ALL TRAILS LEAD TO ICE CREAM

I first heard of REI's  #OptOutside initiative back in November.  GUNG HO BIKES , the bike shop at which I work, followed  REI 's lead and decided to close its doors on Black Friday to host a series of rides.  What a great idea...encouraging more and more people to take a break from the stress of everyday life, disconnect from screen time, and enjoy time outdoors...reconnecting with nature and spending time with family and friends!   The three inches of snow that fell overnight might keep me off my road bike...but it won't stop me from opting to be outside! -- January 13, 2019 The new year is a time for new resolutions.  Typically, I don't make them...but this year, at the suggestion of my wonderful wife, Robin, the two of us have one.  We are going to try to commit to doing 52 hikes in 2019.  That's at least one a week for the next year...and, as of right now, we are three for three:  three weeks in and three hikes in ...

Winter is a fact of life if you if you live in Pennsylvania.  The coldest and snowiest months tend to be January and February...but I've seen snow on the trails as late as mid-April.  I'm not a skier...and I'm not a fan of snow or cold...but I do like winter mountain biking. Without the foliage on the trees, it's possible see much more of the landscape, making the forests seem much more immense.  The frozen trails make the riding fast, fun, and downright exhilarating! Riding the Parkway Trails in single digit wind chills. -- December 28, 2017 Mark Lentz and I riding Gifford Pinchot State Park in full winter gear.  -- December 27, 2017 Years ago...when I first started riding...mountain biking was seasonal for me.  I rarely (if ever) hit the trails during the winter months.  As my passion for mountain biking grew...so did my desire to keep turning the pedals no matter what time of year it is.  I've always had limits to what I would rid...

This past week really has been "like Christmas" for me.  Mark and I both have the week off for Christmas vacation and, even though the wind chills have been in the single digits, we've managed to get out on our mountain bikes for a couple of very cold, but equally amazing, rides...both of which were in locations I had never ridden before.  Two super cool, and unexpected, presents. The intersection of Old Farm Trail and Ridge Trail at Gifford Pinchot State Park. -- December 27, 2017  That's been a theme for me in 2017.  Since April, when I was cleared by my doctor to begin riding my bike again, I've mountain biked in six new places:  Codorus State Park, Stony Valley RR Trail, The Parkway Trails in Harrisburg, Tuscarora State Forest, Gifford Pinchot State Park, and even in the City of York.  Over the past eight months I've also revisted trails that I haven't ridden for almost a decade...like the York County Heritage Rail Trail and Ohiopyle State Park...