Welcome Back Winter
The never-winter is over. Pacific storms moved into Utah last week and dropped more than 40 inches of snow in the upper reaches of Little Cottonwood Canyon. The rapid arrival of new snow has turned the backcountry into an avalanche haven. The weak, persistent layer that formed in October is collapsing under the weight of […]
Run!
I’ve been running lately. Quite a lot. I have one rule: No pavement. Because that just hurts. Trail running is, if not pleasant, at least more tolerable than anything indoors. Except, it’s becoming enjoyable. And really, I’m not entirely surprised. I used to enjoy running. And so, for now, I’ll continue to tentatively do so—until I get […]
Stegner’s Mormon Country
This was the country the Mormons settled, the country which, as Brigham Young with some reason hoped, no one else wanted. Its destiny was plain on its face, its contempt of man and his history and his theological immortality, his Millennium, his Heaven on Earth, was monumentally obvious. Its distances were terrifying, its cloudbursts catastrophic, […]
The Winter of Our Discontent
“Now is the winter of our discontent Made glorious summer by this sun…” What an odd winter the American West is experiencing. Dry. Warm. Almost spring-like, even. Snow, or rain, is supposed to arrive shortly. Which will only further complicate the precarious backcountry snowpack. Indeed, I have emotionally written off the possibility of skiing deep, […]
The Hierarchy of Human Propulsion
Forward movement is the means to every human end. Progress, such as it is defined, is often elevated above all else. Politicians speak of progress in reverent whispers. For athletes and coaches, it as an eternal pursuit. The businessman is obsessed with his progress up the corporate ladder, or the growth of his bottom line. But progress is ambiguous, […]
How To: Be a Dirtbag
“Dirtbag” is a term of endearment in the outdoor world. Being a dirtbag can be a good thing. Certainly it can be taken too far, and doing so just might be to your own disadvantage. But each of us who venture into the outdoors, whether on bikes, skis, or on foot, have a little dirtbag inside of […]
Moab: Rekindled
I love Moab. But recently, it had been relegated down the list of my favorite places to ride. I had simply grown tired of Moab. Yesterday that changed. 43 miles of redrock and singletrack rekindled the flame. My new favorite trail? Deadman’s Ridge. Connect it to the Sovereign singletrack, and you have an epic, beautiful day. […]
