Thursday night marked the Moon before Yule night ride. I was thinking about skipping out on this ride a couple days before, but the nights started warming up recently. I also started thinking that time for night rides in Ash Canyon is running out, and that I should just do it. And rightfully so, as I can see snow up in the canyon out my front window this morning, and the high temperatures are going to be in the 30′s for the next several days.

2 Lights, 1 Gear, 1 Bag o’ Mojo

I had slight technical difficulties with my lights the whole night. I left the only helmet that works with light mounts at work, so I mounted two lights on the bars. Since my hard tail is down right now, I rode the single speed with the On One Mary bars. The M shaped bars make mounting lights difficult, as the only real place to clamp them down are at the top of the “M’s”. The bar is a bit thinner here, so you can’t get the clamp real tight. This made the lights slip down over bumpy train, and was very irritating on the stutter bumps of the creek trail…a time when I wanted the most light available! I also didn’t charge one of my batteries long enough and lost one light near the end of the ride. Minor stuff though, and didn’t ruin my night whatsoever!

Steve

We also had the privilege of meeting a new rider on Thursday. Steve from Carson Valley decided to join us, and this would be his first ride in Ash Canyon. I can’t imagine what that would be like, riding these trails for the first time in the dark! Most riders new to the canyon have difficulty with the Creek Trail in the daylight, so I can imagine the challenge Steve was facing. Just as I was thinking it was good that Steve couldn’t see the steep drop off to his left, his back tire washed out, sending him cartwheeling down the hill side! He picked a soft place to land, and he managed to avoid being skewered by his handlebars. Unshaken, he pressed on with good spirits.

Jeff P and Ruby

Even though it was overcast for most of the ride, the bright moon really lit up the night. With the lights off, you could see all the way across the canyon. This was a big contrast to last week when you couldn’t even see your hand in front of your face!

Jesse, Mike, and Marcus

I’m not sure what the future holds for night riding. The Centennial Trail on the east side of town is pretty fun in light snow, so maybe that will be the next night ride.

Update: Jesse has a few pictures and words to share too over at Nowhere Nevada.

Another fun night ride was had by all attendees this week. I was even able to get Kristy out for this one. Kristy has done plenty of night riding around town, but this was her first night time mountain trip. We divided up our gear, I got the bar mount light, and she got the head lamp. We stayed pretty close together and shared the illumination.

Kristy – Deer Run

Earlier in the day, it was quite warm, and we had ridden in shorts. But as the sun went down, the temperature plummeted rather quickly. We bundled up in our winter gear to stay comfortable in the chilly night air.

Kristy and Scott J – Four Day Trail

There wasn’t much of a moon to speak of on Tuesday, so if your lights weren’t on something, you couldn’t see it! About the only thing visible without lights was Carson City in the valley below, and what a sight that was!

Jeff P – Four Day Trail

It was so dark that it took a bit of concentration to keep track of where you were. There were a few times where I let my mind drift off, and when it returned, I wasn’t exactly sure what part of the trail I was on. You had to keep your eye out for a familiar curve or bush to regain your bearings.

Dennis and Jeff P – Four Day Trail

One of the cool things about night riding, is that you can take a trail that you are very familiar with, and make it into a whole new experience. With not much peripheral vision to speak of, your brain is totally focused on the trail in front of you. Many of the visual cues are no longer present, so you must relearn to ride the trail.

Dennis – Four Day Trail

The final descent included a trip down the Creek Trail. Dennis let Kristy use his bar mount light, and this helped her out tremendously on the tight twisty trail at the bottom of the canyon. Kristy and I took turns bringing up the rear along the creek. The Creek Trail can be a little spooky at night, and especially when you’re in the back! I peeked over my shoulder a couple times, but could only see pitch black. I started getting the feeling that I was trolling for mountain lions, and I had to push the idea out of my head that a 100 lb cat was pursuing me down the trail.

Kristy – The Creek Trail

As we neared the end of the trail, we made a lot of noise, and slowed down the pace. There were to be no animals harmed this night (see the previous night ride report). Thankfully the only creature we saw that night was a mouse, and it was not harmed.