THC, Beer, and Moab or..

Work trips are fun. This weekend I closed down the shop to attend the annual Turner Homer Convention in Moab, UT. It's been a yearly thing for awhile now. Dave Turner and company hit the road after the Dirt Demo at Interbike. He brings his demo fleet for Turner Homers from all over to come and ride with the man himself. For an event like this, I knew a stop was in order prior to leaving Lyons.
I had free reign to grab what I needed of the Festival Beer to take down to the boys in Moab. Can anyone spot where the case of Gordon's was in the pallet?
That's a lot of beer for that tailpipe draggin' hoopty.
I made it to Moab safely and in good time and found a good spot to claim off of Sand Flats Road right by the Slickrock Trail parking lot. It was windy at night, but I awoke to a calm and beautiful daybreak. We met at Slickrock Cycles to meet the shuttle. And shuttle we did. We drove about 45 minutes high into the flanks of the LaSal Mountains.
The ride started off on the roller coaster that is Hazard County. I looked hard, but did not see Roscoe or Boss Hog.
We descended, descended, and descended some more. The views of Castle Valley never dissapoint.
Lunch was had. I was the only person at lunch to style it out with a cold Dale's Pale Ale and a big ol' burrito. Lucky me.
more desert beauty.

Porcupine Rim has no shortage of drop offs.
and hip jumps.
Christina, Dave Turner's wife, was rockin'.
So was Barny. It's hard to tell, but she has a super cool silver flame paint job on her Turner.
Near the bottom of the Porc singletrack, Dave Turner sets it up for a sweet pass on the almighty El Chingon.

That's it for the ride pics on Porcupine Rim. We rode back into town to get back to our cars at Slickrock Cycles. Since it was only 2:30 or so, we still had plenty of time to kill before meeting up for our cookout at 6pm. I went back to camp to get some rest. On the way, I saw this and absolutely had to take a picture. For those that don't know the area, right west of Slickrock is a jeep trail called Hell's Revenge. You know, it's gnarly, steep, all that good stuff. I laughed out loud when I witnessed this Ford family wagon stopped on the middle of "Baby Lion's Back." The best part was the 4 wheeler and the Jeeper at the top getting pissed off at this guy. More power to him, I say. I would've stopped to get out and take a pic, too!
As it turns out, I wasn't in a restful mood. Since the Slickrock trail was literally across the road from camp, I suited up and headed out for a late day Saturday stroll. I rode the practice loop then out and back on part of Slickrock. I got bored with the same old trail so I freestyled it a little bit. It was just what the Dr ordered for a good first day of riding in Moab. The Turner Sultan 29er was just the ticket, too.
It's slickrock, but the line is evident.
More desert beauty.

The cookout later was a blast. Lots of fine folks, food, and Oskar Blues Beverages made for a good time. I would've liked to give away more beer, but the very large crew that made it up from St George were all devout Mormons and shied away from the beer. That left more for us! I was so tired afterward, I think I was crashed out in my tent by 9:30. It was quite the satisfying day.