The lesson from the rattler

The Gazette reported today that a local district court judge was bit by a rattle snake while riding the popular, and fairly burly trails in Ute Valley Park. He put down his foot to walk up a tough section and bam!, bitten by a snake. No rattle, no warning, nothing. His leg is now swollen to twice the normal size.

The obvious lesson we can learn from the rattler, it's important to clean Ute Valley's trails. I don't mean clean them of all snakes, St. Patrick-style. I mean, clean in the mountain bike sense: ride the whole ride without ever taking a foot out of the pedal. Easier said than done. The rocks are big. The drops are too. I've never cleaned it.