Back to Horton Creek

It's the day after Thanksgiving. I woke up this morning feeling the affects of too much turkey and pie. My wife was kind enough to take the kids for the morning and give me a pretty big window to go ride.  I decided to except her kindness and head back up to Horton Creek.

The trail was pretty wet from the recent snow, but luckily it was not muddy.  I was able to putter up the trail on my Firebird without too much effort.  Once at the top I strapped on my new 661 pressure suit and full face helmet.  Why all the DH gear you ask?  Well in the last month I have broken (or bruised) my ribs and put a sizable gash in my elbow that required stitches.  I'm just 2 weeks away from a 12 hour race and I really don't want to get hurt again.  I'm not saying the added protection will prevent me from getting injured, but it can only help.  Safety first right?

 Love my Pivot Firebird

 A little snow but no mud

Is this Horton Creek or the Redbull Rampage?  

The decent was fast and fun.  I didn't break any Strava records, but I wasn't really trying to either.  I just wanted to flow on my Firebird and enjoy the nearly 7 inches of travel.  I've been so focused on riding my SS that I nearly forgot how fun it is to ride a full suspension bike.  Jumping the rollers and crashing through the rocky sections had me grinning from ear to ear.  The hour of climbing it took to experience the 20 minutes of downhill was well worth the effort.

I made a quick GoPro video of my ride.  I hate GoPro videos, but given my limited time, it was the best I could do.  Maybe one day I can get the crew from Payson to come up and we'll shoot a proper video.  That said. . . Enjoy.





Horton Creek Near Payson, AZ from Arthur Evan on Vimeo.