doesn't get much better than this

It had been three weeks since H had been on his MTB, but he seemed to remember how to do it okay.  Apparently it's just like riding a bike.  We had been gifted with glorious weather all weekend - completely clear, sunny and much cooler, with temperatures topping out only in the low- to mid-80s - and got up early on Sunday to take advantage of it.  It was only in the 50s when we started (cold in the shade!) and it stayed very comfortable for our whole ride.  Another bonus to an early-ish (8:45 a.m.) start: there were scarcely any people on the Round Valley trails while we were on them.

It has been very dry here lately which means that the dirt on the trails is rock-hard, plus dusty.  I was riding fairly well, with just a little fatigue in the legs from the hike the day before, and kept right on H's rear wheel for the climb up the former My Nemesis.  There were some new signs posted on the downhill side and throughout the middle of the Round Valley area, notifying trail users that coyotes have set up camp.  The coyotes are welcome to be there; the signs are just telling people to be aware, especially if they have off-leash dogs.

Two wheels and a bunch of sagebrush

H rode right up Hammerhead Hill with no problem and we continued around to Rambler, just meeting a handful of other riders.  Going up the Sweet Sixteen went well, except for the one downhill rider who didn't see me coming up; I saw him and so I pulled over to let him by, killing my momentum and forcing me to walk one of the corners I am usually able to ride.  Riding down the other side was fantastic, however, since we had the whole Sagebrush Switchbacks section to ourselves - that never happens.

My luck held and there wasn't even much of a headwind for the return trip up the paved bike path back to the truck.  We opted for beers and sandwiches right there in the parking lot - we figured that Guardsman Pass would be a zoo - but even that was just fine on such a nice day.  We sure are lucky to have such great trails and great summer weather to ride them on.