Burning the midnight oil

Lately, we have been pretty lucky weather wise in Vancouver. Despite the odd shower or two, over the last month we have been blessed with some sunny weather. Sure its February and cold, but this is of little consequence when rain stops and the sun shines. In response to this lovely weather, I have been taking the opportunity to commute to SFU via the trial systems available in Vancouver. Basically, everyday when there is sun, regardless of how cold it is, I hit the trails on my way to SFU. Since I often ride up early in the morning, I often get to catch the sun breaking through the forest as I hit the top of the mountain. Plus trail conditions have been fantastic since, well, the ground is frozen on most days.

About the only drawback is the fact I am often up on campus late, which means a lot of solo night riding for me as well. Oh, sure, I could play it safer and ride on the road, but whatever, my soul belongs to dirt and damn it I am not riding the road unless I am forced.

Riding in the night by yourself on the trails is really something that has to be experienced. Its almost impossible to explain the feeling I get from flying along winding single track in the pitch black and the freezing cold. The sensation is that of complete timelessness. When the forest is quiet and still, you have not choice but to feel at peace and one with your surroundings. On top of this, the bitterly cold we have been having recently(well by West Coast standards), just adds to the overall experience.

When you come properly dressed, there again is a strange peace found in the dark, cold night. This is especially, when you pick up hits of the distant city lights through the forest. Normally, the cold and the dark could be intimidating, but when you see the lights you are reminded of the fact a warm comfortable house waiting for you at the end of your journey. This experience is further accentuated for me as it brings me back to my times in Moab, cruising the desert trails, in the freezing dark guided by the light of the moon.

But the experience here is different than the desert. While lack of a winter forest canopy gives some sense of openness I feel in the desert, I have have to admit I enjoy the barely visible trees whizzing past me the most. It is this surreal feeling, its night so you know you shouldn't be able to ride as fast as in the day. But for some reason, I see everything I need to see and I am not distracted by things objects unimportant to my navigation. I think this focuses you on the task at hand and as a result I feel free to ride the trails as fast as I possibly can. I can't say for certain but I feel that I am faster at night than in the day.

Quite often I even deliberately wait until 10 p.m. or later so that I can ensure that the trails are clear of any human obstacles. Anyone on the trails will have to have their own light sources and as such can be seen from a long way off. This combined with the phenomenal traction provided by the frozen trails provides me with the impetus to ride stupidly fast at night. The whole I time I am in a constant balance between wanting to ride faster, but also realizing that if I mess up and hurt myself I will probably not survive to morning in the bitter cold.

Taken together this provides a strange zen quality to the experience.

The Route

I ride the TransCanada Trail from Vancouver to Burnaby Mountain. I then diverge off the TransCanada trail to take single track up Burnaby Mountain. Usually, I take a couple connector trails which take me off of Hastings and onto Pandora's trail, which I ride to the top. I love taking this trail up and down. On the way up there are a number of Hop ups and logs to challenge your climbing skills. In a good day I never need to put a foot down on any of the obstacles. On the way down the, drops provide some fun air. Again none of this is very technical, making it a good solo night ride.

Advice for Night Time Commuting

• Ride UP the trail you are planning to ride down. This is especially true for trails you are familiar with. I can think of a few times I have gone flying down Pandora's trail to be shocked a fallen tree blocking my path. If I wasn't paying attention. It could have could have ended up in a bad way. These instances happened because I decided to ride up the other side of the Mountain in the morning.
• You can never prevent, "incidences" but you can reduce your risk. If you are riding by yourself and you don't feel like yourself that day, don't do it. You have be in the moment to ensure your safety. If you are distracted that is when you will make mistakes
• Have a backup plan. Extra batteries, and let that someone know where you are.