Pssst...

[yellow]

Some of you might know some of these people.

2009 Bend Bike-Go-Round

[SadieKate]

At least I'm not falling down in this one.

Of course, I'm also not the winner of the Best Dressed Award.

[Miranda]

Thx for that bone. I can't ride now due to recovering from a recent crash. And it's nice to be able to live vicariously through others.

I liked that log obstacle. I assume the approach is a ladder of limbs as well just like the exit off the center log.

One thing that we have in what trails I've been on in the midwest is just tree-jam-age (sorry, that's not a word I know lol). But meaning, there are not those open spaces between trees like in the vid. You don't know what you are getting into until you are right on top of it. However, I don't think we have it as rocky / gardens on the ground.

Btw... love the dirt at the end. Those are truly happy mtb feet.

[SadieKate]

Ha! about those trees! Yah, you do have thicker trees and more undergrowth hiding things in the midwest, but you didn't see one of the other videos of Brian coming around a tight corner in the trees and totally stopping in complete surprise.

We have some trails with right angle turns that have to be taken at nearly trackstand speed because they're so close together.

[Trekhawk]

Good stuff!
Great to see you guys having so much fun.

[crazycanuck]

Coooool!!! Was the track overly technical? Also, just as a guess, it's not rained there for a while as it resembles Western Australia summer conditions.

[SadieKate]

What's "overly technical" mean to you? I wouldn't take a beginner on those trails, but neither do you need to be Hans Rey. This time of year the deep loose dirt is what gets you. Ask Mr. Yellow.

Yeah, we are in the high desert. 8-10 inches of rain a year.

[crazycanuck]

Overly technical means lots n lots of log overs(up or down, massive or tiny etc), funny shaped rocks, tight corners & in your part of the world...anything on the side of a mountain

Deep loose dirt-we have deep pea gravel on quite a few of our trails. Horrid in the summer but great in the wet! Cornering is always so much fun when deep pea gravel is around

Are we on the same level with the dirt up in your neck of de woods??

[SadieKate]

Log overs - Some of our trails have several, some none at all. Queen of the Brain Farts here now loves them (the kind in the video or the 3rd photo). They're more of a mental and speed thing (ok, a little weight transfer helps but still not as hard as they look)

Funny shaped rocks - Well, we are in the Cascade Ring of Fire. Lava abounds in some areas but only a few trails have really big rocks you have to ride over.

Tight corners - Can be our middle name. Our trail system is known for fast and flowing slalom-type smooth singletrack with the occasional obstacle. However, some trails are built by the Devil. These trails are buttery smooth but take you between trees only handlebar-width apart and then do an immediate 90 degree turn. The challenge with these is just ability to ride slowly, again a mental thing. Most of the "rocky" trails are the same way. Trails where you must navigate between the rocks dominate. We have a couple trails where it seems you ride 3 miles to get one mile as the crow flies. The Devil designed these, I tell you.

Deep loose gravel - Here's that Cascade Ring of Fire thing again. Up on Newberry Crater there are long, long, long stretches of pumice. It's like riding through Styrofoam marbles.

Side of a mountain - Nope. This is what is absolutely fabulous about our riding on the east side of the Cascades. Yes, you may have times when you're on the "side" but our sides are rarely (notice, I didn't say NEVER) cliffs. I'm the biggest wuss about what V's hubby calls "Death on the Right/Left" and even I can deal with these sections. The Cascades in our neck o' the woods don't have the vertical nature of the Sierras in California where there are trails that I could easily ride except for the drop-off to the side; I can't put on my horse blinders along steep edges.

Google the Phil's Trail System or mountain biking in Bend, Oregon. It's a world class destination. Trails for everyone and I personally think one of the best places to take an adventuresome new mountain biker. Miles of trails for all abilities with obstacles far enough apart that you can have a "data dump" and relax in between, and the grades are shallow so having to ride an obstacle while anaerobic is rare.

The "technical" stuff in the photos below are spread apart and positioned so speed and weight balance take you over an incredible amount. Matter of fact, if I'd ridden 8 inches to my left in that first photo, the log would have been barely noticeable.

[tprevost]

Very Cool!!! I wanna go there!!! Awesome job on the video too, it was really fun to watch

[crazycanuck]

Sk-Our trails here in Western AUstralia sound a wee bit similar to yours..

All I can say about yer trails is dey looook shweeeeet!

[yellow]

Good stuff!
Great to see you guys having so much fun.

subliminal message: you need to come join us next year!

[fatbottomedgurl]

I love bend! I was up there last summer. The whoops was awesome!!!

[JH-NV]

Thanks for sharing. What a cool video to watch on cloudy, cool day, snow on the mtn, chili on the stove, cake cooling on the table. Perfect......