There are few opportunities within a reasonable day-trip of the Ohio-Indiana-Kentucky corner of the US to ride off-road for distances greater than 40 miles, and even that distance would require backtracking every mile of a trail. But one day each year, during the Brown County Breakdown (BCB), 3 mountain bike trail systems are linked via private land, horse trails and a few Indiana back-country gravel roads, giving off-road adventurers the opportunity to ride up to 100 miles... if they have it in them.

This year was the 7^th annual BCB. The October 9^th event was attended by over 500 riders from as far away as New England to the East, and New Mexico to the West.

The BCB is more than just a long ride in the woods. It's a 3 day event that includes product demos, raffles, family rides, live Bluegrass music, and even free beer!

The ride itself is special not only because of the amount of trail that is linked, but also because of the festive atmosphere that is cultivated throughout the ride. There is live Bluegrass music at each of the 3 SAG stops (SAG is bike event speak for “rest stop”), and even the occasional lone musician out along the trail.

This year, our shop West Trails Bicycles, became a Supporting Sponsor to help promote our shop while helping the event get better. We donated a Norco Judan Belt bicycle which created quite a stir as it was raffled off. The eventual winner of the bike proclaimed from the moment she first saw it “That bike is mine. I'm going to win it!” Much Norco swag was also given out randomly to registered riders.

Our shop also set-up a tech support area at the first SAG stop, which in the past had only provided food, drinks and moral support. Our mechanics were overwhelmed by riders in need.

We also brought cases of Powerade to hand-out to riders that came back through our SAG late in the afternoon, after riding some of the more remote trails, those riding 65 miles or more. There were many very grateful, previously very thirsty riders that came upon us late in the afternoon.

I was not willing to give-up the ride just because our shop was a major sponsor. This was my 3^rd year participating and it's just too fun to pass up.

I proudly rode my 2009 Norco Jubei 1 with it's distinctive green rims that always seem to be noticed.

My riding partner Eric and I headed out into some of the more remote trails. We were surprised by how few riders attempt to ride them, most riders choosing to ride 65 miles or less, and why not? This is a fun event NOT a race, not a contest.

About halfway around one of the 2 most remote loops, Eric's derailer hanger snapped in half. It was then that I remembered that I had failed to pack a spare for my bike, or one of the universal hangers that I ordered in to bring along. We were way out there, no cell phone coverage, and no guarantee that any other riders would be coming up behind us. The best we could hope for was that a horseman would come-by eventually during our (or Eric's) long walk back. But before I could break the news to Eric that I failed to bring the hangers, he said “Good thing you mentioned I should try to find my spare hanger... I never would have considered that it might be needed. I'm sure glad I have it with me.” Well I was glad too!!

Then on the next remote loop the trail markers disappeared. There was a 3 way trail intersection with no indication of where to go. It would have been a long way back to back-track, so we were motivated to continue on, but clueless as to where to go. Fortunately a couple of local riders eventually came up behind us and helped devise a route to get us back to the outer sag. We wasted a lot of time trying to get back on course, so we skipped some trails and bailed out on some road short-cuts to get us back to the start finish in a timely manner. We had a goal of getting back by 5pm and ended up only a half hour late. We got in almost 70 miles, which is a record for us, we were very satisfied!

The après-ride Hog Roast was a welcome filling for our ravenous appetites.

Since this years Breakdown the International Mountain Bike Association has named the Brown County State Park mountain bike trail system an Epic trail destination. And that's with only about half of the planned trails built! The monies raised during the BCB will help hasten the building of more trails at Brown County and throughout Indiana as well.

Please join us next year. Come ride and support this event and the building of more quality trails!

  I'll just come out and say it, I like to write. Writing is like having a conversation but with a chance to consider my words before saying them and to stay on topic. A real conversation... you know, where you speak with someone, is hard work for me, it's multi-tasking and I don't like multi-tasking. I like to enjoy what I'm doing, not just distractedly get something done while distractedly getting something else done. No, I still don't say things perfectly when I write, I still look back and think how I wish I had said, or not said, this or that, but I at least I get a chance to think at least a little about what I'm saying.

  I'm not a deep thinker, I can't/don't ruminate on philosophical or theological quandaries, I don't get caught up in polarizing debate... I can almost always see that both sides have at least some value worthy of defending. “Liberals” get some things right, “Conservatives” get some things right too. I don't need to know THE answer, I'm OK with mysteries and partial answers.

