SS Madness

Now almost everyone has one! Ran into Spellman, he's riding a single speed. Rusty pulls one out of his trunk and starts ripping it up on one. Who's next?

Great ride. No pictures, but they would have just been black anyway.

Jason was ripping it up, getting faster every day (kind of scary). Jav and Rusty were in form as always. I only did one lap, but it was still a great night.

See you Thursday.

Not a Bad Ride

Rode with Javier, Rusty, and Joel on Saturday. It was great to be back on the bike after a week of just running. I felt kind of dull, but still had a great time. The fall colors are just starting to "pop" at Subridge and Krug. All of us maintained a steady pace, and even though Joel and Javier ran out of water, they still rode like a couple of champs. Rusty climbed the big hill at Sunbridge again. After three attempts I still couldn't make it, and I gave up. It is climbable, and doesn't look like it should be that hard. I just loose footing about 2/3 of the way up, then when the rear spins - I'm done.

Over all the trails at Krug and Sunbridge were in pretty good shape we had to stop a few times to clear down trees, but nothing that took more than 10 minutes to clear.

Saturday nite was the St. Joe Bike Club Night Ride. I opted to watch game 3 of the World Series instead - go Sox. Sounds like it was a fun ride with pretty good attendance.

Did a 2-hour Corby Ride Sunday Morning with the dogs. Pretty un-eventful. Fast and fun but not much interesting happened. One weird thing though. Kept seeing dead mice on the trail. Think I saw 7 or 8 in all. Not sure what that was about, was kind of strange though. The dogs sure enjoyed it.

Sounds like we will have a good turn out on Tuesday night. Make sure you have a light. Be there at 6:00 PM and we'll have a good ride.

Maine Is Sweet

I'm in Maine for work this week. Have never been here before, but if I could afford it would definitely consider the location. It is probably the most beautiful country I have ever seen.

Ran on the beach this morning before sunrise. It was awesome.

Watched the sunset on the ocean. It was awesome.

Crawled around on the rocks during low tide. It was awesome.

Sat through some training classes (no pictures, and not awesome), then went and had seafood. Food was awesome.

I'll be back and looking to ride on Saturday. Hope some folks are available.

WET and NIGHT

Well dark riding is here. Bring a light if you are coming out after about 4PM, cause you'll be seeing some twilight for sure. It was getting pretty dim about 7pm on Tuesday when I ran into Jason. He was out riding with Ryan, a guy I don't know. Jason is pretty new to the trails, but is improving quickly and I'm thinking he'll be out running me pretty soon. Keep it up buddy!
Just before dark I was enjoying all the crazy mushrooms and fungi that are blooming in the Corby areas right now. There is a whole different flora in Krug. This is one of my favorite times of year for hiking and riding for that very reason. Kind of makes me think of going to another planet or to the deep ocean some of the organisms are so big and exotic. Here's one with my bike in the foreground for scale.
Keep in mind those are 29" wheels, and these crappy photos don't do the fungus any justice. Still one of my favorites are the huge white ball mushrooms. I saw bigger ones last year, but there are definitely more numbers this year....
Pretty much since I finished riding on Tuesday, its been raining. The dogs have not been enjoying it (this is a picture I took when I got home from work to find two very wet dogs in the back yard). They have a dog house, but they aren't smart enough to go in there out of the rain. Apparently sitting in the downpour at the door is more comfortable. I'll tell you, these two are getting ready for some winter riding. If you think you can outrun these two on your bike, think again. They are also great for trail work, they've got backpacks, and the backpacks carry supplies (mostly beer). They've got to earn the right to run on my rides, and they're happy to oblige.

Hope for dry on Thurs. If so, I should be out around 6-6:30.

Have a good one.

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday

Ended up hiking the Riverbreaks trails Sunday AM. Did a 4.5 - 5 mile loop on the East Section of the area. It was great. There were some trails that would be really fun on a down hill bike. Looonnng down hills, wide open, I bet you could carry 35 mph without too much effort.

Afterward, met Rusty, Ray, and Randy (R^3) at Sunbridge. Things were a little wet, but not slippery or sticky. Rusty climbed the big hill that almost everyone walks. On a single speed, I don't think climbing it is even an option - but Rusty ripped up it on the gears. I even saw him stand up out of the saddle, almost didn't recognize him at first. Congratulations man, what a climb.

