Today I celebrate my One Year Anniversary of Mountain Biking. To mark the occasion, I rode the first trail that I rode, one year ago on this date -- Mentryville, Odeen #1, an old oil well road. My mountain biking "career" by the numbers: 108,423 feet climbed 37,740 calories burned (est. ) 914.3 miles ridden 170 BPM max heart rate 97 rides 80.8 hours moving time 61 years & 8 months old when I started riding 60 BPM minimum heart rate 33 falls 30+ glares and/or begrudgingly returned "good mornings" from hikers Too many hematomas, bruises and scrapes 4-5 times I wondered if I was going to have to take a dump in the woods 2 sprained ribs 1 encounter with a space-time continuum disruption 1 smashed brand new iPhone 8 Plus without AppleCare 0 times I actually had to take a dump in the woods 0 snake bites 0 rashes from poisonous plants I'm certainly not proud of 33 falls. Most happened at very low speed. It seems I have shit for balance. The 33 falls include what I call "unintentional dismounts," where I didn't even come off of the bike and often just rolled over into some bushes. About a half dozen were proper crashes at speed that actually caused pain. I have learned the proper techniques to deal with most of the causes of my falls (I am improving!) This is the first "sport" I have ever engaged in (willingly), and oddly I am in love with it. Something about the challenge, excitement and danger is alluring. But getting out into the mountains with no one around is the main draw. Especially at dawn. It's sort of a magical hour. I've always dug the mountains. One of the things about my native Texas is it is, for the most part, FLAT. Some people love the beaches. Frankly, I couldn't care less about looking at a featureless horizon of water. Living in So Cal, the mountains are all around me, especially in Santa Clarita where I'm literally (no, literally!! -- not millennial's "literally") at the foot of two mountain ranges -- the San Gabriel's and the Santa Susanna's. And up until one year ago, I had never set foot in them. If it were not for eBikes, I still would not have set foot (or tire) in them.