Weekend MTB Rides

[Artista]

We need a thread to post about our mtb rides! I'll start...

Today was the best ride of the year so far. Cloudy, cooler temps, a bit of rain to cool us off in the middle of the ride, no rattle snakes, and no hubby endos

We rode about 2 hours on our favorite trail. I rocked all of the new obstacles that I've been working on this season! A couple of tricky, downhill switchbacks were "cake" today. A relatively steep, rocky, uphill section seemed just a little shorter and I made it further without having to stopping for a rest. I was also able to ride much more of "Ankle Breaker Trail" than I've ever been able/willing to ride in the past. I still haven't attempted the hill that I broke my ankle on but it's not far in the future. (Now it's in writing so I'm committed, right?).

My new, flat, Twenty6 pedals are the BEST! I'll write a review when I have a little more time.

[Catrin]

Sounds like great fun Artista! You will ride that hill when you are ready to

What shoes are you pairing with those pedals? You may have said before but I probably missed it.

[Artista]

What shoes are you pairing with those pedals? You may have said before but I probably missed it.

I'm wearing FiveTen Women's Chase model. BTW, HucknRoll carries FiveTen Karvers at a discount with no shipping on orders of $50 or more.

[indysteel]

Artista, it sounds like you're making fabulous progress. Congrats!

The inlaws were in town this past weekend, so no riding for us, but we're hoping to hit the trails over the 4th or this coming weekend. After much debating, I decided to follow your lead in getting Five Tens and some good pedals, rather than clipless. I ended up with Five Ten Guide Tennies. Based on various reviews, I decided that the Karvers would likely be too wide (although I would like to try them sometime). The Guides fit well, although because they're not truly a cycling shoe, it remains to be seen whether they're stiff enough.

I also ordered Straightline AMP pedals. There were several decent contenders, so I hope that I like them. My bike, a Santa Cruz Juliana, is a really pretty azure blue. It has little bits of red the stem cap, fork, and bars, so I went bold and got the pedals in red, too. We'll see how they look. I'm eager to try the new set up.

[Artista]

Indy, I'm so pleased to hear that you are sticking with flats. The marginal benefits that clipless pedals offer for technical mtb'ing just don't outweigh the risks in my mind.

I hope that the red pedals make you smile every time you look at them. One of the best things about cycling is decking out our bikes and bodies in really bold colors. Think of your red pedals as your alter ego outlet

I'll bet that you'll like your sticky-soled FiveTens on those pinned flats. The more flexible soles shouldn't be too noticeable since your flats have fairly large platforms to support your feet. My shoes also have pretty flexible soles. I haven't noticed any loss of power and the ability to walk comfortably is a bonus. But then again, having as much fun as possible is way more important to me than going fast

[jessmarimba]

I did 2 hours at Buffalo Creek on Sunday! I'm probably going to go back on the 4th but it'll be after an 8 mile trail run so I'll have dead legs, as usual. While I'm enjoying getting the running up to speed, my bikes feel awfully neglected.

[ridebikeme]

We rode in Vermont yesterday at the Kingdom Trails, and definitely could NOT have asked for a more beautiful day. One of my customers and her family, Dad with his new Jekyll and two sons, and my new nephews. All of the boys were a bit tired from soccer practice/games over the weekend, but once we hit the trails everyone was ready to go. An INCREDIBLE day!

[limewave]

On a spur of the moment I snuck out of the house (hahaha) leaving the kids in DH's care and hit the dirt for a fun, relaxed ride this weekend. I wasn't planning on riding hard as DH and I had actually done a "tempo" ride the day before and my legs were still feeling it.

I rode easy, stopping to take pictures, enjoy the view (I'll post some tonight when I get a chance). I even stopped and walked a steep downhill section that had been badly washed out in a recent storm, a section I always ride. At this point two cyclists past me. I made a comment about the erosion. I get that look from them--'nother girl that can't ride. Seriously, I know that look. I let it slide because its a nice evening, it's my ride.

