Burandt's Backcountry Adventure

[snopro]

Coolest thing about riding up here is the old mining infrastructure that comes out of nowhere. Way different from Canada. I would love to take an American tree hugger through the lower 48, where "wilderness" really doesn't exist, and then show them Canada, where 15 minutes off a major highway we can show you places that are still unspoiled.

By the way - did I ever tell you I hate neauvo hippy, tree huggers?

Before sledding Saturday, I head off to a little coffee shop to have a caffeine injection (coffee is not one of Bev's strong points ) Of course, I pick the place in town full of Columbia wearing, dreadlock sporting, granola crunching wilderness poseurs. All wearing headbands. Damn - it looked like "townie" place. I walk in wearing a Klim ballcap and a "I use trees for traction T-shirt". First giveaway is the smell. Don't these people ever bathe? My grandfather fought on the front lines in WWII in Europe, and I am sure he took more baths in a week during that tour than these people take in a month. And why wear all the wool? There is a reason you don't go near sheep in a rainstorm.

As I sit down after ordering coffee from what would otherwise be an attractive girl, except for the dreads and the 6 facial percings, one of the hoard just can't resist. "Are you a snowmobiler?" ""Yes I am. What gave it away, my devilish good looks or debonair charm?" His girlfirend giggles, and of course this makes Mr. Nature Boy pissed off . The war of words begins. Suffice it to say - not my best effort at trying to win over a room. But once Naure Boy realizes he came to a battle of wits unarmed, he skulks away flipping me the bird as he leaves and slams the door. Guess he did not figure a sledder would know words that were bigger than 3 syllables. Too bad, his girlfriend was really cute and I was just starting to enjoy myself....



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It's not the age, it's the mileage........

So whats the deal with the leaning cabin?

 

[barefooter]

These were elk tracks. When I was playing around alone on Saturday I looked up and two decent bulls trotted by unconcerned about 20 yards above me. Damn iPhone could note take a decent action shot if your life depended on it


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It's not the age, it's the mileage........

 

[barefooter]

Few shots of the interior of the lodge, pool table and living room from the upper balcony.

Place is great. Few tips. Lodge is about 15 minutes from Buena Vista. If you are gonna fly down and have Chris (actually his Uncle Buck) pick you up, best book Buck for a night to take you down. Or talk nice to Sahen or Ryan. There are no taxis in Buena Vista and the lodge is 15 minutes out of town. You will have to buy Sahen and Ryan drinks if you take them out, and they are not cheap drunks.

The one think I didn't show was the bedrooms. The lodge is a private residence. It has two unbelievable master suites with king beds, Jacuzzi tubs, and the like. Then there are two other bedrooms with a few single beds in them and that have a separate bathroom and then the downstairs is basically a bunkhouse. 6 beds and one bathroom.

If you can - pay the extra for the king suite. Especially if you are old like me. Since I was on the friends and family plan, sleeping on one of the single beds for more than one night gets old, quick. I like my own bathroom, and turning out my light when I want.

If Chris doesn't have room, there is a decent Best Western in Buena Vista. As an alternative, The Mt. Princeton Hot Springs Resort and Spa is about 15 minutes out of town, and it is fantastic. Great food and rooms. You can go into the river and it is heated by hot springs!! Really cool. A full spa and you drive by it every day to the trailhead.

Imagine the difference in these two approaches with the significant other.

Approach #1: Honey, I want to go to Colorado to go sledding with Chris Burandt. Bye.

Approach #2: Honey, I just found this charming little spa in Colorado we could go to! Look - hot springs, near some chic little ski towns for shopping and they have a world class spa! And so I don't cramp your style during the day, I could just take off to do a little exploring on the snowmobile.....



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It's not the age, it's the mileage........

 

[barefooter]

Self medication. Only in Colorado can you get ammunition, cold medication and liquor in the same store. Mix all three, and you are in for a hell of a New Years's.



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It's not the age, it's the mileage........

 

[barefooter]

Wake up to this on Sunday. 8 inches of new snow and bluebird skies. After the previous night of Ny-Quil shots and red wine, I am feeling wayyyyyy better.

Ride with Sahen and Ryan today. I like Chris a lot, we have actually become pretty good buds. But I love riding with Sahen. He is always ready to try something stupid, and I generally learn something from it. As my dad always said: "Making good choices comes with experience. You don't get experience until you have made a bunch of poor choices".

The key is to have someone else make those poor choices, and that is why it is fun having Sahen around.

