Feeling Fashionable?

Our new CLUB SPF-35 jerseys are in and we hope you like our latest color palette, Margarita Green with Bellflower Purple. It's our way of saying, "Hey, just because you're a cyclist doesn't mean you have to dress in last year's (or decade's) colors!"

His

Hers

• Light-weight SQ Pro® with Mynx UV fabric - rated to 35+ SPF.

• Micro-mesh construction allows air to easily pass through the fabric, keeping you dry and cool.

• Full-length zipper for variable cooling and breathability.

• Roomier fitting Club-cut design.

• 3 reinforced rear pockets, elastic waist and wrists.

Of Local Cycling Interest #2

A road of much concern for Durango cyclists and pedestrians, CR 251 from Holly Avenue to CR 250, has been long overdue for safety improvements, as in decades overdue. Well, it looks like this stretch of road is finally receiving some much-needed attention. To that we say, Huzzah! And thank you, Jim Davis.


From the office of the La Plata County Director Public Works:

Improvements Planned for CR 251

We are finishing our review of proposals for design services for 32nd/CR 251 from Holly to CR 250, and should award a contract in two to three weeks. This will include East Animas, CR 250 from the recently completed city improvements to a point about 300 feet north of 32nd. This study will also address the 32nd & CR 250 intersection, looking at conventional intersection with turn lanes as well as a possible round-about option. 

We will coordinate the design closely with the City and anticipate the design phase will take the better part of 2012. The design process will include at least two public meetings to solicit input and suggestions. The County is funding the design and it is hoped the construction cost will be funded by both Durango and the County, and that agreement will be worked out later this year or early next year and will require an Intergovernmental agreement (IGA) between the City and County. The IGA will address the cost share, and hopefully Durango agreeing to annex this project upon completion. Unfortunately we don't know at this time how soon the actual construction could be scheduled as it will depend on the successful completion of the IGA, and both the City and County including this project in their future budgets, possibly 2013 or 2014, assuming revenues do not continue to decline.  

Do not hesitate to contact me should you have any questions about these projects or any other roads issues around the County.

Thanks

Jim Davis,  P.E.

Director of Public Works

La Plata County 

1060 Main Avenue, Unit 104

Durango, CO  81301

Phone: (970) 382-6372

Fax: (970) 375-7986

Email: jim.davis@co.laplata.co.us

Of Local Cycling Interest #1

One of two encouraging news stories for us Durango Cyclists this week.
From the Durango Herald: Tuesday, May 1
With Grants OK'd, City Ready to Start Trail Extension
By Jim Haug

The Durango City Council on Tuesday approved a $508,456 grant from the Colorado Department of Transportation to extend the Animas River Trail from 29th Street to 32nd Street.It also has a $200,000 grant from the Colorado State Parks and Wildlife Trails Program to spend on the trail extension, which will cost $1.05 million altogether.

The city is responsible for covering 33 percent of the project’s cost, about $300,000, with funding from a half-cent sales tax for park and trails projects that voters approved in 1999.

The river trail expansion will parallel East Third Avenue along Memorial Park. To save the park’s grass, the trail will serve a dual purpose as a sidewalk.

Work on the design is already under way. The project is expected to go to bid for construction this summer.

The project is expected to take a year to complete, said Kevin Hall, the city’s director of natural lands, sustainability and trails.

In other work on the seven-mile trail, a bridge around a hill by the Durango Mall is on schedule to be completed by the end of the month or early June, Hall said.

“We’ll pull down the gates, and we’ll be open for business,” Hall said.

Annie Get Your Bike

Annie Oakley... Sharp Shooter, Cyclist

The Original American Cycling Biathlete

Bend Overend!

By Ned

I spent the last week riding some world class single track in Bend, Oregon. The Specialized Mountain Bike product team brought in a handful of journalists from around the globe to ride some of our 2013 trail bikes. I've been to Bend for CX racing and a winter triathlon at Mt Bachelor, but this is the first time I have had a chance to really explore their trail system. The guys at Cog Wild Tours guided us to some great single track - Lev, Russ, Seth and Ryan (who's wife gave birth last Saturday – congrats Ryan!). We rode Smith Rock, Horse Ridge, Mrazek and Whoops. It was a great mix of terrain for previewing the new bikes and the redesigned Purgatory tire.


We took a tour of the Deschutes Brewery and learned about the raw ingredients that go into making my favorite beverage.

Hop flowers that give India Pale Ale’s their flavor

At a downtown coffee shop I ran into my old (and I do mean old!) teammate Paul Thomasberg. Paul was with another member of the Central Oregon Trail Alliance and they were meeting with staff from the State Representatives office to discuss their latest trail project. The kind of quality trails Bend has does not come without a dedicated, well supported trail group and thousands of hours of trail work.

