I didn’t bring my bike when I moved to Maui.  I didn’t think I would want it.  I’d never been to Hawaii before and everything I knew of the islands came from Jurassic Park and Lost.  I pictured beaches, beaches and impenetrable rain forest.  I knew there were mountains, but I thought they’d be so steep and covered in jungle that no one in their right mind would bike down them.  I figured I’d learn to surf, or kite board.  I wasn’t worried. After I’d been here for about six months I started to miss biking.  A lot.  Surfing was fun, but I wanted to go really fast for longer than a few seconds.  I wanted to brush elbows with trees, smell piney air and dust, and feel my body compress as I whipped around a berm.  I wanted to ride a bike. I went to some bike shops and asked around but everyone was really secretive.  I’d get vague answers about good trails somewhere on Haleakala, or redirected toward the road biking groups that met every Wednesday and needed more riders.  On this small island in the middle of the Pacific, nobody wanted to give up the goods. […]