Exploring Elko

Rode my mountain bike in the hills behind Elko today. The climb was right at my aerobic limit. I couldn't go faster because my heart and lungs were tapped out and I couldn't go slower because I would fall over. This is near the top, looking south at the Ruby Mountains:

I was checking out the hills for a possible paraglider launch and I think I found a pretty good launch and LZ. Here's what you can do with a Blackberry propped up on a rock:



The route down was absolutely nuts - straight down the side of a mountain. I lowered my seat as low as it would go and hung my butt as far back as possible. I unclipped my right foot and held my right leg behind the bike to put more weight to the rear and laid on my belly on the saddle. It must have looked pretty funny, though I was quite afraid.

So I found a possible place to fly, but todays ride was also instructive. I was quite dehydrated - It's cooler here than I am used to, so I don't drink plus I ran 8 miles earlier - and I need a new saddle for my mountain bike. At the end of my ride, I was quite uncomfortable and having prostate issues and a terrible headache.