Hualapai Succulents

The Hualapai Mountains are a spectacular "Sky Island" range above the surrounding deserts of northeastern Arizona. Situated just southeast of Kingman, Arizona, they sit at the crossroads of 3 distinct desert regions - the northernmost extension of the Sonoran Desert (and the saguaro cactus), the eastern edge of the Mojave Desert, and just south of the Great Basin Desert. So, the flora from all those regions converge there, and for plant nerds like us, that means exceptional plant variety and more inspiration for our garden in Durango.

Hualapai Peak, at 8,417 feet

Strawberry Hedgehog Cactus 

Echinocereus engelmannii

*This cactus grows well in our Durango yard.

Strawberry Hedgehog Cactus

Barrel Cactus 

Echinocactus wislizenii

Barrel Cacti

Utah Agave

Agave utahensis

*This agave, and a number of it's subspecies, grows well (and so far, have survived for 4-5 years) in our Durango yard.

Photography by Lisa Bourey

Leafy Evergreens

The Hualapai Mountains, and much of the Desert Southwest, feature a wonderful array of leafy evergreens. Though equally fond of the Ponderosa Pine, Single Needle Pinyons, and Firs we found in this area, we get more than our fair share of conifers Durango and the Rocky Mountains, so find them slightly less intriguing. Below are some of the more interesting specimens we found. 

Pointleaf Manzanita Grove

Arctostaphylos pungens

*This manzanita is hardy in Durango and many are flourishing in our yard.

Pointleaf Manzanita

Close-up of the beautiful Manzanita Bark

Canyon Live Oak or Golden Cup Oak

Quercus chrysolepis

*While we have Shrub Live Oak growing in the Durango area and in our yard, sadly they don't keep their leaves through winter like they do in slightly warmer climates.

Canyon Live Oak with orange undersides of the leaves

Canyon Live Oak

California Buckthorn

Rhamnus californica

Aspen Peak In the Hualapai Mountains, at 8167 feet

Photography by Lisa Bourey

La Flâneur

Velo Flâneur is all about cycling culture, cycling history and the cult of hardcore road cycling. And we are now offering Tee Shirts from their Summit Collection. Find them now on the Bouré website!

The Alpe d'Huez

The Coal Bank-Molas

From Wikipedia:

The term flâneur comes from the French masculine noun flâneur—which has the basic meanings of "stroller", "lounger", "saunterer", "loafer"—which itself comes from the French verb flâner, which means "to stroll". Charles Baudelaire developed a derived meaning of flâneur—that of "a person who walks the city in order to experience it". Because of the term's usage and theorization by Baudelaire and numerous thinkers in economic, cultural, literary and historical fields, the idea of the flâneur has accumulated significant meaning as a referent for understanding urban phenomena and modernity.

The Ultimate Flâneur, Salvador Dali

Tailwind Nutrition

We will be putting samples of Tailwind Nutrition in as many Bouré orders as possible in the coming months. If you like it, you can use an enclosed Coupon for 20% Off your first order. We hope you like it!

Tailwind Nutrition was created by Durango athletes, Jeff and Jennifer Vierling, who've ridden Paris-Brest-Paris, RAAM Qualifiers, Leadville 100s and other endurance events. Having tried everything on the market to deal with stomach problems, cramping, and that sickly sweet taste from ingesting artificial ingredients and chemicals found in other drinks, they created their own drink, Tailwind. In a nutshell, Tailwind Nutrition is formulated to deliver everything you need in one simple, powerful drink.

• Potent energy and electrolytes: no need to eat or drink anything else. Just pour, shake, and go.
• Easy on your gut: push yourself and feel great
• Tastes great hour after hour: Not sickly sweet so you can keep on drinking
• Hydration pack friendly! Dissolves easily and rinses clean

Yabba Dabba Doo

We recently visited Hualapai Mountain Park near Kingman, Arizona - built by the CCC in the 1930s. I can't remember how we found this park on a previous trip some 5-6 years ago, though it made it good midway stopping point while headed towards a camping trip in the Mojave, and I can only assume it was simply a camping area designated on an Arizona Road Map in our glove box. Arriving late at night, we had no idea until the next morning that we had arrived in the town of Bedrock. We've been continuously amazed and intrigued by the work done by the crews of the CCC, so back we went to take a second, longer look. Astounding and lasting work left behind by those CCC crews, and all of it essentially done by hand. 

Cabin #1 - Boulder Run, upon arrival

Copper counter tops and back splash

Cabin #1 - Boulder Run, upon departure.

Ahh... Springtime in the West

Hualapai Mountain Park near Kingman, Arizona, which was built by the CCC camp, SP8A, who arrived in the Hualapai Mountains in 1935. Enrollees began to reconstruct Hualapai Mountain Road, widening it, straightening curves, and improving drainage. In 1937 the enrollees began to develop the park itself. They built retaining walls, trails, roadways, and stone bridges. They also built 17 rustic cabins; some are constructed with large-sized, rubble stone. Each has a stone fireplace and chimney and is set off in its own portion of the park, complete with picnic table and grill. These beautiful cabins are still in fine shape and available for rental today. For more information on this park, go the Hualapai Mountain Park website.