Family Fun

Just got back from mammoth and my abs and cheeks are seriously sore from all of the laughter...
The last few years I have always logged ton of time training when we made our trip(s) to Mammoth but this year was a bit diffrent. It was all about enjoying the time with my friends and all I needed was to act like a child and enjoy....


I thought that my "cankle" would be ready to go by the weekend but it was not quite there on Thursday when we drove up so I shuttled Monique and Luke on Rock Creek. This is a pretty technical trail so they suited up with all of the downhill gear they had available. Darth Vader and Princess Leia?


Watching them rip the downhill and just being in that mountain air was enough to get me going. I took along my tri bike for some road rides and ended up riding into Mammoth lakes after the shuttle session was complete. Riding on the road was a little easier on my foot and the ride was better than I could have imagined. Thunder storms brewing in the backdrop of the mountains, ipod blasting in my ears as I rolled up into town on hwy 395 to meet up with friends for four days of adventure. Did I just arrive at paradise on earth?

I am consistently inspired by friends. These girls and guys who (some of them) only ride once or twice a year pulled an all day epic around the mountain on some of the most technical trails. Makes me really think about what our true limits are when we have the motivation and support from people around us...

Riding into the eye of the storm!

Some fun pix of the crew

the dudesthe girlsself explanatoryRyan ripping it up!

We all got tired enough to start the giggles and enjoy some recovery drinks before we headed out on a night hike up the Juniper trail and over to the concert at the brewfest. Let the adventure begin!


This was the first time in about 12 days I had zero issues with my left foot or ankle. After the Juniper trail we headed through the woods just following the music. It was drawing us in.


The group got split in two but we somehow managed to find each other again on "the other side". We made it all the way over to the concert and I was dancing across the golf course on the way over. It felt so good to be able to put pressure on my feet with no issues...

Then... in true Slater style I did it again. After we made it out of the dark and uneven trail...after we were walking in the light, on a flat road I found the ONLY rock in the road and was on the ground before I knew what happened. What happened? I sprained my RIGHT ankle with a big pop. I was in shock and some dude was trying to pick me up off of the floor thinking I had one too many drinks. Limping back on my left foot just flared up the bruise again.

dork

BUT this was not the time or place to feel sorry for myself and I was with the right crowd to keep things in perspective. I took the next day off while the group did a hike and enjoyed some village time with Monique watching the clouds and light rain. Mammoth is beautiful! By night fall the only pain was in my abs and cheeks. I have not laughed that hard in YEARS and it was nonstop for over 3hrs. The Corbot, Tiffany's food, Joisah's sex life and half eaten random sandwich will never sound the same again!

Sunday was Monique and my sixth anniversary and we got a card from everyone...Wow...We didn't even get each other cards or gifts. We feel so blessed to have such a good family of friends. We rolled up some trails in mammy and then I hit the TT for a ride back down to Bishop. The ankles are fine, the mind is better.

Much love...until our trail crosses again my friends.