Night owls

I guess this is what happens for those of us at old Town Outfitters when we cant sleep at night, some pace back and forth, others hit the bars, for us it was a trip out on the mountain bike, not important that most people with any sense have laid their bikes to rest many hours ago. Luisa and I climbed up to our favorite day training ride to see what it would be like at night. To our surprise, and most everyone else's we came across, it was equally as amazing to us as it was to everyone we passed. Although to be fair, we probaly had more candle power on our helmets than most have in there homes, enough to freeze a deer, thats is of course if there were anymore left around here. Hope you guys had as nice a night as we did!

Cheers,

Mateo

Rio Lanquin

Hey check it out, I'm in process of sharpening my skills on the river. Who knows maybe this will turn into another great direction for us at Old Town Outfitters. We are hoping to partner up with the lads out in lanquin Alta verapaz to start running some river trips this summer. With a little luck, I'll be able to run as a support kayaker on the trips.

This particular shot is from the ledge drop rapid on the Rio Lanquin. I swam this one the first time around and was able to nail it the second go around.

The Rio Lanquin meets up with the Rio Cahabon just down river from here and thats where the real fun starts. We're starting to run logistics supporting multiday river running expeditions, so if youre a padler let us know and we'll get you out on the river.
Talk to ya soon,
Mateo

Hangin' Out

We rolled down to Escuintla this morning to get some time on the rock. The climbing is pretty stellar, all sport routes about 5.10 but with amazing exposure. Enough so to make your backside pucker just a bit. This route is a spire seemingly precariously perched atop another mass of rock. Toppng out you have huge views back up to the Antigua Altiplano. In the fotos you can see Volcan de Agua in the distance and the sugarcane plantations of the pacific coast. After a few hours down in tropic sun, it was definitely time for a soak and a cold beverage.

River Tracing!

Check it out! In an effort to continue searching out the fresh....we just got back from a weekend trip canyoneering Guatemala's upper Coyolate River. It was a pioneer trip creek walking with a couple rappels mixed in to keep things ineresting. I can assure you we were the first gringos to see the folds and canyons this river has to offer. A 4 hour 4x4 truck ride got us up to the head waters of the river and then a 7 hour slosh through her canyons dropped us by the road side just in time for a cold beer. This canyon is only passable during the driest of the months so we'll have to wait another year to get back in here. This will soon become one of our seasonal favorites for those who like to get as far back into the backcountry as possible. This one even surprised us!

Hey there amigos,
I hope everyone's doing well. We're still kickin' arse and taking names down here. Its Semana Santa craziness time in Guatemala and we're all in full swing. This is the time of year when the Gallo swilling heathens and the sweet lord baby Jesus seem to co-exist in a haze of Churrasco and Copal incense smoke and where religious fervor is rivaled only by the spring break style partying.
Luckily for us here at O.T.O it means we're running full tilt greasing single track all over this great country. Here's a shot of yours truly out at Lake Atitlan a few days ago. It doesn't get much sweeter than this. Thats my office a few days a week and I'm certainly not complaining I didn't get the corner office with a view. We're gearing up for a good fun summer season and even looking to expand/explore a few new rides. Got a hankering for sometime fresh, come hang with us in Antigua and we'll show ya the goods.
See a on the trail,
Mateo
Photo credit Patrice Halley. Visit his site at Patricehalley.com

Taking the dog for a walk

Had a nice time this afternoon taking the pooch for a walk. This normally means a leash and a trip to the park for most. For us however this was a trip up into the hills on a mountain bike with chela doing her best to clog the trail in front of me. I'm not sure why I thought this was going to be 1 a good idea, or 2 fun. But I gave it a go riding the trail with chela on my back. Surprinsingly enough she was able to hang on for quite some way. At any rate, hope you got out this afternoon, even if just to the park.

Hasta luego,

Mateo

Lake Atitlan Slick Rock Trail

Tomorrow our the Mountain Biking crew from Sacred Rides will be joining us for this chunk of Trail. An amazing descent from a trail-head near Solola to Panajachel on beautiful Lake Atitlan. Quite a ride!