Outside Features

It's that time of year. Soon we'll be seeing witches, ghouls, Michael Jacksons and Farrah Fawcetts lurking all over the neighborhood. A black cat has already found its way into the crawl space under my house. It's not just crossing my path, but living under my path – which explains the cursed condition of my life right now. Plus, Mercury went retrograde and I have Uranus in my sign, opposite Saturn in Virgo. I don't know exactly what that means, but apparently it's not good.
When life feels bedeviling, the only thing to do is have fun with it. So, here are some light-hearted outdoor events to put on your race calendar.

High-elevation camping in a January snowstorm isn't most people's idea of a good time, but Chris Justema didn't get that memo.
A self-confessed ski bum who happens to oversee a successful group of brew pubs and restaurants in Central Oregon, Justema is a fixture at Mt. Bachelor, logging some 75 days on the hill last year by his own estimate. Though he jokingly confesses that it's a sliding number; it goes up or down depending on who is asking. Family or business partners? The number slips downward. Fellow tele-addicts? The number might inch up a bit.

The last couple years have been changing times for Mt. Bachelor with a shift in the management team to kick off last year and then big price changes again this off-season. This year has seen other shifts for our local mountain, so here's a rundown of the changes you'll see on the hill:

Telecommuters Rejoice
There's nothing more jealousy enducing on a powerdy January morning than being stuck at your desk and reading e-mails sent from the chairlift via your telecommuting friend's Blackberry. Now, those mobile workers can spend whole days on the slopes thanks to Bachelor's new partnership with BendBroadband that brings WiFi to its lodges. Crank out a few runs, then in turn crank out a PowerPoint presentation or a spreadsheet or whatever it is you business folks do.

I'm sure somebody will lambaste me for not being hardcore enough, but the cold, rainy weather we are in store for this week makes me want to embrace my inner couch potato and throw a log in the fireplace. This is a great time of year to overhaul your bikes, grind your skis, go to the movies or just get under the down comforter with a good book.
SKI FLICK SEASON
Shorter days. Cooler temperatures. Fall colors. All signs of the changing season. None more so, though, than a proliferation of ski flicks. Last week it was big mountain skiing movie The Edge of Never at the Tower followed by the Powderwhore movie Flakes at McMenamins. If that wasn't enough movie watching, we had BendFilm all over Central Oregon the rest of the week. Personally, I'm not ready for winter yet, so the film I caught was The Women and the Waves, a documentary about women's surfing pioneers. One of my favorite quotes: “When someone said 'You surf like a girl' it used to be an insult. Now it's a compliment.”

Last weekend I was skinny dipping in a gorgeous alpine lake and this weekend I awoke to gigantic snowflakes blanketing town. It's that charming schizophrenia that makes Bend such a special place to live. Many of us moved here for the sun and the snow and the recreational opportunities they afford. But this week, especially, I was reminded why I stay. It's the people. That probably sounds trite, but the next time you're seeking inspiration, just look next to you.
CALL IT “UP” SYNDROME
I met Karen Gaffney at a luncheon last week. Karen lives in Portland, but she was in Bend to connect with friends and share her story. Karen Gaffney, all 4 feet 10 inches and 95 pounds of her, has swum the English Channel. Fewer people have swum the 21 miles of 60-degree water from England to France than have climbed Mount Everest. By the way, English Channel etiquette calls for no wetsuits. Those crazy Brits! Karen accomplished the feat in 2001 on a relay team of 14 Oregonians, which included Bendites Mike Tennant, Laura Schob, Tom Landis and Sara Quan. They completed the swim in 14 hours and 11 minutes.

It's Monday morning and I'm sitting at my computer. According to Doug Weber, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Pendleton, “For the whole area, today is going to be the last nice day in the current forecast.” The equinox came and went last week, daylight is waning, and it could be snowing in Bend when you read this. Youch. Time to move to the southern hemisphere… or turn to drugs.
Somehow the conversation turned to drugs at the Bend Roots Revival last Friday night. I know no one will believe me, but I've never dropped acid, snorted anything up my nose or even smoked pot. OK, I did puff on a joint once a long time ago, but I didn't actually inhale. Instead, these are my recreational drugs of choice:

What are you doing this weekend? If you've got random plans to do nothing, I've got an incredibly convincing argument for you to consider a Work Party. Sure, you could enjoy a Staycation eating jumbo shrimp, drinking dry martinis and watching reality TV. I am hopelessly optimistic that you will find a Work Party to be an oddly appropriate way to spend your time. Work Parties are serious fun. Not to mention that they're wonderful opportunities to give back to the trails you love.

My first hut-to-hut mountain biking trip was 18 years ago in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado and the La Sals of eastern Utah. The seven-day, six-night, 215-mile trip from Telluride to Moab stuck in my mind as one of my best adventures ever. But, I hate to do the same thing twice, so I never returned. That is until two years ago, when the San Juan Hut System (www.sanjuanhuts.com) opened up a second route from Durango to Moab. As soon as I learned about that, I signed up and recruited a game group of friends from Bend, Hood River, Ashland and Taiwan.
San Juan Hut Systems' slogan is “Adventure Without the Weight.” They provide route directions, food and accommodations for do-it-yourself kind of people. Each hut is equipped with food, water, propane cook stove, cookware, and bunks and sleeping bags for eight people, so all you really need to lug along are some small panniers with clothes, a sleeping bag liner and personal items you can't live without. The routes follow mostly dirt roads from the high alpine tundra of the San Juan Mountains to the canyon country and desert slick rock of Utah.

Alas, summer is coming to an end. The signs are all here – the kids are back in school, the floaters have dwindled and cyclocross season has kicked off.

If you're up for it, consider taking on these events.

SUNRISE TO SUMMIT
On Saturday September 5, the 12th Annual Sunrise to Summit starts at 10:30am from Sunrise Lodge at Mt. Bachelor. Run three miles from the lodge up Marshmallow to the top of Sunrise Chair and then follow the trail up to the Summit. Total elevation gain is 2,595 feet.
The event also includes the Bend to Bachelor Duathlon/Relay that starts at 9:30am at the Seven Peaks Elementary School. Cycle 20 miles from the school to Sunrise Lodge and then run to the summit, either individually or as a relay team.
New this year is the Mt. Bachelor Hill Climb Time Trial that starts at the Seven Peaks School at 10:00am and ends at the Sunrise Lodge parking lot. It is an OBRA sanctioned event with a time trial format with starts at 30-second intervals. Total elevation gain is 2,770 feet.
For more information, visit www.mbsef.org/events/sunrise2summit.