We also went looking for new trails at Sunbridge. Found some really overgrown stuff that required lots of hike-a-bike. Then we ended up climbing up the side of an old motor cycle climb, which was nearly straight up - tough with a bike slung over the shoulder. Definitely a challenge, but it was something different that kept things interesting.

Rain, Rain...

Kind of rainy today. I don't think many folks rode today. Usually when it rains I like to go hiking with the dogs, but ended up going to Pumpkinfest downtown with the family. It was a good day for it as the weather cleared in the afternoon.

Hoping that we can get a ride together in the AM. If its clear, lets try to meet at Corby Parking Lot around 8:30. Corby will be rideable by tomorrow AM. Krug will be a mess. The River will probably be okay, maybe we can check that out too...

Thursday Already?

Can't believe it's already thursday. After a lame attempt at a ride on Tuesday, I'm ready for some trails. Got the SS fixed up and I plan to be there around 6. Hope some others can join me.

Saturday is the Beer Ride in Lincoln. It's a blast, but not sure if I will go this year. It is the last weekend that bikes can be in the conservation areas for the winter (deer hunting time is here). Would like to do an epic on Saturday and hit Honey Creek, Riverbreaks, and maybe Sunbridge to round out the conservation area tri-fecta.

Any takers - don't want to do it alone. It will be a long day though, I guarantee. We're talking 30-some miles of trail with 50-some miles of dirt road and highway between. It will be worth it though, I can guarantee that too. Who's in?

It's Tuesday

It's Tuesday, the light is charging, I'll be at the newly paved Corby South Parking lot around 6:30 PM.

See you all there!

NEW MAP!!!

Check out the map of Honey Creek. Went and hiked most of the "A" loop on Sunday with the dogs and my daughter. Not the best mountain biking, but it is still challenging to ride. Can't complain about any form of trails.

Note that if you want to go ride these trails, bikes and horses are not allowed during the winter months, as the hunters kind of invade this area. October 15 is the last day to ride at Honey Creek.

There is about 20 miles of trails in this conservation area, maybe 30. It is a very well maintained area, and is beautiful. I like to ride out there on gravel roads. It is a ride with some of the best gravel hills, dirt shacks by the side of the road, wild packs of dogs, and even a couple of hollars along the way. With the "B" loop, the ride is about a 70 mile day.

Also, if you come back over Monkey Mountain you are in for a helluva climb. I broke a single speed frame climbing the hill that goes over Monkey Mountain. Still made it home, but twisted on it so hard a weld just popped.

With the dirt on the way there, the whole experience is a great ride! Check out the Map.

Saturday AM Ride

Had a great group ride this morning.

Rusty showed up early and took the Chainsaw to a couple of downers in south corby. Trail's all clear.

I showed up a little later and we rode (this is Rusty riding with his chainsaw) over to the North side and hacked out a couple more downers. Trail's all clear.

When we got back to the parking lot Randy was there and Brad was just showing up. We joked around for a bit then realized Spellman was out riding too and called him over.

It was a good ride. Everybody is in pretty good shape and the group held together nicely. It was a really nice ride, and I am looking forward to more of the same in the upcoming months.

We also did a lot of talking about what the new-new girl scout camp trails will look like. Sounds like everyone is getting geared up to get those chain saws spinnin and shovels chucking. Can't wait to have some more trails to ride. We're going to have to cut the next round real wide to minimize maintenance, as all the mileage is getting tough to keep up with as it is. Still, it's worth it though.

Total Ride was a South Corby lap, North Corby lap, Over to the GS Trail (out and back on that trail), North Corby backwards, South Corby backwards.

Dark Rid'n

Rusty and I hit the Corby trails in the dark last night. Good trails, decent lights, good times.

Looking forward to some good dark rid'n this winter.

Tuesday Ride

Met up with Rusty and was introduced to Jason for the first time last night. Weather was great, although there was a couple trees down at Corby. Rusty said he was going to get that chainsaw running this weekend.

Mud was pretty much under control, and even though it got pretty dark and we didn't have lights, the trails were still negotiable.

Made it home without getting run over, and made the decision that next time I will have a good light kick'n so the cars mistake me for a alien spaceship instead of a target.

Twilight Riding

It's Tuesday, and time for some twilight riding. We're talking one of the last evening rides where there is any light at all. So bring a light, and lets do a couple laps at Corby!