Wholistic Fitness

so, this just happened…

another ‘Bear’ of a workout!

feeble ilg is running high octane on wild Bear Medicine, with my 2nd Bear standoff with a BIG, BEAUTIFUL bronze-tinged Shush (Black Bear in Navajo) on my MTB in the last month.

today, among the flinging colors of the changing Aspens up La Plata Canyon, ilg was an hour-deep in Sacred Sweat and focused Chitta, when this Shush lumbered across the jeep road just 15 meters in front me! just before the Columbine Basin turnoff…Shush heard me pedaling and breathing hard up “Bitch Pitch” a notoriously difficult, rubbly 30% headwall during the nearly 4,000′ vert of climbing climbing toward timberline. ilg was NOT in a position to give CHASE to this bruin as i bewilderingly did a few weeks ago to another Bear…

i shouted to Shush, “Hey, Bear! Om Mani Padme Hung! You are big and beautiful!! HEY!” I waved one arm in the air to try to make my diminutive stature seem somehow bigger…on the steep, loose pitch however i quickly brought my hand down to the handlebar to stay upright..Shush reared up on his hunches to get a better look at feeble ilg, curious about this strange contraption/being invading his beautiful, native territory…that’s when!?!? ilg’s utterance of the Blessed Mantra apparently paid off, for? in attempting to change my gearing under great chain-stress? my chain loudly skipped a gear making what may have sounded like a rifle-shot to Shush and he dropped from his hunches and lunged into the Spruce Forest.

From Mayday, feeble ilg set a lifetime PR podium time today at age 55: 1:29 to the Kennebec Summit and 2:01 RT! would like to say it was the Shush Medicine that helped inspire my time, yet? well, did have a heccuva helpful tailwind on the ascent! Get out and DO so as to BE!