Irulan observed: "riding any thing that comes my way in the trail, without having to think about how to ride it... just 100% flow, not worrying about line, technique, hitting things, rocks. speed.... my body just knows what it needs to go"

Thanks Irulan, again I'm selfishly abusing this thread to work on the essay idea here, there is an aikido analogy to what you feel, it's called Takemusu Aikido. Loosly translated means (so I'm told, hope it does not mean "your uncle is green, the road is sick") "aikido that invents itself".

Every athlete needs basics. Your body has its own muscle/nerve memory (can someone here explain why this works?). You don't get there by thinking, reading, watching OLN, training logs in your palm pilot...you can only train the basics till they become a part of you, a part of your body. Then and only then every so often you'll wonder "where the H*ck did THAT come from?" When you train the basics then forget them, don't think, just flow this amazing stuff appears.

Those moments, while rare are worth all it takes to acheive them.

They happen only for those who've done the hard work.