A few weeks ago 17 riders, 4 coaches and 1 amazing Bell Joy Ride Ambassador arrived in Moab Utah for a weekend of camping and mountain biking!
It all began Friday afternoon with everyone getting checked in and setting up camp. A big shout out to all the ladies making do with the tight quarters of “tent city”. It was cozy! The campsites were small but they had power outlets and there were showers- a MUST for a mountain biking weekend.
The ladies were welcomed with flowers and inspirational signs that said “You Got This”. There was a clothesline hung with personalized clothespins for drying apparel and gear. We wanted each rider to feel like they were meeting their girlfriends to ride. You do not need to bring a friend, we are your MTB girls!
Friday kicked off with skill building in the camping area. Afterwards, everyone climbed aboard the retro vans of Coyote Shuttles to get a taste of the trails at Moab Brand Trails. It was a great moment when the shuttle driver asked for a picture of us since they do not normally shuttle large groups of women.
Three groups set out to ride a green, a blue and a black diamond trail to get a feel for the technical climbing and descending that Moab is famous for. This ride was a coached ride with opportunities for sessioning along the way.
When the ladies returned they were greeted with a Luxury table that held all the essentials like Body Wash, Shampoo, Lotion, Q-tips, Razors, and even Ear Plugs.
Dinner was just right with pulled pork sliders with apricot BBQ sauce, picked red onion on Hawaiian sweet rolls, potato salad with lemon dill vinaigrette, and grilled corn with cilantro butter. Later that evening s’mores came out with plenty of fancy s’mores sticks to go around.
We brought in a chef from Northern California and let’s just say NOTHING beats waking up camping to freshly brewed coffee. Kavanaugh Kitchen you are the BOMB.
Saturday morning was an early morning to catch the shuttles to the famous Porcupine Rim. Fueled by homemade breakfast burritos 22 riders made their own snack packs from the trail mix bar set out along with apples and almond butter. All of us filled up the vans once again to be dropped off at the Kokopelli point right above Lower Porcupine Singletrack. This was as high as we could go with the snow conditions.
The three shreddin’ groups of ladies descended down one of the most breathtaking technical trails in Moab. The views were epic and the stoke was high.
The groups came in one by one to the campsite to be greeted with delicious wraps and quinoa salad. The ladies had a few hours to spare before dinner so shopping and happy hour commenced. We were camping right in town so all the stores were a stroll away. Calf tans and grease were the out on the town look.
After a delicious dinner of pineapple glazed chicken skewers with coconut rice, salad and garlic bread the ladies were surprised with Rider Accolades presented by all the coaches. Each of the coaches were instructed to observe and catalog amazing moments each of the riders had. Whether it be clearing an obstacle that was challenging them or encouraging another rider, we wanted to share it with the group. We presented each rider’s moment and this heartfelt presentation was why all of us work so hard to bring the mountain biking experience to women. We know how hard this is and all of these women deserved the recognition. After hearing their moment each rider received cheers and a bottle of wine courtesy of MTB Experience.
Sunday morning the riders were off after pancakes and bacon to experience the iconic Slick Rock. Slick Rock can be a playground and that is just want the ladies did. They rode, they played, they showed the men on the trail how to do proper roll down lunges and were exhausted by the time lunch rolled around. Over sandwiches and dessert, the ladies shared what they learned and took away from the weekend. We wrap up every event like this. We always enjoy hearing what each rider accomplished and what will stick with them.
Moab is beautiful, breathtaking, luxurious mountain biking fun. It’s even better with an incredible group of badass women.
See you next year!
Jeni
PS After the ride on Saturday the riders were supposed to be greeted with warm towels that had been steamed to wash their faces. I can still remember the look on Paige’s face when I told her I asked Kavanaugh Kitchen to bring a special chafing dish just for these towels. Paige who used to race the country showering in the bike washing station. Well guess who remembered about halfway down Porcupine Rim that she forgot to give them to the caterer?
I am still mad I forgot. Next time THERE WILL BE WARM TOWELS.