Chasing an Epiphany
So...No inaugural single speed ride, the group ride I was supposed to trailmaster for didn't materialize, and Mickey couldn't make it today. Guess it was time for me to do some soul-o riding.
Off to Sta Rosa I go, I haven't ridden there in a month (been riding Maarat), and I set off on my own at 730am to beat the heat. Apparently I hadn't left early enough, as it was hot and humid on the early climbs. I was sweating buckets. I normally do not wear gloves on these climbs, but due to excessive sweating my grips became quite slick, so on the gloves went. Took a minute o two to recover after each hillclimb and at around 830am I was at the bukohan/Gatorade stop. Anthony, one of the local riders who knows the trails like the backs of his hands, was telling me about this new section of trail he discovered a few weeks ago, and invited me to check it out.
Anthony rides an Ellsworth Epiphany, and we set off at a pretty good pace. We tear thru the trails we normally ride - Spanky and I are doing our darned best trying to keep up with Anthony. I decide to keep a few bike lengths back - for safety purposes. Once we hit the doubletrack downhills though, Anthony just lets it rip and gets away easily. Hey, he's got gears! And 5 inches of suspension travel, front AND rear.
We enter this new trail (he calls it Anthony's trail) and it's a tight and twisty affair. My eyes are working overtime - watching Anthony's lines, his tires, and keeping an eye on the trail too. It's a great trail - we even ride along a ridge...till it starts to point down.
The first dip was alright, actually, except for a fallen banana tree that blockes the run out. So I had to dab and navigatge my way around it. The second dip, well, I think it was a ten-foot crest we rode down. It had loose soil and as I was following Anthony down (he cleaned it), my rear wheel slid out from underneath me and I took a tumble to the left. After a brief equipment check and a few chuckles we were on our way. I think I tweaked my groin. Ouch.
Anthony says there's another trail that invloves more ridge-riding, that leads down to the national highway and back to Paseo. Since he was pressed for time (he had a 10am meeting), we decided to hit that the next ride. We blasted through Duck trail and I try my best to keep up. Braking less and trusting my tires more (the very same ones that slipped under me - go figure). We part ways at the bottom of the trail and I take a break at an outpost and contemplate on whether to reverse the whole ride or just climb back up the gravel road and have a second helping of Duck.
Pedaling up the gravel road I start debating with myself what to do...the sun is beating down on me now and I decide to Duck it. Don't want to push myself too hard, seeing that the MH All-Terrain Race is next week. Hehe.
Off to Sta Rosa I go, I haven't ridden there in a month (been riding Maarat), and I set off on my own at 730am to beat the heat. Apparently I hadn't left early enough, as it was hot and humid on the early climbs. I was sweating buckets. I normally do not wear gloves on these climbs, but due to excessive sweating my grips became quite slick, so on the gloves went. Took a minute o two to recover after each hillclimb and at around 830am I was at the bukohan/Gatorade stop. Anthony, one of the local riders who knows the trails like the backs of his hands, was telling me about this new section of trail he discovered a few weeks ago, and invited me to check it out.
Anthony rides an Ellsworth Epiphany, and we set off at a pretty good pace. We tear thru the trails we normally ride - Spanky and I are doing our darned best trying to keep up with Anthony. I decide to keep a few bike lengths back - for safety purposes. Once we hit the doubletrack downhills though, Anthony just lets it rip and gets away easily. Hey, he's got gears! And 5 inches of suspension travel, front AND rear.
We enter this new trail (he calls it Anthony's trail) and it's a tight and twisty affair. My eyes are working overtime - watching Anthony's lines, his tires, and keeping an eye on the trail too. It's a great trail - we even ride along a ridge...till it starts to point down.
The first dip was alright, actually, except for a fallen banana tree that blockes the run out. So I had to dab and navigatge my way around it. The second dip, well, I think it was a ten-foot crest we rode down. It had loose soil and as I was following Anthony down (he cleaned it), my rear wheel slid out from underneath me and I took a tumble to the left. After a brief equipment check and a few chuckles we were on our way. I think I tweaked my groin. Ouch.
Anthony says there's another trail that invloves more ridge-riding, that leads down to the national highway and back to Paseo. Since he was pressed for time (he had a 10am meeting), we decided to hit that the next ride. We blasted through Duck trail and I try my best to keep up. Braking less and trusting my tires more (the very same ones that slipped under me - go figure). We part ways at the bottom of the trail and I take a break at an outpost and contemplate on whether to reverse the whole ride or just climb back up the gravel road and have a second helping of Duck.
Pedaling up the gravel road I start debating with myself what to do...the sun is beating down on me now and I decide to Duck it. Don't want to push myself too hard, seeing that the MH All-Terrain Race is next week. Hehe.
Labels: 29er, mountain bike
posted by 32by18 at 10:07 PM
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