Sea to Sky 2

Same thing on the menu today, climb until there is too much snow to climb any more. This time I added a little bit more structure to work on the ol Lactate Threshold. The trail I was headed to today is legendary on Vancouver Island. People travel from all over just to ride it, which is funny because your pretty much shit out of luck finding it unless someone shows you where it is, even though its on all the trail maps.

The trail in question is called "Bucket of Blood" and to get an idea of how rough Cumberland was before the Hippies took it over, the original Bucket of Blood was a bar in Cumberland where motorcycle gangs and roughnecks would hang out back in the day. In those days you were pretty much out of sight from the police because they would never come up to Cumberland.

Again, up and up and up I went, even throwing in some hike a bike sections before making it to the sub-alpine lake at the top. The lake was still frozen over, and while I was fumbling with my energy bar it started to snow.


The ride down was great, the boys added some solid bridges since I rode it last, and left the trail feeling great. It was when I rounded the corner on some of the lower trails to put in some more time that I saw it happened again!


More clear cutting. Jesus Christ. The whole former race course was cut and I left the old town feeling super bitter. While I was riding home I realized the difference in vehicles coming in and out of my beloved Cumberland. When I arrived 3 years ago it was mostly old Colts, beat up vans and a lot of Jetta's that were all older than I was. The main population was dirty hippy kids who made it day to day depending on how much pot they sold that day. On the other side of the locals, the town was full of old mining people who stayed after the mines closed. If you look into they're eyes you could still see the coal dust flowing through they're veins.

Now, when I make the hike up to the Cumberland I get passed by Hummers and Escalade's, and 2008 Jettas with $1000 roof racks that have never held a bike or snowboard. The only life the roof rack boxes will see is to hold the soccer moms $3000 golf clubs so they don't get any dirt on the heated leather seats. The same seats that will probably burn the car to the ground when shes at her weekly swingers meeting.

Basically I finished the ride pretty miffed, but still loving the reunion with "The Bucket"