It's okay not to be okay

It’s okay not to be okay.

Some days you just feel off—like you’re operating slightly out of sync with the world around you. You can’t quite pinpoint what’s troubling you, but it’s there, persistent and nagging, just beneath the surface. It could be a combination of things, or maybe nothing specific at all. That’s the frustrating part. If you could name […]

My Story

My Story: Heart Attack, Triple Bypass, and Back on the Bike at 51

I’m 54. Two years ago, I had a heart attack followed by triple bypass surgery. I still deal with high blood pressure, cholesterol challenges, and persistent joint and muscle pain — even though I eat clean, hit the gym regularly, mountain bike, and stay active. But I keep moving. I grew up as a metalhead […]

Panicked on Sidewinder

Panic Attack on a Mountain Bike: What Happened on Sidewinder

I was riding Tapia Canyon with Pat on January 31, 2014, around 8 in the morning. Friday ride—the kind where everything feels clean and fast. We’d been doing this mountain

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Pyramid Peak, Phoenix: Committing to the Line on a Technical Drop

I learned something about compromise at Pyramid Peak last week that I can’t unlearn. I was scoping this technical drop—nothing crazy, maybe four feet, but it’s the kind of feature

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My dad passed away yesterday.

He was 96. I don’t feel sad. I don’t feel much of anything, honestly. And maybe that’s the part that gets me — the guilt of not feeling what I

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Bonking on the Bike: What Running Out of Fuel Taught Me at 54

No fuel, loud minds, relentless trail. We hit Sonoran South and Dixie Mountain this weekend. The elevation profile was absolutely brutal. Just a relentless, unapologetic grind that tested everything we

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Getting Back on the Mountain Bike After Triple Bypass Surgery

A couple years ago, I couldn’t have written this post. After the heart attack, after the triple bypass, I spent two months off the bike. Not because I wanted to—because

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The Pivot: To “Send It” (or Not)

There’s a silent, awkward reckoning that every mountain biker hits somewhere after their 45th or 50th birthday. It’s not usually marked by a catastrophic crash. It’s marked by a Tuesday.

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Pyramid Shred: The Send-Off

D2’s heading back to Cali next Saturday. That sucks, but the desert doesn’t care about your feelings. We gave him the only proper goodbye we know: a dirt-filled “see you

Group of mountain bikers riding a forest trail together near Bean Peaks

Riding Alone vs. Riding With a Group: Which One Do You Actually Need?

One of our favorite “not too far” places to ride… and a welcome break from the Phoenix temps. There are two kinds of rides that keep me sane. Neither one

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You Can’t Bring Me Down: How Metal Got Me Through Cardiac Recovery

There’s this Suicidal Tendencies song—”You Can’t Bring Me Down”—and that opening riff hits like a punch. I’ve been listening to it since the 90s, but last year it hit different.

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