11 Things I Loved in 2023 - Alicia Leggett

Man, this year went in a lot of directions. Some high highs and low lows, starting the year in brain injury rehab, returning part-time to Pinkbike and the great crew here, experiencing some amazing outdoor adventures, and all sorts of things in between. Here's a scattered list of some of the things that made my 2023 a little brighter. Maybe they'll make you smile too.

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My town bike

Sorry Kaz, you don't get the only one with your commuter on your Things I Loved list, though yours looks sweet too.

I've always loved this SE Draft, but now more than ever. It's simple. It's trustworthy. Nothing about it is especially practical and I love it for that. The bars are a special kind of narrow. I first got it a few years ago, when some friends moved away from Missoula, MT, where I lived at the time, and were giving some things away. They happened to give a commuter to a buddy of mine, who then had two commuters, so then passed one on to me. It made sense: I'd recently cracked the frame of mine. Then, when I had this new one, I gave mine to the local bike co-op to use the good parts still hanging from it. It felt like a decent line of bike-giving.


This year, the bike had to find its way back to me in Bellingham from a tiny town, far from bike shop anything, in rural Utah. A series of roughly four friends passed it along until it arrived back to me, safe and sound. I love it. Bellingham is mostly flat, so the singlespeed setup makes lots of sense. That wooden crate, I found behind Trader Joe's and updated just a bit before zip-tying it to the rack connecting it to the bike. Sometimes, since it was made (I assume) for short-term grocery store transit, I've had to replace the shitty staples holding it together with actual wood screws, but that's a small price to pay for a sweet basket.


That's all a rambly way of saying that I really love this bike. Now, I ride my town bike more than ever before. I live right near the bike path and keep a pair of rain pants handy. What more could I need? I almost never drive, and I'm just fine with that.

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Clothes on repeat

Before asking my housemate to take a few photos of me, I thought about just reusing photos that were already on Pinkbike of me wearing these clothes because I wear them so often that there are already plenty of photos of them. I've loved them for a long time. But hey, I figured I might as well take some new ones.

This Norrona jersey and these Rapha pants are the clothes I reach for the most frequently when I'm heading out for a ride. Both are lightweight, comfortable, breathable... The jersey is functional with sleeves all the way down or rolled up to the forearms or elbows. The pants have pockets of just the right size and shape in just the right places, so they don't interfere with pedaling or anything else.


Although I'm a creature of habit through and through, the Velocio pants above also deserve an honorable mention. They're a newer addition to my clothing lineup so I don't have a ton to say about longevity, but I do believe in them. They're a little longer than the Raphas and otherwise similar - lightweight, maybe a tiny bit more robust, with the same closure and almost the same pockets. They're an easy pair to grab for riding but also when heading out for other activities, too.

I also appreciate the minimalist branding on the Rapha and Velocio pants. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I know this complaint conflicts with how much I wrote that I love that Norrona top despite 'Norrona' across the chest, but really - I so wish brands could just let the function do the talking.

Moving on from pants and my petty complaints, there's that puffy jacket. I definitely don't wear it mountain biking, but it's the ideal getup for both paragliding and chill town riding. It's warm.


When I'm home again, I go right to the slippers. The post-ride essentials.

More information: Norrona Fjord Equaliser Lightweight Long Sleeve, Rapha Women's Trail Pants, Velocio Women's Trail Access Pant

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Tools that live on my mountain bike, and also the bike they live on

I usually don't like to bring too much along with me when I ride. That's why I'm a recent convert to and huge fan of Topeak's Tubi Master X and BB Hide 'n' Tool. The Tubi Master X is a tire plug tool and carbon dioxide tool combined into a convenient package that lives on my bike. I haven't actually had to use it, but that's plenty to fix almost anything that would happen to my tires while out riding.

To fix all the other things, I now keep a tool hidden in my bottom bracket. The BB Hide 'n' Tool includes a chain tool and a folding six-part multi-wrench. Magnets help keep it all in place. Mine has never rattled, fallen out, or done anything else weird. It's great.



