WORD starts riding (finally).

On the road baby! We loaded up the WORD Crusier and have hit the road. First stop Sedona and meeting up with the guys from Over the Edge. Ash is friends with one of the owners (Raney), so we were lucky enough to get a few great guided tours.

If you haven’t heard, Sedona is home of red rocks, hippies, Pink Jeep tours and the infamous Vortex. We asked our good friend Lauren about where we would find these places of spiritual enlightenment. She said “just make your own and feel it”. Raney and Lauren took us to all their favourite spots including Gun Slinger, Lizard Head, Chuckwagon, SlimShady, Highline and Baldwin. Most trails were rocky with pretty technical climbs (lots of little step-ups).

One of the days local riders Lars and Jason (another owner at OTE) took us on the classic Hangover trail. The night before we were warned that this is one of the most difficult trails in Sedona. Our friend Rob (tagging along from New Zealand for a few days) decided that the ride might not be his cup of tea. His plan? Run the nine-mile loop instead.

So slightly nervous but pretty excited we met up with the guys for the ride. After a 4WD climb in 35 degree heat we rode (with Rob running alongside) up some amazing rock formations. There might have been a bit of hike-a-biking from us Kiwis, but the locals were making it look easy. After a few ‘this is crazy’ moments, we managed to get a bit of flow on for the technical descents. The trail was like a bigger, badder version of Deliverance, only on a cliff where if you make a mistake death is 95% likely. Yeah we’re pretty badass.

We said goodbye to Sedona and headed through the beautiful Oak Creek Canyon to Flagstaff. Ash spent some time in this cute little college town so it was no suprise that she bumped into an old friend while wandering the shops. Bobby was keen to guide us around the trails so we went on a fun ride the following day. It was a bit of a climb (lungs burning; we blamed elevation), but we were rewarded with an amazing descent down Little Bear and the back of Humphreys Peak.

Other fun things of Flagstaff included the Skyride (okay it’s a chairlift in the summer; no bikes allowed, wah wah), a hike with a spectacular swimming hole, and finally burritos at a local softball game.

So for the next few days we’re giving our bikes a wee rest as we head to our next adventure, the Grand Canyon!