Fun newbie ride! Spills, thrills, adventure for all!

[Catrin]

Interesting thing happened on ride today. Unsure how this happened, but I fell over - it is the position I landed in that was the surprise. My bike was kind of diagonal with one BMX pedal pressing into my left kneecap while my right foot was kind of over the edge of the trail on the downside of a gentle embankment. My legs were stretched and I couldn't move because of the pedal digging into my knee and bike was between my legs.

Frankly, I am unsure how I actually got out of that position. I think I just kept inching my right foot back praying that it wouldn't slip back until I could free myself from my bike.

Overall it was a great ride, and it was on a new trail for me :) still beginner - but much longer and there is a rocky section that I just walked both ways. I decided at the start that there is no shame in walking so simply walked the parts that scared me and had fun on the rest :)

I need to work out shifting on the trail, having problems climbing that I think is due in part to relearning that on the trail. I keep it in an easy gear, but of course too easy a gear when starting causes problems just like too hard a gear.

Having fun and one more day of riding to go :)

[indysteel]

I'm glad you're having fun and that you didn't hurt yourself during that fall! I assume I know what trail you're talking about. It's a lot of fun!

Be careful out there!

[Catrin]

It is Limekiln, and I have a friend I text when I start and stop. She knows local mtn bikers who are good at finding people if I miss my check-in time. That really helps. As this was my first time on the trail I just focused on getting to know it better.

[Nick]

Glad to hear you're having fun, Catrin, and that you extricated yourself safely from the fall position. I enjoy hearing about your adventures...

[Roadtrip]

So looking forward to meeting you Saturday Catrin, I'll be really bummed if you fell off a trail and hurt yourself less then a week before our ride :mad:

Lol. Be safe out there and glad your having fun!!!

Shannon

[Catrin]

Not to worry Roadtrip, I am home all safe and sound. Had an awesome time and can tell that my body is finally starting to "get it". Not saying that I didn't do any walking, but had fun on the parts I didn't walk :) 7 hours of mountain biking in 3 days (counting the walking) and only a few bruises and scratches to show for it :)

[indysteel]

Welcome home, Catrin! I'm really proud of you. Hitting the trails and camping by yourself is pretty courageous IMO. It sounds like you accomplished a lot!! We've come a long way in a couple of months I'd say!

[Catrin]

Welcome home, Catrin! I'm really proud of you. Hitting the trails and camping by yourself is pretty courageous IMO. It sounds like you accomplished a lot!! We've come a long way in a couple of months I'd say!

It was all awesome, and friends made certain I had enough camping gear :) Today I rode Pine Loop with a friend and her child, she also rode with me at Versailles a little over 2 weeks ago and she said there was a very marked improvement in just that short of a period.

Yes, we have both come a long ways. It was fun watching that 5 year old today, he did better than I, and indeed he was giving me advice on my shin guards :) (the advice was to get better ones, but he was able to articulate WHY, impressive 5 year old!)

For the record, I am still unsure how I got in, or out, of that "stuck" position on the trail yesterday - just thankful nobody was there to take a blackmail photo ;)

[indysteel]

I'm glad you got to ride with them today. It's amazing how quickly kids pick up on stuff. Oh, to be young again!

Not to toot my own horn, but I'm pretty thrilled with my own progress. My last time out, I did part of Green Valley. Frankly, getting to the trail was the hardest part. Part of the NT Connector is really rooty...and uphill. I still get pretty worn out when there's a lot of climbing, so we only did about a mile of GV before turning back. I was afraid to ride those roots coming downhill (this is where I turned back at the clinic). But I did it and at a pretty good clip! As for more climbing, I tend to think my set up on my Specialized needs to be tweaked. I'm going to raise my saddle and move it back a bit. I don't feel like I'm otherwise getting enough power out of my legs.

Plus, the bike is relatively heavy...but I have a pretty cool fix for that in the works!!! More on that later!

[Catrin]

I'm glad you got to ride with them today. It's amazing how quickly kids pick up on stuff. Oh, to be young again!

Not to toot my own horn, but I'm pretty thrilled with my own progress. My last time out, I did part of Green Valley. Frankly, getting to the trail was the hardest part. Part of the NT Connector is really rooty...and uphill. I still get pretty worn out when there's a lot of climbing, so we only did about a mile of GV before turning back. I was afraid to ride those roots coming downhill (this is where I turned back at the clinic). But I did it and at a pretty good clip! As for more climbing, I tend to think my set up on my Specialized needs to be tweaked. I'm going to raise my saddle and move it back a bit. I don't feel like I'm otherwise getting enough power out of my legs.

Plus, the bike is relatively heavy...but I have a pretty cool fix for that in the works!!! More on that later!

oooooooooooooooohhhhhhh, new bike sign, looking forward to hearing about it!

I am impressed you are riding the NT Connector - right now all I will consider doing is to HIKE it, between the slate and the big rooty sections I would be walking so much of it that it would waste my time. I DO ride a portion of it though - only up to where it almost meets the road - I turn around there. Congratulations on being able to ride it! It helps that you are closer than I and have your husband to go with you. I shouldn't have taken so long to get out there, but I am out there now :cool: :D

I can't remember if GV is a loop or an out-and-back. Can you start at the other end - assuming there is one? I need to check out the map...

[indysteel]

GV is sort of neither. It's in the middle of several other trails, so no matter what, you have to do the Connector and part of the North Tower Loop to get there and/or back. From one end of GV, you also have to do part of Aynes.
Here's (http://www.hmba.org/smf/index.php?topic=8858.0) a map.
Honestly, I didn't think the section of GV that I did was technically difficult, but it required a lot more climbing. I really wanted to continue on the trail, but my legs just weren't cooperating. It's tough work, especially after busting my butt on the Connector to get there.

Yes; having Brian has helped immensely, although in some ways I ride better when he's not in sight. Being a big closer (45 minutes) to BCSP is also a blessing. I've been licking my wounds for over a year for being away from my road cycling haunts. This helps me feel a bit better about that, especially since I'm having more fun on the trails than I've had on the road in a long while.

I've balked at a few sections here and there over the past couple of months. I've encouraged that when I try to make a second pass at them, I almost always succeed It's not always pretty, but given how absolutely terrified I was of MTBing, I'm proud of overcoming my fears more than anything. In that sense, it's way more gratifying that road riding.

[Catrin]

... In that sense, it's way more gratifying that road riding.

Yep :)

I am finding that riding my country roads isn't near as much fun as they once were...but I can't ride to a mountain bike trail so I have to ride somewhere ;)