Shoutout too to the bike these tools live on. I talked up the Propain Hugene in my last Things I Loved article two years ago so I don't need to keep shouting about it, but it's still worth a mention. The last several months have been a pretty strange time period of starting to relearn how to mountain bike. I've taken intermittent monthslong breaks because the balance and vision pieces are sometimes just pretty hard, but I always come back to eventually. Remembering how much I love riding that bike is just another piece that keeps pulling me back in. Y'all are stuck with me for a while


More information: Topeak Tubi Master X, Topeak BB Hide 'n' Tool, Propain Hugene

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Running

I run now way more than ever before, and I love it. During my whole brain injury recovery, running is the activity that's been the most consistently doable, no matter where I am or how I'm feeling. Nowadays, I only sometimes feel up for riding a bike and running way more often feels attainable. I gradually increased the distance I was running each day until I felt good about my route, and now I run exactly the same route almost every day. I live right near a bike path, so I take the path to a park, loop around a little pond, and take the path back home. The routine of it is great.

I used to always wish I liked running more than I really did. Sports like mountain biking just seemed a lot more enjoyable. But now, I get it, I get the running thing. I love the simplicity, that I just need to put on my shoes and go. Mountain biking involves problem-solving and sadness about the ability I've lost and trouble riding basic sections and fear, as much as I hate to admit it. Running doesn't have any of that; I start moving and then stop a while later. I can listen to a cool audiobook or music or a podcast. Sometimes, post-injury, I completely lose track of where I am in space and time, almost like an accidental shortcut to what some people get from meditation. Right here, right now. My running route is straightforward so it's not like there's any real risk to me not knowing where I am or how long I've been running. I think it's helped me run farther than I've run in the past, a strange new experience. I've recently started night running sometimes since daylight is so short right now, so I've now experienced running when I couldn't see anything but the blackness in all directions, didn't know where I was, and had no concept of how far or how long I'd been running. Trippy.

Mountain biking is amazing and I am so lucky that's such a big part of my life, but sometimes I need something different. Putting more of my energy into running has been exactly what I need.

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Slowing way down

I've slowed way down this year, and I highly recommend it. Mine started by accident - I was badly brain-injured and couldn't do much for a while, and now that I'm past the coma phase and trying to somewhat return to my life, the process is slow and involves being intentional about what I do and don't want to add back in.

For me, that's involved taking the pressure off that I put on myself around relearning mountain biking, riding my commuter pretty much everywhere I go, going to yoga classes several days a week, and not over-scheduling. I've unsubscribed from an embarrassingly sky-high number of email lists. My email inbox is clean AF now, but it didn't start out that way. I have habits now that help me be more intentional, too: Each morning, I spend a good block of time planning out my day in a Panda Planner, which I would absolutely have internally scoffed at pre-injury but is now the type of habit that makes my life better, then drawing a detailed chart breaking down, essentially, how I'm feeling and what I have the bandwidth for that day. The chart involves colored pencils and all, and it makes me spend time thinking about colors and shading each morning. The process is way more than I'd have ever made part of my daily routine pre-injury, but now that's what I do before I go downstairs. I think things like that have been really good for me.

In short, consider canceling the plans you feel overwhelmed by. Turn down the volume. Go home, close the curtains, close your eyes. I've finally been learning how and it's been great.

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Kokopelli Rogue Lite packraft

I've already praised the packraft in my last injury update, but here it is again. I got a packraft in part because I'm not going to hit my head using it and in part because rafting seems like a great way to add another elemental dimension to multisport days. I'm not sure if that makes sense, but that's how I think of it: I can travel on foot on land, by bike on land, by paraglider in air, and now by raft on water. My favorite days involve new combinations of those.

One reason packrafting appeals to me is the potential for paraglide-upriver-raft-back-downriver days, so I've played around a little bit with that, and there's seemingly endless potential for more. My favorite packraft day so far (also mentioned in that injury update) was in my old home of Missoula, MT, when I biked from where I was housesitting to a trailhead, hiked up, launched from the peak of Mt Sentinel, flew and landed near the Clark Fork River in East Missoula, packed up, rafted back to near my bike, and pedaled back to where I was staying.

Now, my goal is to start doing that on a larger scale and include raft segments in some bigger cross-country flying adventures. There's so much to look forward to, and that keeps me moving forward.

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Books & Music

Here are a few of the books that I enjoyed this year:

Maybe my favorite book I read this year was Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney. It's hard to explain why. It's an odd, offbeat book about four friends growing up in our weird precarious world. Interspersed with the third-person story are letters among the friends with often fascinating thoughts. I actually started reading it as an electronic library book on my Kindle then found so much of it interesting that I ordered a physical copy so that I could read the paper version with a highlighter. Actually, this particular book is a sappy, emotional, nuanced look at people's personal lives, so it feels actually kind of insane that I'm including it in a list on a mountain biking website, but here we are. I liked this book.