Ryan is the quiet guy. He doesn't talk much until you get to know him. Then, when he does talk, it is always a great zinger. He is the chief mechanic for the operation, and so he is THE guy to know. You will break something riding here. He is also the most unassuming rider. Sahen is way more flashy. Ryan is just always there. Like a ghost. Sunday I was feeling so much better, and getting a better feel for the sled too, so I was getting stuck in some hellacious places (for me). Braap, braap Ryan would just putter up, no fuss and get me unstuck. Then just putter away. I would look at his line and figure "How the hell did he do that?"

A couple of times I was digging myself out on the side of some tree-infested piece of real estate and I turned around and Ryan was there. Scared the hell out of me. He is like a snowmobile ninja.



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It's not the age, it's the mileage........

 

[barefooter]

Couple of pictures of Chris's retail shop. New one this year right is beside the shop. Real handy for spending $$ before you ride. It is where you also get to load up up food before the day's ride. Chris supplies all the food and the Hotdoggers, snacks and water and Monster drinks. By day 3, I was surviving on Monster and water

The gorgeous girl behind the till is Ashley. She is in charge of separating you from your $ when you first come in. It should be like MacDonald's:

"I'll take Combo #1: Bars, brake lever and skis. No, no - Make it Combo #2: Front bumper and A-Arms! Who am I kidding - make it both".

With these guys you are riding hard, trying new stuff on wicked terrain. You will break something. If you ride Polaris, Chris has you covered. They have everything. There is an Arctic Cat dealer in town. Skidoo dealers in Leadville (see below) or Saladia which is about 1 hour away. If you are driving down, take some spare parts.

The great thing is I have been there when Sahen and Ryan have worked all night to get a guy's sled going again. Or have set-up somebody's sled properly before they head out for the day




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It's not the age, it's the mileage........

 

[StewartsDragon]

Good write up. Its good to hear and see so much information regarding The Back Country Adventure.

 

[barefooter]

Sunday was a great group of people. Jennifer and Sheena were from Revy. Those two girls could ride extremely well. And a young guy Mike from Colorado. Fresh snow and a beautiful bluebird day.

Sahen and Ryan got us totally lost. Found some great snow, but we were 2 drainages over from where we thought we were. Stuck in trees, stuck in the flats, stuck everywhere. We had to end the day with a straight pull out a chute, which was full of downed logs and willows. Talk about a yard sale. Everyone got stuck it all over.

The willows were wierd. Most bunches you could blast right through. The odd bunch grabbed you and hung on. I thought I was styling on the new turbo until about 30 yards from the top of the chute. Hit a log, pool-balled into a willow bunch and got stopped cold. Perfect indent in the snow of my head and arms as I went over the bars.


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It's not the age, it's the mileage........

 

[barefooter]

Ok. I was going to post a few stuck pics. I quickly started to realize that they were getting redundant. Greg stuck between two trees. Greg stuck in a treewell. Greg riding halfway up a tree and getting stuck in the tree. Greg getting pinned in creekbed between two logs with the sled on top of him. Etc. Etc. Etc. Just all in a day's work.

So I decided to post my only moment of glory. Took this little line through the trees, which ended in a left hand sidehill that got steep fast. Turbo barely pulled it, but I made it. Ryan and Sahen both follow and GET STUCK THEMSELVES. Ryan is in trees to the left, and that is Sahen digging himself out. Hehe...

Does not matter that they were riding stockers, were hungover from the night before, both were getting over massive colds, etc. What only matters is that once in a while the old guy catches a break. If you spend enough money and have enough single minded purpose (my wife refers to it as an obsession), once in a while you can lay a licking on youth and talent.


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It's not the age, it's the mileage........

 

[barefooter]

On the way home on Monday, drove through Leadville. Old mining town, really cool.

The Silver Dollar Saloon was built in 1879. The bar in there still has bullet holes from gunfights in the good old days....

No headbands in that place. Everyone is wearing ballcaps and flannel when I stop in there for breakfast. Thank god. But they look at the Subaru Hybrid a little funny.......

Last time we were at Chris's , my buddy and I went up here to the saloon for a night. Beer was $2. Burgers were great.




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It's not the age, it's the mileage........

 

[barefooter]

Pretty uneventful flight back. Scored first class upgrade for $39, which actually cost less than having to check two bags. Sweet!!

First bag comes out right away. Second bag is taking forever. I sneak off in between to visit facilities and come back to this. Although this little bugger is cute - he is not the guy you want to see sitting on your bags at the airport

I am sure I was looking at the CBS officer with a bewildered "What the hell?" expression. She just laughs and says "Just messing with you". Sphincter relaxes and she tells me her supervisor put her up to it. I do a lot of work with Customs, and know her supervisor well. He saw me come in and thought it would be a great joke.....

