Beast of Burden

I really do love racing my bike.  I mean I really really do love it.  I just wish I was better at it.  I had goals at the beginning of the Georgia State Series and so far I'm within my expectations but secretly I was hoping for more.  I probably didn't do enough high end work earlier in the OMTP.  Yes, I have some doubts. 

This past weekend was the 4th round of the series which was held at the Flat Rock Park in Columbus, Ga.  The trail kinda sucks, it goes from wide open to so tight you can barely get your handle bars between the trees.  No flow at all.  My race strategy was to get out front early so I could get through the only real technical section first.  I bet it's the last time the group lets me get away with that.

I lined up on the outside and got a good jump on the 11 other old farts and was able to keep it till we got to the rocks.  I had had trouble clearing this section in practice (the kid did also so it wasn't just me).  You threaded your way between rocks and into a rooty off camber turn, which amazingly I managed to clean, then onto a rock ledge which turned 90 degrees down hill to another 90 degree turn at the bottom.  I unclipped one pedal and pivoted at the apex of the second turn.  Unfortunately for the pack just off my wheel I may have inadvertently come to an almost complete stop before making the turn.  I heard "Ohfffffff" followed by bike parts making contact with rocks.  Then "rider down".   I pedaled like mad to the up hill switch back where I immediately fell over, blocking the whole trail and forcing me and anybody left behind me to run the hill.

I lost 2 places at the top of the climb.  The rest of the race was pretty uneventful.  A local rider who was not in the points got out ahead of Santa Claus who was in front of Clydesdale who was in front of me, leaving me in 4th.  In the last woods section I could see Clydesdale just ahead of me but I was spent.

I spent the whole race at or above 90% of my maximum heart rate and I don't know about you but I think that's too much.  At the finish I was wasted.  I rode by the top three guys after the finish line and gave them a "good ride", they didn't flip me off so maybe they forgot my first lap fiasco.

The Kid got another second, MB got a second, and PB got a first.  The Tallahassee contingent is getting smaller.

There's just 2 more races left in the series.  I supposedly have "peaked" in my training cycle but I haven't noticed much difference between peak and build as far as my fitness goes.  Then again, if I'm having fun, does it really make any difference?

I Think It's Gonna Rain

It had become the "I Hope It Doesn't Rain Ride".  It was my first big road ride (as far as the number of riders goes).  I had no idea what to expect.  Plus it didn't fit in with the OMTP.  I wasn't really looking forward to it.  Big Jim had been putting the hard sell on me to sign up so when Wrecking Ball (WB) called about doing the metric route I decided to give it a try.  The thing that did it for me was the fact that Lil WB was going to go so The Kid would have some company that was close to his age.  We said that we were riding as long as it wasn't thundering while we sat in the parking log before the start.

The start came early on Saturday, like 6:30 am early.  No it wasn't thundering, in fact it was kinda cool, cloudy,and not even raining (yet).  Our little crew was all together under the starting banner, I had assumed (wrongly) that we would try to ride together.  That lasted until we got onto the road then they all disappeared into the gloomy morning, leaving The Kid and I trapped amongst what must have been 200 roadies.

"OK", I thought to myself, "just keep your cool, Big Worm said it would all thin our pretty quick".    After we had been mired in this group for at least an hour I had had enough.  It was always "SLOWING", or somebody drifting out of their line, or somebody barely able to climb the smallest hill, I was miserable.  I kept thinking how much this sucked and how much more fun I'd be having on my MTB doing the torture loop at Forest Meadows.  Turns out The Kid was thinking the same thing.

I'll admit my inexperience at group riding was what had me stuck.  I didn't know how to move up and every time I tried somebody jumped in front of me or got on my left and we slowed down again.  Finally I just moved to the left and with The Kid behind me we just started passing.  At that point I would have rather ridden in the wind than continue being boxed in with that bunch.  About the time I was closing in on the front I heard "hey David" and looked over to see WB and not too far behind him LWB.  We rode with them till we hit the second (?) sag when both the juniors said we should stop and I was thankful we did.

Of course I got in the line for the Port a Potty right behind the only guy who had to take his morning constitutional. 

We grabbed cookies, filled up water bottles, and hit the road.  Oh that was sooooo much better.  No crowds, we could go at our own pace.  I started to enjoy the ride.

We rounded the courthouse in Monticello Fl. and started back towards Lloyd before the rain started.  We all took turns on the front and listened to WB give advice, directions, and corrections.  The rain came down hard from Lloyd until right before we got back to Tallahassee. 

In the end we had a blast.  The Mexican food and a XX grande after the ride made me want to find the couch.  I'm not sure I'd do it again though (the ride I mean, I'll gladly eat Mexican and drink beer).

The Forest

It's 600,000 plus acres and it's right in our back yard.  Yes, it's a little sandy in spots, and a little wet in other spots.  But it's a FOREST!  Don't we ride bicycles made to be ridden in FORESTS?  Do we have to ride only in the manicured and easily navigated parks, dodging inattentive runners and piles of dog crap?

Somebody else has been riding down there (in the FOREST), I've seen the tracks.  But we spent 3.5 hours riding in the FOREST last weekend and never saw another human.  I know it's not buff single track and it requires you spend a lot of time on two track and graded roads.  Plus the sand makes pedaling hard.  Oh, and don't forget those horrible bushes that scrape your legs.  But the possibilities for adventure are endless.

If you know me, right about now you're saying "Old Man, you're so full of crap, you love machine built trails, and you whine constantly if you have to get off your bike for anything technical".  That's true and it may be because I spent so much time in the FOREST in my past incarnation as a moto head, but I feel comfortable there.

On second thought, I don't want you riding in the FOREST.  Too many people is what ruined it for moto and the same thing may happen again.  I like the fact that it's hard to find your way around, heck that's part of the challenge.  If everybody starts riding in the FOREST then the Feds will decide we're having too much fun and corral us back onto the spoon fed trails of Munson.

Ah, Munson.  I liked the old Munson, but I also like the new one.  Even though an orange ribbon of clay running through a sandy wiregrass upland assaults my sense of aesthetics, it is fun.  But it's not the real FOREST.  Someone even thought the trees were too close together on a section of Munson so they took it upon themselves to girdle them so they would die. 

So, yea, come to think of it, never mind about riding in the FOREST.  It's not at all fun, in fact it sucks pretty bad.  You wouldn't like it.

I know none of the 5 people who read this blog would ever girdle trees, I'm just ranting for fun.  Silk, I was just kidding about the bushes.   YOU like the FOREST.