Another book I read somewhat recently and enjoyed is Projections: A Story of Human Emotions by Karl Deisseroth. Actually, I'm cheating a little with this one because I read it right at the end of 2022, when I was just starting to read again in the hospital. The book was kind of dense sometimes and reading it was a challenge, trying not to get lost on the pages. But it's well-written and interesting, a fascinating look through a brain doctor's eyes at several of his patients, and written more artistically than you might expect from a neuroscientist.

I just finished a book called Hello, Beautiful by Ann Napolitano, and it's an interesting, kind portrait of the complicated relationship dynamics between four sisters, their parents, and a man who marries into the family.

My final recommendation is one I listened to in audiobook form read by the author: I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jenette McCurdy is a sometimes shockingly intimate look at the former iCarly child star's early life, her complicated relationship with her mother, her eating disorder, her relationship with alcohol, and more. It was a fascinating listen with some really vulnerable, insightful thoughts, and the fact that the audiobook was read by the author gave it maybe even just a little bit more of the intended meaning.

And while I'm giving out audio recommendations, here's my favorite NPR Tiny Desk Concert I've checked out recently. Those of you who listen to the podcast, sorry for the repeat recommendation. I just really like it.


And then here's one that I really enjoy and think really captures my mood lately:


And then here's a song that I just enjoy right now:

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My slackline

I set up a slackline in my yard and it's great. It gets me out all the time to practice my balance, something that's really been limited post-injury. The slackline feels like it's right in the overlap between fun and productive. I also hung a helper line above, which isn't especially sturdy but can add a little bit of support. Shoutout too to the worm bin in the background.

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Google Keep

I recently learned about an app that is essentially a notes app that does everything right. It's linked to my Google account (like everything, which I kind of hate but also which makes things so incredibly convenient). It's also accessible at keep.google.com and of course updates live so notes are accessible, usable, and editable on my phone or a laptop. There are options, too, for drawing, recording voice notes, adding images, and formatting as an extremely functional checklist. And it's just a basic free Google product. I'm a little mindblown that I only just learned about this. Oh, and there's a useful widget for Android phones, so my notepad is two swipes away from my home screen. Who knew?

In a more general way, this Things I Loved point might just be about becoming more organized. I now write grocery lists and to-do lists and actually a kind of absurd number of lists, and it's great. If I want to check my to-read list, I can check my Google Keep note. What was that bold outdoor mission I was brainstorming how to make realistic? There are lots of details about it in the Future Adventures note. And what products was I going to include in my next Pinkbike Check Out article? Obviously I have a note for that in my the Keep account linked to my work Google profile.

Before I accidentally became severely brain-damaged, I almost never wrote things down. I rarely put things into my calendar, rarely took notes, rarely relied on things like reminders. Now, I've been working on a whole new set of life habits, with lots of help from the people around me.

I'm learning to be organized and I'm learning that having systems and being thorough makes life so much easier. What a world.

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The people in my life

I should probably end on something sappier than f*cking Google Keep, right?

This has been a year of realizing how much I love the people around me and realizing how much they make a difference. That ranges from my family and friends who were able to show up for me and take care of me when I was injured to supportive strangers on the internet who have been kind in ways that make me believe a little more in humanity. Thanks for being there and being part of this odd year. We've just about made it through, and we have lots of look forward to up ahead.

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Addendum: Cooking things

I'd already essentially finished writing this article and was chatting about it with my housemate when he called me out, saying I'd be lying to the people if I didn't include my air fryer in my Things I Loved list. My other housemate chimed in that I should probably also include my cast iron pan. So here we are.

My two most-used cooking tools are pictured above. The air fryer is ridiculously easy to cook all kinds of things in. Stir fry? Totally, though you don't technically need to even do much stirring or even frying. Perfect meat? Yep, easy, quick. Chop up some vegetables and toss them in. Done perfectly, and so soon, with such easy cleanup. The possibilities have been kind of ridiculous.

And then there's that pan next to it. I don't know what to say about it other than that it's a pan. I got it at Goodwill and use it more than any other cooking item. I try to treat it well and it seems to return the favor.

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