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It's not the age, it's the mileage........

 

[barefooter]

So that is about it. Anyone has questions, I would be more than happy to answer.

Biggest difference in comparison to my last trip down was that last time - I rented a Pro from Chris and was riding Skidoos. So of the three days I was there for my first trip, two were getting used to a new sled.

This time, having my own sled with me made a huge difference. Plus all the set-up tips I got from Chris and Ryan were gold.

Two other things. I got into good shape for the trip, but the cold I got just before I left killed me. The altitude got the best of me and just drained me. Most of the people at the lodge said the same thing - the first day they were wiped. Get in shape, and drink lots of water when you get there.

Like here, Feb and March are the big snow months. This was the second time I went down at the same time, and snow still wasn't as deep as I would have liked.

 

[snopro]

I have been to Colorado riding 4 times and never have seen the snow that we get up here in our riding area's. Hard to believe you would see dirt on 11000 ft groomed trail in late Feb? The altitude does get you though doesn't it? Any headaches in the middle of the night?

 

[powderhoundbrr]

Nice work being a fine Canadian ambassador at the coffee shop.

 

[Braddock54]

Thanks for sharing barefooter, great info. Would love to get down there at some point.

 

[barefooter]

Yeah why were you such a jerk to the dudes in the coffee shop because they were a little different than you and didn't really seem to be doing anything wrong? So what if they had dreads and smelled like patchouli?

Does that make them bad people? Thanks for being a true Canadian ambassador........

And to think I get it trouble here making assumptions (usually correct) about people with a certain colour of license plate.....I take it back maybe stereotyping people does work.

You British Columbia boys really have to stop with the inferiority complex. You are all good people. By God's good grace you will all be able to move to Alberta someday.

Hmmmmm. That is what I love about the internet. Gives you the ability to bash someone, without knowing the circumstances, with no real repercussions. That was sarcasm by the way. Just so you are aware.

The message that I was trying to convey, although I believe the subtlety was lost on you, is that I was made to feel "different" by these people because of what I was dressed in, and the winter recreational pursuit that I happen to partake in and enjoy. Of course, because of this my feelings were hurt. Instead of having to take a 3 day stress leave from work over it, I just made a joke about it.

I don't need a psuedo-poser "backwoods" environmentalist busting my chops first thing in the morning over coffee. I try to make a joke with an azzhat, and he goes off on me for raping the wilderness. Had a Bronx accent too. Likely moved out there last month.

So, I also don't need a self-righteous British Columbier calling me out either for no damn reason. If you feel that you have to show your superiority, bring it on. Else - PM me an keep it offline buddy

 

[barefooter]

I have been to Colorado riding 4 times and never have seen the snow that we get up here in our riding area's. Hard to believe you would see dirt on 11000 ft groomed trail in late Feb? The altitude does get you though doesn't it? Any headaches in the middle of the night?

First day, even though I was drinking a bottle of water an hour, woke up at 2am with a pounding headache. You could say SnoPro.

Kinda cool going someplace different, to make you appreciate what we have here. After this trip, I really want to go north in Colorado to try Steamboat or Rabbit Ears. But, snow is always hit and miss anywhere you go. Talking to everyone else that was there, Wyoming and Montana sound great too. I got some good leads from Ryan and Sahen. But they all talk about wanting to come north to Revy. Guess you never appreciate fully what is in your own backyard.

I did not really go there for the snow. I went to ride with Chris and Sahen and get a feel for what they are teaching. I have learned a heck of a lot from Rene over the years, and do every time I ride with him. And one of these days I am going to try Karl Kuster's. Sahen has said he is a great guy and an amazing rider as well. What is cool is that there are now a bunch of places that you can go to learn if you are so inclined.

 

[SledMamma]

Awesome thread! My husband won a trip via the ProRMK King Contest and leaves January 9th... any tips on how to handle the elevation change?

 

[snopro]

Awesome thread! My husband won a trip via the ProRMK King Contest and leaves January 9th... any tips on how to handle the elevation change?

Tell him to take a couple Tylenol's before he goes to bed 'mama. Seemed to work for me keeping the headaches at bay.

 

[Kyle91rs]

Awesome thread! My husband won a trip via the ProRMK King Contest and leaves January 9th... any tips on how to handle the elevation change?

I figure the best way would be to give me his ticket and I'll go suffer thru the headaches for him ahhaha