Fiver

Kirk reconnoitering

"The Contraption"

"Kind of like White Clay" is what Bryan told us. But it's small and it's a bit of a haul (1 hour 20 minute drive from Lyndenwood) so it never quite made it into the weekend rotation. Finally this weekend with an appetite for an early 8:00am start, we made the trek to Trexlertown.

Tangent: "Early" start you say? Well yes because there are a lot dominoes that have to fall before a morning ride. The first domino is coffee and the forth or fifth domino is the 80 minute drive, but the problem is the approximately 20 minute delay between domino one and domino two. And you can't skip domino two. In my case, this game of dominoes translated into a 5:00 am alarm for me personally. 

The drive into the preserve reminded my of my rides in Wyoming and California. Small steep ravines, open vistas. The weather didn't hurt either (low 80s, dry air, blue sky, brilliant sunshine).

We saddled up, dove into the single track, and after a short climb (which, yes, could have been mistaken for White Clay) we were treated to some downhill flow like I've never seen on in SEPA (but did see in The Kingdom last year). Huge bermed diving turns one after another. Real table tops. Big pump-worthy rollers. Perfect flow through dense green cover mixed with excellent views. Most of the trails are directional - the downs obviously good for only one thing and the ups were deceptively gentle with lots of tight switchbacks that got us back to the top with seemingly no effort.

There were also a few miles of trails bench cut into the side of the various ravines. Fast and again expertly designed. There were also plenty of stunts in a small skills park as well as "The Contraption" (a compact collection of skinnies and ramps with at least a 6' drop on one side). We ogled but did not ride it although I think the wheels were turning in Kirk's head.

They've packed an incredible amount of fun into a small space here. It felt like about noon when Bryan told us it was 9:30. We were all giddy and couldn't believe we'd only been riding for an hour. So we rode another hour. And then we rode some more.

Thanks Bryan for your persistence. T-Town is definitely on the rotation now and I will have some super-sweet dreams tonight.

Chris

"Life is not so short but that there is always time enough for one more ride."
     -- Unknown

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

Isn't it just awesome when self-evident truths are confirmed through rigorous application of the scientific method?

I just (tried to) read a 2014 study from Royal Society Publishing titled "A relationship between attractiveness and performance in professional cyclists." About half way through the introduction my eyes glazed over and I skimmed to the findings to find that "the top 10 percent of cyclists is about 25 percent more attractive than the lowest 10 percent." Now for the ten people reading this blog post right now, this is fantastic news for one of you and not so great news for another one of you.

However the nine of you who are feeling varying degrees of disappointment may find some comfort in another study - this one conducted by scientists at Mindlab - that found "cyclists are considered to be 13 per cent more intelligent and ‘cooler’ than other people." Now this sounds like something we can all get behind, especially since the research was focused solely on roadies so a conservative 25% adjustment (3.25 percentage points) would raise that to just over 16% for mountain bikers. Who can argue with that adjustment? Certainly neither of these two roadies having an apparent argument during the 1995 Vuelta Espana:

Below are links to the two studies. Actually one appears to be a study and the other is just a self-promoting article from a British website and a picture of Bradley Wiggins sitting on a throne.

I will sleep well tonight.

Chris

"Chicks dig the dirty ones"
     -- Unknown

• http://rsbl.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/10/2/20130966
• http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cycling/cyclists-are-more-intelligent-charitable-and-cool-than-the-average-person-says-study-9051434.html

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Sunday was Evansburg State Park, a rugged "executive nine" of mountain bike trails near Collegeville. "Executive nine" because it is a short 5 miles (10 miles if you ride it forward and backward according to Mike, his math seams reasonable to me). Rugged because it hasn't been dumbed-down like more popular trail systems in our area. Log-overs, rock gardens, a couple of rough cut ramps and causeways, tight twisty obstructed-view single track, and an ample supply of death cookies on the punchy uphills and one particularly puckery downhill.

Duff hosted the post-ride debrief on his back deck, pouring some fine session ales while Carlos licked the blood and sweat off our legs (he was busy).

