Man of the turtles

Sorry Minni's - we didn't get the results up today, but they'll be there tomorrow - I promise. I need to get a ride in myself - I'm sure you all understand. In the meantime, if you want to read the tale of the winners, it's here.

This AM I got an email about the opening of the Picture Rock Trail in Lyons, CO. It's been a trail long in the making and it connects two of Boulder County's best trails: Hall and Heil. So I went to the 'ribbon cutting'. Kinda crazy - yesterday I was in MPLS with 500 new friends - and today back in Boulder. I tell you - air travel is something special.

So...I check out this trail opening and I see something I didn't expect...protesters.
It seems there are lots of NIMBY's (not in my back yard) in Lyons. They are protesting a parking lot for the trailhead. They think that the traffic from the trail would disrupt their peaceful way of life. Not to mention all the unruly, smelly, stoner, loud mountain bikers it would attract. Guess what? It wouldn't - I'm sure of it. But they want to speak their mind and they are very vocal about it. It's their right - but they are idiots, if you ask me.

Then - along with about 200 others, I hit the trail for the 1st time. Riding a new trail is like a surfer riding a new wave. A totally new soulful experience. And today, I took in some sweet new trail in my backyard. 5.5 miles - plus a super cool bonus climb that I inadvertantly found.
Here's the actual "Ribbon". It was cut and the trail was officially open. Some cross country runners took off first, then the bikes, then the horse ran past the bikes, then the bikes rode past everybody.
This is "MTB Mike" - he heads up the Boulder Mountain Bike Alliance and he's largely responsible for making the trail opening happen. He's a jolly fellow who lives my the motto 'The world is run by those that show up" - we hear you Mike.
Here's some of the trail. There are many cool sections with substantial bridges, supports and banked turns. I'm going to be on this trail a lot.
More tasty trail...
This is John - we found the 'bonus climb', which ended at a locked gate. The cool thing about bonus climbs is that they can quickly turn in to 'bonus downhills'.
...and at the end of the trail was a rainbow. How appropriate.
And this leads me to the title of this post. On the ride home I found ANOTHER turtle in the middle of the road. I had to close my eyes as a car passed - nearly missing the little guy.
This is the 2nd turtle I've saved in 1 week. What's kinda funny is that the last TV news show we were on read this blog and was going to introduce me as "This is Josh Kravetz - he saved a turtle on his way to Minneapolis". They said it was attention getting and that it would draw in the audience. I was like "Uh...that's kind random and it really has nothing to do with the Urban Assault Ride". Then they were like 'ok - can you come out and do some tricks on your bike instead?' I said no - I'm not that kind of guy and offered Hans and Jackie to ride runt bikes while their TV personalities raced big wheels. But NOW - I see they might have been on to something. I've been saving turtles right and left these days. Soon, the UAR will benefit non-profits that save turtles. Forget this whole bike thing. When you think UAR, you'll think turtles. Or..something like that. Any way I laid my bike by the side of the road, ducked below a barbed wire fence and set this read-eared slider free in this lake.
Good luck little turtle. MPLS UAR racers - sorry I didn't get the results up today - I was preserving our wildlife.