Cool, congratulations on your introduction to mountain biking! I SO WANT TO DO THIS...but this year is just too early. Darn it. Besides, the road and hills are challenging enough for me right now. We will see what happens the rest of this season into next year.

So now I am starting to toy with this idea - will my next bike be a light-weight steel road bike or a mountain bike? Time will tell

Looking forward to reading more about your adventures!