It was a bike filled weekend as I hit a great southeast IMBA epic trail (Bull Mountain) on Saturday and got a ton of work done wrenching on bikes on Sunday. As I type this post on Sunday night, I have a huge feeling of bike stoke satisfaction as I look back on the weekend’s events. There was a ton of progression in both areas as I checked everything off my list. This was one of those bike filled weekends that can only be topped by going on a destination ride.
Saturday – Bull Mountain Ride
There are several riders in our core mountain biking group that are trying to get in some extra miles for a couple different reasons. Three of us (me included) are trying to get our legs ready for a really long ride at the end of July. The other two (the married couple that ride places you could only dream of) are trying to get ready for their annual Switzerland road riding trip that compounds elevation change.
To get the extra miles in, we headed up to Bull Mountain. Bull Mountain is an IMBA epic trail located in the backwoods of north Georgia. Bull is known for its rooty, rutted out mess that just eats up suspension and provides technical climbing and descending that will work even the best heart rates. Lately, the horses have done their part of making the trail even more chopping than usual. The pure fact that Bull Mountain is not one of those “paved” local trails is what makes it so appealing. It is my closest source of big mountain riding as it is only 1 hour from my front doorstep.
The day couldn’t have been any better. I took the Turner 5 Spot up for a good thrashing in the woods and it didn’t disappoint. Fast, twisty, natural drop filled singletrack is where that bike calls home as it begs for you to give it all you can.
For this trip up, we had a group of 9 and it turned out to be one of those rides that you just can’t forget. For some reason, I felt incredible. With the right amount of hydration and nutrition, I was finding my grove and exactly where I could call home in my pacing as we continued on the 30 mile ride. Everything was about perfect…that is until…I went ass over tea kettle in the middle of a field. As you can see by the picture below…there was nothing around me as I attempted flight without my bike. I was looking at a stupid steep technical climb ahead of us instead of watching what I was doing, and the front end of the bike just left me. I ended up over the bars and in 2 foot tall grass. I guess there are worse things to fall into! I enjoyed my cushy fall and laughed at myself a bit before we continued on. That was definitely one of those…”way to go idiot” moments that you just have to laugh at.
By the end of the 30 miles at Bull, I felt great. I had gotten in a full day of technical riding and paced myself so that there was still some left in the tank. I might not ever be ready for the ride next week to its fullest…but I am making progression. Better yet…I had a fantastic weekend ride with friends that enjoy the same obsessions I do. It doesn’t get much better than that.
Data below is from the Garmin Edge 705 using GarminConnect.com
Photos are by Laurie @ MyLifeonabike.com – She did an incredible job given the low light, high humidity and point and shoot camera conditions!
Sunday – Wrenching and Washing
On Sunday morning, it occurred to me. After months and months of water restrictions, it was now legal to water your lawn, wash your car or wash your bikes on Sundays if your house was an odd number. I took this chance to get some much needed bike cleaning done and show my neighbors exactly how OCD I am about cycling. One by one, I drug every bike out of my house and gave it a wash down. In true online obsessed fashion, I Tweeted (@mtbby198) and updated Facebook (on my personal Facebook page) with the pictures below as I finished my quest in making every bike in the sable clean.
After they were all done and dry, I got some much needed wrenching done as well. Here is the list.
- Disassembled the Ventana El Terremoto (my personal bike) and got it ready to sell as a frame only (more to come on this later).
- Organized all of the TM parts to get them ready for the next build.
- Took the Hope Tech M4’s off the Ventana El Chucho – Review on both coming soon…
- Packed up the El Chucho to get it ready for shipment back to Ventana.
- Installed Avid Elixir CR’s on my wife’s Felt Virtue 4.
- Re-greased, re-lubed and did a once over on the rest of the stable.
It was a great weekend that got a lot accomplished. This was just a little insight into the weekends of 198. As you can see…I have it pretty good these days and I enjoy the hell out of every second of it. Hope you guys had a spin filled weekend…if not…hopefully you got to do something that puts a smile on your face and helps you forget that load of work that is waiting for you on Monday…oh wait…you are procrastinating Monday right now!