Shortly after that I caught both riders on a long, gradual climb. The "person" in back heard me coming, informed the rider in front that there's a rider back while this person starts to slow down and move to the right so I can pass. However, "person" in front turns back and sees my two long braids and decides to take off. Really???

Not a problem. I'd been riding easy all night and I had plenty of gas in the engine. lol. I rode on their wheel for about a mile then got bored so I smoked 'em. I've been laid back about my riding this season, but when someone asks for it, well, I don't want to be rude and NOT dish it out.

Other than that incident, it was a beautiful ride. The sky was cloudy and I even got rained on a bit between rays of sunshine. I found an 'abandoned' cabin near the trail that I never knew existed before. It kind of creeped me out. The wind was so strong that it was blowing the door open and closed. It made the hair on my neck stand up.

[indysteel]

That's awesome, Limewave! I love that you smoked him!

I haven't been mountain biking for a few weeks, but DH and I did several rides along Acadia's gravel carriage roads on our touring bikes this past week. They were a blast. I especially liked the climbs, most of which were long but not overly difficult. I just wish I had disc brakes on tourer (or at least better brakes). Some of the descents were a little unnerving in that the cantis on my touring bike just aren't to my liking. But otherwise, the rides were fun. Vehicular traffic isn't allowed on the carriage roads, so the biggest concern was the piles of horse poop!

[thekarens]

My partner and I went out and did about 13 miles on a beginner trail. I let her lead so she could call out all the upcoming problems As it turns out at one point she went flying over a hump and squished a snake. I was going much slower so I had plenty of time to stop. I felt sorry for the poor thing

I think spending more time on the easier trails is really helpful for me. Keep doing it enough and it helps build up confidence and my complete lack of skills.

[Catrin]

Sounds like fun, Indy and Thekarens! I've not been on the mtb trails for over 3 weeks now, but will do that this Saturday - weather permitting.

theKarens, I hope your partner is all right - did she fall off the bike or did the bike hit the snake after the flying over the hump?

[thekarens]

She hit the snake after flying over the hump and continued tearing down the trail. I came to a dead stop. She came back and moved it off the trail. I just knew it would cause someone an accident if it was left there.

[Catrin]

Finally, after a month off the mountain bike I finally got in 2 hours on the trails today Guilliana23 and I hit the beginner trail at my favorite park so she could check it out for the first time and we had fun! I like the new rear tire, it is quite a lot more aggressive/knobbier than my front tire and I could tell the difference. No crashes, though I did skid on a small mud spot that I was trying to avoid but was able to control what happened next. Guilliana23 did great! We rode Pine Loop a couple of times and also hit part of the NT Connector.

My knee was a little cranky, but I could tell some good improvement, I think the ride was just what it needed. My next ride I will return to the intermediate trail that got me last time and kick it's azz The dust is gone, and I am defiantly getting some traction now so there shouldn't be a repeat - or at least not for the same reason!

The trails had many, many hikers on them, far more than I've seen before. Some didn't seem to be aware they weren't just hiking trails, but they found that out pretty quickly. It will likely be like that for the next month as we reach the peak period for fall color.

[tzvia]

Been avoiding the mountain bike for about a month, just too hot for the local trails. Much easier to grab the road bike and head to where there are some ocean breezes.

But this weekend the temps actually dropped down into the 80s for the first time in several months. So I took down the MTB yesterday, replaced the worn rear tire, set it up tubeless and gave the chain a good clean and lube. And today I rode the local mountains (the trailhead is one mile from the house). Lots of hill climbs, with one that's 12% grade (ouch). It got warmer as I climbed, to the upper 90s but not bad. Once I turned south and started heading down, towards the ocean, it got cooler again and felt great. Lots of dust and sand over hardpack, from a long dry summer, it slowed me down on the way back as I climbed back up and into the valley. I could feel the temperature rise until my cycle computer read 100f. Didn't feel that hot...

Aaahhh, Fall. My favorite time of year. I can ride the local mountains again.

[thekarens]

Did 20 miles with the neighbors at the local state park, very easy, non technical trails. It proved how out of shape I am. My thighs and knee were pretty miserable by the time we were done.