I was reminded how awesome it is to ride somewhere for the first time. It forces you to deal with what is coming at you. It forces you to react instead of prepare and it makes you a better rider. I see more road trips in our future.

Chris

“Like dogs, bicycles are social catalysts that attract a superior category of people” 
     -- Chip Brown

A Classic

Long shot of the peloton racing down Main Street. 

A parking spot on Main Street, breakfast outside at Winnie's Le Bus, and all the excitement of a professional cycling race rushing by table side. Twenty-minute laps left just enough time to do some people watching and hit the local bike shops before the peloton and the ridiculous parade of support vehicles races through town again. 

There is nothing quite like the spectacle of a cycling event. Yes, even a "roadie" event like the 2014 Philly Cycling Classic. 

Next year maybe I'll enter the morning amateur race with my fat bike. Turn a few heads grinding up The Wall.

Chris

Wear and Tear

After 3+ hours of riding at Fair Hill we were showing a little wear and tear but not as much as this stream crossing in the Fox Pen.

Kudos to Andy for leading the way on his single speed, and to Bryan for turning those monster 5" tires for almost twenty miles of rocky and rooty single track. It was a BIG ride and a fitting kickoff to another season of summer single track.

Chris

The Circle of Life

From this evening's pre-dinner ride.

A reminder of the circle of life and the long hard winter we endured.

Now, what's for dinner?

Chris

“A bicycle does get you there and more And there is always the thin edge of danger to keep you alert and comfortably apprehensive. Dogs become dogs again and snap at your raincoat; potholes become personal. And getting there is all the fun.”

-- Unknown

The Donkey Never Stood a Chance

Click me. Photo sequence capturing some sort of sacred shamanistic rite. Obviously.

The 2nd annual Cinco de Mayo Friday Happy Hour Ride was neither. It was Dos de Mayo and the "ride" was an express gravel grinder direct to The Beer Tree.

Well almost.

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We somehow managed to fit the skinny 70' swamp bridge into our ride. This was particularly interesting for me personally with a large pinata bungy-corded to my handlebars. I could not see two feet in front of my front wheel. This made the bridge more interesting than usual (which is saying something). I suspect it was also interesting for Mike (with a teak coffee table strapped to his back) and Kirk (with 24 pounds of Modelo in his backpack). Yes, you had to be there.

Once to the hallowed grounds of The Beer Tree we wasted no time. Within minutes our favorite friday hangout was festooned with a wanted poster of the much feared El Cinamino, Mexican flags were flying, the (in)appropriately stereotypical el mariachi music was playing, and a pinata was swaying too and fro over the trail.

The crowd continued to grow. The guacamole and chips came out. The camp stove was fired up and the sweet smells of simmering hot dogs taco meat filled the air. Mustaches sprouted. A cactus took root and swelled to six feet in a matter of minutes. More bikes and more people.

The much ballyhooed CdMFHHR was finally ON.

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Of course fans of high caloric pursuits tend to enjoy food. CdMFHHR featured an innovative menu included including guacamole lovingly prepared by senorita Wegman and hot dog tacos with fresh cabbage, barbecue sauce, and organic sour cream prepared onsite by our favorite mountain biking cocinero.

A few banditos stumbled into our festivities. We successfully wooed one with promises of a Modelo and a ride on a fat bike. A couple TBR racers working on their Strava KOM ratings dodged the pinata (and the Modelo) much to the disappointment of the crowd. Boo. And a trail runner so stunned by a Cinco de Mayo celebration occurring 3 days early took a header in the dirt on his way through.

The pinata competition may have been the crowd favorite. I won't attempt to describe it in words, instead I have cobbled together a short video that captures the unbridled spirit of this years competition.

I think I speak for everyone who was there when I say that the fun ended way too soon but thank God because of course we had to get ourselves home in one piece. Which we did.

Be sure to mark your 2014 calendar for Cinco de Mayo (on Uno de Mayo).

Chris