James River Float

Paul invited me along for a float on the James to celebrate his birthday, so I loaded up Ruprecht & the canoe for a day in the sun. Most of Paul's tubing crew was fried from the previous night's partying, but Phil, in town for HIS OWN bachelor party, joined us on the water. And, as always, Eryn rounded out our modest squad of five.



With four boats and zero tubes, we skated down the river - all the while Ruprecht jumping ship to cool off, swim, and eat the rapids.

Snowshoe / Slatyfork - another DH/XC Epic!

Nearly every time we visit Snowshoe, I leave with the urge to come back for some cross-country riding. Since last summer's Shenandoah 100 Epic, we haven't bothered schlepping two sets of bikes to the mountains. What a killer weekend it makes, though, when you do!



Joey scored a Swagman hitch rack on Craigslist, which worked surprisingly well with four bulky rigs.



The incentive to load up all the gear was that Luke and Sean would meet us for one day of the XC portion of the extended weekend. That way, Joey and I could ride DH at Snowshoe on Saturday, XC in Slatyfork with Sean and Luke on Sunday, then another day of XC on Snowshoe's singletrack on Memorial Day. All the makings of an epic weekend!



Recent summers have been exquisite at Snowshoe; a stark contrast to the rain-soaked seasons we've experienced in the past.

Merchant's Millpond (North Carolina)

Last summer Rebecca and I discovered a true gem - Merchant's Millpond within the Great Dismal Swamp. It's an eerie, enchanted atmosphere that seems unique anywhere I've ever been.



This time around, we invited four friends along for the adventure down Bennett's Creek.



The water level was down significantly, but luckily we planned the trip early enough in the season to avoid the mosquitos that must love the slow, stagnant flow of the creek.