I had so much fun at the Cuyuna Lakes Mountain Bike Festival Grand Opening that I had to go to the 2011 Squirrel Fest Mountain Bike Festival, held last weekend in Crosby, MN, primarily organized by MORC member Don MacNaughton (left photo above).
On Saturday, local dirt boss and MORC member Nick Statz (right photo above) led the morning ‘fast’ ride group, mainly through the Yawkey Unit. (See this Silent Sports article featuring Nick: Cuyuna Lakes Reclaimed.) I’d not ridden Yawkey before so I was thrilled when we rode through its fabulous technical area.
I went back later in the afternoon to further explore the technical area of Yawkey and met MORC member Troy Lawrence who showed me how to do it without crashing. Some day when I get a little older…
For dinner, my wife Robbie and I paid a visit to Louie’s Bucket of Bones in the adjacent town of Ironton. We met owner Joyce Hoggarth and her son Louie and of course, feasted on BBQ ribs, as Louie’s is among the top ten BBQ joints in Minnesota according to this article in the July, 2010 issue of Minnesota Monthly.
In the evening, Don MacNaughton organized squirrel sled competition. Here’s his promo for it:
Have more in the tank? Did you drop your nuts? Let’s take it up a notch! Here are some details. Miniature bike, a sled, and the desire to pedal until you puke! Do you have what it takes? Can you pedal longer than your fellow squirrels? Game on!
With the dewpoint nearing 80, I declined but most everyone else punished themselves to the delight of the crowd.
Dave LaChapelle has an album of Squirrel Fest 2011 photos on his Green Body Facebook page.