Monday, August 15, 2011

that was awesome!

I returned yesterday from the 2011 version of CRMBT. As usual, it was outstanding riding, scenery, and most of all, people. I rode every one of the 493 miles advertised, and then some. I did a short ride up Hoosier Pass on Friday morning.
After camping near the Colorado River in Grand Junction, I rode the Colorado National Monument on Saturday morning before checking in with the tour.
Then, on Sunday the tour kicked off. We rode some rollers (and headwind) to Hotchkiss.
 We climbed a little to Hermit's Summit in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison River.
We climbed a lot on an unpaved climb up Cottonwood Pass.
We climbed some more up Independence Pass.
We had a nice rest day in Glenwood Springs.
Then on Friday, you guessed it, we climbed some more. This time it was a beautiful ride up McClure Pass on our way back to Hotchkiss.
Then on our last day together, we climbed the Grand Mesa. All morning for some of us.
I have a lot more details to share, and tons of pictures. But I wanted to express my gratitude to those who made this so enjoyable and memorable. Peter and Hillary, Kevin and Ann, and all the volunteers make this a fun, challenging, ride that I want to keep coming back to. Theo makes Sherpa Village a great place to meet your neighbors and enjoy the coming and going as much as possible. Scott, the bike mechanic, was always there to help with problems big or small. The Rocky Mountain Sports Massage team helped us recover and prepare to do it all again. And I've never met so many great people to ride with, eat with, or just hang with. I hope everyone made it home safe and sound. And I hope everyone will check in with me over the next couple weeks as I recount my trip to Colorado and the best tour around, CRMBT.


9 comments:

  1. Good to hear you had a good time, although honestly, I knew you would. I am of the believe that individual attitude plays a key role in having a good time...or not. I am looking forward to seeing and reading more.

    Thanks

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  2. Outstanding scenery! Glad to hear you had a great time. Thanks for the photos! Looking forward to more.

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  3. I have to agree with rlove2bike and with your attitude Jeff, I'm sure you had a great time!
    Look forward to seeing more entries about the adventure.
    Clay

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  4. "...and then some. I did a short ride up Hoosier Pass on Friday morning."

    Overachiever!

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  5. Jeff,
    I too enjoyed the ride and the company. I'm finally back home, but it was two days of hard driving. As soon as I get my stuff straightened out, I'll send you some pics that you are in.

    Bud

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  6. Awesome scenery....Great photos....Glad you enjoyed it..

    -Trevor

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  7. rlove, big oak, Clay tob, Trevor - I can't wait to share more of my experience on this ride. I've loved all of them, but this was special. Bud- I enjoyed meeting you, riding with you, and sharing a couple meals.

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  8. Nice pics Jeff! And I love the background music. The organizers and volunteers do a great job. And Theo -well, he does everything he can to make Sherpa Village home for us the entire week. He definitely goes above and beyond. My pics are on FB if you would like to check them out - Debbie Hooten Ward (Deb from Lee's Summit)

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  9. Jeff,
    Your CRMBT pictures are awesome! Glad to hear you had a great ride and plan to do it again next year. Hope to see you then!
    Norm

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