worry–that phase kicks in later), there is still great fun to be had on a competitively priced … Continue reading