SMNDFBR - Hazy Shade Of Winter

"Look around

Leaves are brown

And the sky

Is a Hazy Shade of Winter

Hear the Salvation Army Band

Down by the riverside

It's bound to be a better ride

Than what you've got planned"

Forecasters and Politicians, two groups of people who often times cannot deliver what they have promised and then retract statements as if they never said them. Depending on which hour of what day you looked at the forecast you might have seen that some of the white stuff was possible for our neck of the woods on Friday but in the end it never materialized and stayed more moist and less frozen. Luckily for my fellow SMNDFBRs it was still plenty cold and overcast the morning of the ride so the trails would still be ridable.


The morning started out a bit earlier for a few of us so that we could get a few shots of the rad Beard Heads that we are giving away on Global Fat Bike Day. Ed and Janelle took one for the team this go round as Tyler and Jamie were "busy"... not that I blame them, having your photo taken has got to be one of the worst experiences ever but Jamie, Ed, Tyler and Janelle did a fantastic job and I am eternally grateful for their help.


With the chilly temps we had a bit smaller of a group for this ride but we did have a few new faces so it was a bit of a give and a take.



All that flood water was a horrible ordeal but if one thing positive has come out of it, it's that the waters seem to have dropped more silt and sand into the mix and the trails seem to stay drier and dry out quicker than before.


We might have been a smaller group than on warmer days but we were no less of an awesome group, quality if not quantity.



With the trails seemingly drying faster, the west side is getting ridden a lot more than it used to, making a stop under the old Rock Island Railroad bridge one of the usual stops on the ride. Even on windy and cold days it's a lot less windy and a bit warmer under the bridge which makes it a good place to stop for a bit.




On cold days this stop also means that soon we will be heading back to warmth, not to mention the drop in on the opposite side is a hoot.

Even with the colder temps, by the time we got to the troll bridge the trails were starting to thaw and get a little soft so we jumped onto the Jamaican and then onto the fabulous cement paths that extend throughout Lincoln to get a few more miles in on the way back to the shop.

Looks like more of the same in the forecast for next weekend, a little warm up early in the week with a chance of rain and snow as the week progresses. If were going to get moisture I'm hoping it's more snow and way less rain but maybe that's just me.