  The biggest problem I see with any sort of conversation or expression of thought, whether spoken or written is that people tend to permanently link “what you have said” to their understanding of “what you believe”, they fill in the gaps with their prejudices and then pigeon-hole you into their idea of the sort of person you are... “Did you hear what he said? He's one of THEM.” But conversation is more like improvisation than creed, and even a statement of belief is only accurate in the present. Even if I say most enthusiastically and sincerely that I'll believe in something forever, that statement has no power on the me of the future to force it to believe. Things that I say, and therefore things that others say are at best only accurate for the moment. How many times have I thought after I said something “I don't believe that! Why did I say that?” The answer is that I was improvising and multitasking and sometimes I just say stuff... And sometimes I just write stuff.

  So often, words from someone's past whether written or spoken, are used as weapons against the present version of that person as if once words are spoken they are always accurate and cannot be rescinded or tempered. I try hard to let people be who they are today and not assume they are who they were yesterday... this is very hard to do and unfortunately frequently disappointing...

  I believe now and have for sometime in the past (and have high hopes for future continued belief) that there is a God and that Jesus was/is somehow part of this God entity. I also believe that the words and beliefs that Jesus expressed were not of the fleeting/temporary nature that everyone else's are. He was not winging it, he was not “thinking out loud” His words had the power to effect the future. Does that mean I'm a religious weirdo or from another perspective a unorthodox heretic? Yeah, probably...

  Isn't it dangerous as a business owner to express your beliefs (as wish-washy as they are) publicly and risk offending potential customers? Yeah probably...

  But life is short. I want to make an impact on the planet while I'm here not just blend in with the homogenous flow in the gutter of popular culture and safe business practice. If someone is offended by what I have written here they must be trying awfully hard to be offended.

  It's Easter. Yes there is are at least 4 perspectives on this “holiday” Pagan, Christian, Humanist and Commercial. Allow me to emphasize the humanistic at the risk of bolstering the commercial. Easter is a celebration of new beginnings and breaking free from the past. I really want to help people make the transition from an unhealthy lifestyle to a healthy one by getting on a bike and getting fit. Sure that might benefit me, but not nearly as much as it benefits the one making the change. The concept of “New Life” exists in the biological, theological, and spiritual sense, as well as in daily lifestyle. My Easter wish, dare I say “prayer” is for all who seek change toward something better to find a way to overcome and start anew.

Change the world. Change You. Ride a bike.

WTBY2

March 25^th 2010

   That's the day West Trails Bicycles sheepishly opened it's door for business. The storefront glass had all been covered in white-wash during the previous three weeks of renovation of the space that had been vacant (other than storing a huge collection of junk) for more than half a decade. Most of the glass was still covered on that Thursday morning. The front door was cleaned off first, then a patch in front of the used “Open” sign that we found on Craig's list. By the end of the day most of the glass was transparent again.

   Some very supportive friends put in a lot of time helping us transform the derelict store into a charming (if I may be so presumptuous) little bike shop. We had a couple of lookers the first few days, there was a lot of curiosity about what was happening to that old corner storefront, and many disappointed locals that were hoping for a more convenient place to buy smokes and Cokes, but even they were supportive of having something new come into Miamitown rather than another business going away.

   There were many, many, kind words... lot's of verbal encouragement and support from visitors, but no income for the first few days. We had to wait 4 long days before our first sale of any kind. But by day 5 we sold a bike! Within a few weeks we were fairly overwhelmed with business. We were not rolling in the dough, but we were paying our expenses and (hopefully) establishing a reputation of integrity. When colder weather slowed things down in the fall it was a welcomed break from the onslaught.

   All in all, it was a good first year, no major screw-ups, we did our best to under-promise and over-deliver. We met a lot of nice folks and even made some friends. We helped get some people with physical issues back on a bike, and lots of people back on track to a healthier lifestyle. We enjoyed having bikes come in for service that had just been “serviced” by certain other shops but worked no better than before the fleecing. We offered discounts to those folks, because we enjoyed showing off our competency, and we wanted them to get what they paid for even if most of the pay went to someplace else. And though it has been a LOT of work with little monetary return on investment, so far, it has seemed like a good trade.

   We will be smarter this year, and hopefully wiser, and we hope to be able to offer even better service.

Thanks for supporting us.

Please spread the word. Tell your friends about us. Review us online. “Like” us on Facebook. Come back and visit us.

WTB has survived its first year!