any cool vacations coming up?

[ironspoke]

Its that time again...time to pack up the family truckster and head to the ocean. I will get to do some salt water kayaking which is always a nice little out of the ordinary thing. Just curious if anybody has anything special coming up. Whitewater rafting the Colorado, paddling a canoe in the Boundary Waters, cycling the Alps....???

[Fook...I'm Dave]

not sure where i'm going yet but a buddy and i are playing a weeklong camping trip someplace in the northeast. just gotta search out someplace with a lot of singletrack, maybe one of the IMBA epic rides.

[mimbresman]

Mtn biking in Scotland for two weeks! Plus seeing family and friends and mtn biking in New Mexico, and Arizona!

[S. cerevisiae]

Chincoteague/Assateague for a week of family tourista stuff. Always a good time there, and I can lay about the beach while kids entertain themselves.

[ironspoke]

S.

Hey, thats where we are going. Chincoteague/Assateague
I've been there a few times with the wife and family but we went there multiple times when I was a kid. As far as beaches go it is a relaxing place. Not much goofy golf and very unlike places like Myrtle. I was able to rent a recumbant from the place right next to the nature preserve a few years back and will hopefully do the same this year.

Hopefully I will gete to put a few more checks in the Birder Journal.

Regarding the plans Fook has that is one thing I have never done and it sounds like it would be an amazing time. Loading up one of those Bob trailers and heading in to the hills and setting up camp and maybe doing some fishing. How do you carry the beer?? I'm reminded of that scene from the Eiger Sanction with Clint Eastwood and George Kennedy where Clint carried warm beer in his pack up the mountain.

Mimbresman...you certainly lead a charmed life. That sounds awesome. I had a chance to ride in Arizona on two seperate occasions and because it is so different from what we have here in Pennsylvania I found it to be extremely enjoyable.

[davkatreb]

Chincoteague
Been there. Hated it. Ten days in a rented house with mbw, TBMK, our daughter RR and one of Li'l Rotten's friends. AND ME WITHOUT A GODDAM BIKE!!!!!!! RRRRAAAGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

No, no bike for me. The van was packed to the gunnells with woman crap. Suggested taking the Element as well, and you should have heard the blast of shit I got.

I'm not much for the beach anyway; I was raised in the woods and that's where I find renewal. But I made the best of it. With a rented beach cruiser, FFS!

Actually it wouldn't have been so bad in a decent hotel, or even one of those cabins at Jane's Island state park. But a house? No thanks. A hotel has maid service. A little cabin in the woods has shade and campfires and much less pressure to keep things nice and neat. Wouldn't mind going there for a week. Not like a three bedroom house that you must leave in immaculate condition. I really wouldn't mind going back, but the choice of accomodations would need to be reconsidered. But if I can't at least bring my fixie, just go on ahead without me.

No, my vacation will consist of getting a hernia repaired. Oh well, at least there will be shade.

And Dogfish Head IPA, the one memory of Chincoteague that I treasure.

[rockyrider]

Yes, imminently, 2 weeks involving mountain biking, a non-English language and a chalet by a lake in the woods.

[ironspoke]

Dave,

I suggest the Refuge Inn..it is the last hotel before you hit the refuge area and they are actually affiliated with the rental shop next door. I continue to toy with the idea of bringing my own bike but storing it becomes an issue in the room and such. Not to mention a weeks worth of salt and grime and filth I can keep in VA instead of brinign back with me to the 'burgh.

You go for the 90 minute IPA or the 120 or the 60??

[davkatreb]

You go for the 90 minute IPA or the 120 or the 60??
Yes, yes, and yes.

Refuge Inn? Might have to check that out. Still rather stay at Jane's Island. The beach would still be mighty close, the roads around Crisfield are MADE for fixed gear, and I'd get to revisit some childhood memories from when we camped there.

Of course, staying in a hotel would allow us to pack a whole lot lighter. Couple wheel bags and a frame bag and I bet Mr. Fixie could ride in the van just fine.

And I don't think the salt and sand would be that big an issue. I'm a big believer in Framesaver. Besides, I'm mostly looking at just spending hours on the roads away from the water. And anyway, if I want to ride right up to the beach, that's what rental bikes are for.

Maybe next summer...

[Fook...I'm Dave]

S.


Regarding the plans Fook has that is one thing I have never done and it sounds like it would be an amazing time. Loading up one of those Bob trailers and heading in to the hills and setting up camp and maybe doing some fishing. How do you carry the beer?? I'm reminded of that scene from the Eiger Sanction with Clint Eastwood and George Kennedy where Clint carried warm beer in his pack up the mountain.



haha, the beer will be in a cooler at the campsite. i should have specified that we're just planning on setting up camp and riding during the day then returned to the campsite at night. my friend is planning to borrow his dad's camper trailer so we'll be camping in style.

