Book + Beverage — Fall 2023

The Book

“GRAVEL ADEVNTURE FIELD GUIDE— FRUITA & PALISADE/ MESA COUNTY” BY STEPHEN BENESKI AND JUAN DELAROCA

From the Book Cliffs to the Colorado National Monument, Mesa County has many natural landmarks . And, one of the best ways to experience them is by biking along the routes described in the latest Gravel Adventure Field Guide book by Stephen Beneski and Juan DelaRoca titled Fruita & Palisade/Mesa County: Colorado Western Slope. This guidebook describes gravel bike routes in the Western Slope while delving into the area’s history.

While the book is sold in print form, its maps can be scanned onto a smartphone. In turn, the smartphone’s GPS can locate where the routes are in relation to the user. This hybrid approach is Beneski and DelaRoca’s way of “diving into the nostalgia of cycling in gravel and the nostalgia of travel … but we’re giving it a modern twist.”

The main reasons Beneski created the Gravel Adventure books with DelaRoca were to “map existing gravel roads” that have been forgotten and help small towns “gain a footprint in outdoor tourism” that would encourage people to come to them. For instance, the guidebook describes “two routes where people can start in Palisade and ride to Fruita,” and then stay overnight in Fruita or ride back to Palisade and spend the night there. Beneski and DelaRoca also list popular local restaurants and vineyards, such as Fidel’s Cocina and the Vines 79 Wine Bar & Vineyard.

While the books are intended to encourage the reader to explore the biking routes, they also promote local cycling races and events. However, Beneski is more interested in inspiring “people to go get on their bike outside of a race” and only use the guidebook “as a training tool” for the races if they want to try them. To get a copy, Gravel Adventure Field Guide — Fruita & Palisade/Mesa County: Colorado Western Slope can be found at local bike shops in the Grand Valley or ordered online through graveladventurefieldguide.com.

The Beverage

RED MONKEY BUTT AMBER ALE

Exclusively sold at the Suds Brothers Brewery in Fruita, this craft amber beer has an alcohol by volume (ABV) measurement of 5.3% and an international bittering unit (IBU) of 29. What this means is the amount of alcohol is stronger than a light beer but not as strong as an IPA. Like other amber beers, though, it is moderately strong in hops and malt. The main reason Stephen Beneski says he likes Red Monkey Butt is that it doesn’t get a person overly buzzed after doing strenuous outdoor activities such as cycling. It’s also a nice relaxing drink to have while reading a Gravel Adventure guidebook and contemplating which bike routes to take on your next ride.

Photo by Ursula Nizalowski

Originally published in the Fall 2023 issue of Spoke+Blossom.