2015: A Year of Ups & Downs

As 2015 draws to a close, I'm feeling a mix of emotions towards it. There were many high points during the year that I'm thankful to have enjoyed. There were however, a few injuries and associated costs that I'll be more than willing to put behind me. I look forward to what 2016 has to offer. For now, here's a snapshot of the highs & lows of 2015.

Kicked off the year in style with a 103 mile spin in the McDowell's / Brown's Ranch area.

New trails were popping up at Gold Canyon.

The annual AZT Jamboree!!

Slept on the trail during the AES Gila100.

Checked out some new trails out at Estrella...in the fog!

Showed Mr. Morris around the Gold Canyon trails.

Took part in the SSAZ shenanigans.

4 day Queen's Ransom route changed my 2015.

Took a much needed vacation to Savannah, GA.

Found some new dirt at Brown's Ranch.

Picketpost to Kelvin via Ripsey weekend confirmed my wrist fears.

My buddy, Mark, got hitched and had the coolest groom's cake ever!

One last ride on the BCT before wrist surgery.

Post-op complete with new hardware. No riding for 2 months.

While I was recovering from a fractured wrist, I did some hiking. A few hikes that were very humbling.

AZT: Passage #1 hike.

Watched some friends give the AZT300/750 a go.

Did a big hike in the Grand Canyon.

By mid-May I was ready to get back on the bike.

Spent a weekend riding in Flagstaff & Sedona.

It was so good, I did it again.

It felt good to do some local exploring.

My niece came out for a visit and we ran her all over Arizona.

Jeff, Nancy & I did an overnight bikepacking ride from Flagstaff to the South Rim.

Met some friends in Vegas for a fun weekend.

Total beatdown on the Prescott Circle Trail.

Roadtrip! HIt some iconic rides in Moab, UT, Fruita, Breckenridge & Salida, CO.

Discovered some rough riding in Pine.

Finally took the dirt road up Mt. Lemmon.

Knocked out a bucket list hike: Rim-to-rim in the Grand Canyon.

Fire on the Rim weekend.

Had a cool opportunity to talk about mountain biking the AZT at REI.

BeerDuro series is alive and well!

Took three tries, but I finally completed a long ride along the Highline trail.

Scored some tickets to check out a game at Lambeau Field.

Plenty of local spins too.

A few years in the making, but it paid off on a 3-day loop on the Mogollon Rim.

Demo day on a fatbike.

Took a co-worker up to the BCT for his first time.

AES Kentucky Camp 46.

Rode my last bike legal portion of the AZT in Temporal Gulch.

Slapped together a post on mountain biking all the bike legal portions of the Arizona Trail.

Put a 100+ mile loop together from my front door.

AES: Picketpost Punisher A Course.

Enjoyed the final Flight of the Pigs ride. v.XX.

Spent a weekend riding in Kingman & Lake Havasu.

Spent NYE down on Casa Grande Mtn with some friends. Great way to end 2015.

Cool graphic from VeloViewer showing my 2015 stats from Strava.

Here's to an even better 2016!! Ride on.

Homebrew Sealant

UPDATE: I modified the below recipe a couple months ago based on a Tucson friend's 7 year experience. I've now used up my first batch and can say I agree. Simple is better. So, here you go:

Mix 3 parts water to 1 part latex mold builder. Same as I use below. That's it. Still makes 64oz of sealant at a fraction the popular brands cost. Don't forget to look for a Michael's coupon for the latex.

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I've been running a tubeless setup for about 5 years now and its worked very well for me. About 3 years ago I switched to a homebrew sealant modification I found online. I had been using Stan's sealant very successfully, but that stuff can be expensive.

Quite a few people have asked me about the homebrew, so I figured I'd put it here for future reference. It's really quite simple, works just as good as Stan's for about 1/3 the cost.

Keep in mind, I'm re-using my 16oz black Stan's bottle & a few of the 2oz Stan's bottles for ease of use.

First thing you'll need are a few supplies. I splurged at the Dollar store.

Broke the bank with $3 worth of supplies.

• 64oz container with a large mouth opening.
• Funnels
• Measuring cup
• Paint stick

Here are the ingredients:

3 ingredients.

• 1 16oz bottle of Slime sealant
• 1 16oz container of Latex Mold Builder
• 1 Gallon 50/50 anti-freeze (You'll use 32oz for a batch)

Most bike shops, REI, sporting goods stores will carry the Slime. Obviously, any auto parts store for the anti-freeze and Michaels craft stores for the Latex Mold Builder.

Plenty of these available too, check the weekly circular for 40-50% off coupons.

Combine the 16oz Slime, 16oz Latex Mold Builder and 32oz of anti-freeze in the 64oz container. I use a bit of the anti-freeze swished around in the Slime & Latex containers to get as much of the material out as possible. Mix well. DONE.

In goes the Slime.

I mixed some of the anti-freeze, then added the latex.

64oz of fresh sealant ready to go.

Transfer it to a more usable container.

Store in a cool dark place and it will stay liquid for months. I've had it sit around for almost a year without issue. Use a scoop & funnel to transfer it to an easier to use bottle.

A batch of sealant typically lasts me about a year. There are plenty of homebrew variations out on the interwebs, this just happens to be one I found and have use with great results over the past couple of years.