[Lars Kroll]

Hi Ironspoke
Thanks for asking. Ìn 2 weeks time I`ll be going to the Alps. To be more precise I`m going to Wagrain in Austria. They have a bike park - I think it´s partly or fully designed by some of the people who worked in Whistler. But I`m not really a downhiller or a freerider, so I hope they remembered chicken runs and beginners trails. I`m planning to spend 1 or 2 days in the park, but what I`m really looking forward to is just riding around in the mountains. I`m from Denmark which is very flat, so it`ll be a nice change with some altitude.
Maybe I´ll go to Sweden later in the summer, but I haven`t decided yet.
Have a great vacation everybody

[tryandgetme]

kansas, september, with a bunch of other yahoos from here. can't wait.

[davkatreb]

How do you carry the beer??
Wild Turkey bourbon is much more compact and requires no refrigeration. Also, I've heard it can be substituted in making a Pan-Galactic Gargleblaster. Anyone have the recipe?

[mimbresman]

S.

Mimbresman...you certainly lead a charmed life. That sounds awesome. I had a chance to ride in Arizona on two seperate occasions and because it is so different from what we have here in Pennsylvania I found it to be extremely enjoyable.

I don't know about charmed...different, maybe. Just made a choice what I wanted to do.

Thinking about hauling the Merlin SS back to the USA and leaving it there. Reasons...1.) I want to ride it in real mtn bike territory, especially in the Gila. 2.) Really thinking of returning to the USA after next year, so I might as well start moving stuff back. Of course I'll have the S & S coupled Litespeed with me too. I'll be travelling to Scotland with that bike.

[S. cerevisiae]

Maybe I´ll go to Sweden later in the summer, but I haven`t decided yet.

Sweden!? Why not actually go to a Scandinavian country? I hear from one of my nieces that Finland is nice that time of year.

Her father's the one that has always maintained that, as a Finn, he could never consider the Swedes as Scandinavians. Sounds a lot like WV vs. PA, Iowa vs. Minnesota, et.c.

[cMc]

Dive trip to Grand Cayman in October. Just got back from my sister's wedding in La Jolla.

[Lars Kroll]

Hi
Sweden is just around the corner, if I left now and went by car I could be in Sweden in under an hour - there`s a bridge between Denmark and Sweden now. I`ve never been to Finland but I can tell you that Sweden is absolutely fantastic and very beautiful. Have you ever seen Finland on a map? All those lakes surely messes up the riding.

[Jay13]

Me and my crew leave for Snowshoe this sunday for 9 days. I can't wait. :D :D :D

[rockyrider]

I dunno mountain biking in Finland (http://www.mtbcf.net/content.php?content.49) looks pretty good. Certainly more trees than mountain biking in Iceland (http://www.mmedia.is/~ifhk/touring.htm).

[free spirit]

not sure where i'm going yet but a buddy and i are playing a weeklong camping trip someplace in the northeast. just gotta search out someplace with a lot of singletrack, maybe one of the IMBA epic rides.

The Kindgom trails.
http://www.kingdomtrails.org/

Awesome. Tons of trails. Camping nearbye. All skill levels. About 7hrs from Port Jeff. Station, if you don't get stuck on the great parking lot or getting past NYC. Most trails are on private land. Most everybody follows the 'leave no trace' mantra.

[Lars Kroll]

Hi Rockyrider
Check out the top picture on the site you linked to regarding mtbìng in Finland. None of the riders are actually riding, probably because there`s a lake in front of them - they`re like rabbits caught in headlight.
Seriously though, I can tell by looking at pinkbike.com that Finland also looks like a great place to ride a bike.

[OTBSkinloss]

It's kinda hard to pose for a group photo while riding. :D

I'm taking a week off, in early July, and have no plans to leave. I'm just gonna enjoy the trails in the Colorado High Country. :D

[ironspoke]

OTB, so how many 'tourist' bikers will you run across this summer? I know I love my east coast riding and I sure as hell better because thats where I live...but man I see some of these pics from Fruita and such and it looks like Heaven on two wheels. I gots to check it out sometime soon. Not that I'm a girlie man or anything but I imagine you need to be concerened with bears and mountain lions and such. We have black bears around here but as long as you dont get between them and their cubs they are pretty docile. In fact I cant remember the last time I even heard about a bear attacking someone in PA.

[OTBSkinloss]

OTB, so how many 'tourist' bikers will you run across this summer?

Like the stars in the sky.

[ironspoke]

The Great Divide Bike race.....now thats a vacation!

[RandomV]

I'm thinking about going to the FGG Fixed Gear Symposium this year. Which means I need to spend a bit more time looking in the other thread around here about tents...