In most parts of the world, the spring season is heralded by the melting of snow, drying of trails and the steady rise of mercury in thermometers. It’s a time of transition from winter’s icy grip to the warm caress of summer days. In Calgary, the concept of “spring” is largely meaningless — +20C one day, -5C and snowing the next, right through until the end of May. The trails in Calgary and Kananaskis start to thaw and dry out, but aren’t quite good to go. It’s no wonder that so many of us head to BC or the USA every spring to get our shred on.

If you are thinking of heading due south, it can be a bit of work to set something up. It’s ~18 hours of driving to get to Moab, and a few more hours to get to Las Vegas or western Colorado. Do you book a hotel or try camping or drag an RV for 1000 miles each way? Losing 2 days at each end of the trip to driving might mean you don’t have enough vacation time to make your sister’s wedding in Costa Rica, unless you cut your bike trip down by a day or two, which is silly and wrong. Ride all the days!

I heard about Kick Ass Road Trips a couple of months ago, and I finally had a chance to talk with the owner, Eric Koczab, recently.  I asked him to explain what KART is all about. “Rather than driving for 2 days from Calgary you can fly into either Denver, Salt Lake City or Las Vegas and KART does the rest, including: driving, providing shelter/camping equipment for 6 with indoor upgrade options utilized at times, 3 delicious meals a day and local expertise with almost a decade of residential familiarity.” Eric isn’t a tour guide per se, but he handles all the logistics from the time you touch down at the airport until you’re dropped off at Departures a week later.  “KART helps develop and execute tailor-made trips to your specifications to make it the best possible biking adventure vacation. When you’re not riding Moab, Park City, Fruita, Crested Butte, Steamboat Springs, Salida, St.George and other places, you’ll get to explore National Parks, float and SUPing rivers, or getting down with locals at a music, wine, food or arts festival such as Telluride Blues & Brews or Breckenridge Beer Festival.” Eric is the chauffeur, head chef, concierge and chief bottle washer on your trip. All you have to do is get up in the morning and ride your bike. It’s what a bike vacation should be — low stress, maximum fun.

• More Information: http://kickassroadtrips.com/
• How Much: Groups are limited to a maximum of 6 people, and Calgary bikers only can score a “6 riders for the price of 4” deal throughout 2015. That means that 6 people would pay ~$135/day/person, and get transportation, shelter, food and support. Book your trip before April 20 and receive an additional 10% off.

Just so you know, neither I nor the CMBA are receiving any compensation for this article. It just sounded like a cool way to check out some great trails south of the 49th.