New Zealand!

The best vacation I've ever had. Crystal and I drove nearly the entire country, well over 4600 kilometers.



The only damper on the trip was the rain. It was nonstop for our first three days. Luckily we were able to "drive to the sun" as we headed towards the south island.



Queenstown was our southernmost destination. The town was a mountain biker's dream city, with a bike taxi service offering shuttle runs for super cheap.



The Huka Falls were intense! Our rapids jet was along the same body of water, the Waikato River.

Myron Glaser Cabin (Virginia)

The first cabin trip of the season!



Cameron and Eric rounded up the crew again for a great weekend in the woods. The best thing about the Myron Glaser Cabin was that it wasn't accessible by vehicle and required a decent hike to the cabin along the Appalachian Trail. We hiked in Friday night and started a fire as soon as we reached the cabin. The rest of the weekend was spent exploring the area, chopping wood and, of course, exhausting our supply of booze.

Snowshoe Mini Vid

Alex put together this nice vid from our weekend at Snowshoe. He may continue editing the footage, so I'll post an update if he revises this version.

Murdered Out!

The bus moved onto a new owner and a new adventure. It will be used on a winter-long trip to Florida - reminiscent of its original winter-long trip to sunny San Diego. The paint was the first thing to change. Opting for a less noticeable scheme, our friends flat blacked it from bumper to bumper with over twenty cans of spray paint.

I'll keep the blog rolling, however, detailing our camping, biking, hiking, canoeing, and general adventures. It was a great time owning the bus, but it was time to pass along to someone else to enjoy.

Linden (Virginia)

I write this post "from the future" and let me say, this winter was one of the mildest we've had in years. Certainly not what I'd have expected given this snow in November...

Snowshoe (West Virginia)

This past weekend was Snowshoe's final weekend of summer operation. Now the resort will prepare for its winter season. It was a good chance to get out on the bike and say goodbye to another good summer of riding.



The bus had seven passengers for this trip [including two dogs] and we were met at the resort by Jarrod for Saturday's ride. The weather was phenomenal and the Fall colors were in full force.



We had a bit of mechanical difficulty when Krister's xLOC broke, which is designed to default to "lockout" on the front fork (a MAJOR design flaw, Rockshox!). It was a major pain in the ass, but he kept a smile on his face and rode the trails despite the hand-numbing vibrations and lack of suspension.



We finished up the trip with a quick dip in the Greenbriar River and a few scoops of ice cream in Cass, WV before heading home.

Gauley Fest (West Virginia)

Late each summer the Summersville Dam is released to provide a few days of increased flow on the Gauley River. It's become a regular event called Gauley Fest which includes concerts, vendors, boat raffles and gear swap.



We were lucky enough to have lodging, shuttle, and food waiting for us when we arrived, compliments of our friend's company, New River Outfitters. The place was great! Fully loaded with hot tub and kegerator!



Our group separated into two boats and soon we were headed down the river. Our boat had only one paddler with experience on a whitewater raft, but we all pulled our own weight and navigated the river with ease. I fell out of the boat at a crucial rapid, Pillow Rock Rapid, and our entire boat (minus the guide) was pitched later down the river at Box Canyon. The other boat was tangled in the hydraulics near the end of the trip, which sent a few of its members swimming for the shore. Somehow we all emerged from the carnage with smiles on our faces and tales to tell.