Thoughts: Changing From Fall To Winter

When The Season Changes From Fall To Winter It Brings Up A Lot Of Feelings For Me

The change from fall to winter. It happens every year. Fall comes and it's unarguably the best time of year for mountain biking. Part of me wishes it would never end. The trails start holding moisture. The temps are finally cooler. The changing color or the leaves create an other worldly experience somehow lighting up the trails with an alien like glow. But then there is that small moment when fall and winter collide. There is always that first significant snowfall that comes and lays down a coat of white when the leaves are still showing their best fall colors. This snow typically doesn't stay for more than a few days and fall fights back with a couple more weeks of nice weather again with warmer temps until winter decides to move in long term, but it's this first snowfall that gets my mind shifting from biking to snowboarding. It's not the same as it was when I was younger. We used to anticipate snowboard films from the likes of Mack Dawg and Standard Films and we would all go watch at local showings. Pro riders would show up and there would be product and season pass giveaways and stuff. It was where riders were able to showcase their video parts they had worked on the season before, I feel like we are so inundated with small clips everyday on social media that there is no build up like there used to be. It's like we have become numb and nothing seems cool or special. There isn't that wow factor like there once was of seeing things being done on the big screen, nor is there the comradery of watching it together with a group of like minded people. But what hasn't changed is the feeling I get inside when that first snowfall happens in the mountains. I still start daydreaming of making turns in powder when the shift in temps start happening even though I am not riding over 100 plus days a season like I once did when I was younger. This seasons first snowfall happened this past weekend and it was a sight to be seen. The biking isn't over just yet, but not much longer now until we are getting back out on snow here in Utah!

The bright aspens with a backdrop of white makes for some pretty unreal scenery.

The yellow aspens mixed in amongst the pine trees with a fresh coat of snow is pretty awesome.

A small group of color changing aspens stand out among the pines.

This singletrack will soon be buried under feet of snow.