Last September I went on a trip to visit my older brother, Mike, in Cranbrook, BC. Originally I had wanted to go to Las Vegas, in fact, I had given the choice to my brother of Vegas or Cranbrook and to my surprise, he picked Cranbrook.

As it turns out, Cranbrook was a great choice for a week of Mt.Biking. Mountain air, breathtaking scenery, good company and some impressively fast single track, everything was picture perfect until we set out on the first of many climbs. Apparently, a few thousand feet of altitude can change a seemingly gentle winding climb into a lung squeezing, lightheaded, dizzy 'till you want to puke- ascent from hell. I'm no slouch when it comes to climbing - there are more then a few knee buckling trails here on Vancouver Island they just seem a little easier to conquer at sea level.

Our first ride cooked my right shifter pod, shortly after we got started and I ended up spinning the rest of the ride out in a fixed gear. Luckily, the rest of the group didn't mind waiting up for me.

Local Cranbrook shop, Mountain Gear Cycle & Sports, looked after my shifter pod for me - Actually, the owner, Kevin Ostlund, replaced it under warrantee. It's usually the smaller independent shops that'll really look after you. I was expecting the "did you buy that here?" routine and instead he spent some time on the phone for us. Few shops will go very far out of their way to help a guy out, unless there is some money in it for them. If I lived in Cranbrook - this would definitely be my home shop.   Mike, Myself, and Kevin [and my Sled of course]

We rode this little trail next to what used to be a ski hill a couple of times, there are a few fast descents tucked in there.

I found the trails a lot less technical than coastal trails, hardly a root to be found. The singletrack was really well packed, which meant that the average speed was fairly quick for the steepness. You can pretty much go as fast as your fear will let you without worrying , the trails were very predictable. Rolling smooth singletrack is a blast when you're really moving, and you don't take the beating you get from technical root bound trails.

The only wipe out I had .... came off a little bump that once had caused my brother a crash too.There was nothing particular about this bump, just a dirt packed little mogul in the middle of the trail. Who'd have thought that I'd drive across the province to a town I'd never been to, and then ditch it off the little bump that, a year before, Mike lost it on too.

One day after a ride, Mike introduced me to a guy who designs bikes for Rocky Mountain Bicycles. Apparently, he designs the bikes right there at his home and then Rocky Mountain produces them from his prototypes. He had a great machine shop and some really impressive bikes too.

We also went to Banff National Park. What a great place to go see, and maybe bring the bikes. There is this tram that we took to the top of Sulfur Mountain, I can't remember how high it was - but my wife got a nosebleed. Under the tram was this trail, neatly carved switchbacks - but really steep ... if I had the chance, I'd have to ride it .... or at least try.

Banff National Park [Sulfur Mountain Observatory]