I've been under the weather off and on for about a week now ..... Some
sort of cold/flu bug goin' around the Charlotte area. So since I can't
get out and ride, I thought I'd post my imaginary RR as if I was healthy
enough to hit the trail ....
Renaisance Park, Charlotte NC.
I decide to forego the entire 6 mile loop since I only have a little bit
of time before having to rush off to class tonight ... so I enter the
trail at the beginning of the second 3 mile loop .. the "back" trail.
Good riding conditions .... cold and crisp .. air steaming out of my
lungs in big clouds .... burst over the first log jump and let out a
hearty "whoop" just in case nobody knows I'm around! LOL
Work up a good sweat through the up and down sections leading to the big
"fish-bowl" whoop-di-do. Follow that with a slow, steady climb and a
killer bombing decent on the other side and now we're in the thick part
of the woods.
Here's my favorite part of the trail .... lots of wide sections of trail
with little log jumps and long, straight decents. You can really get
some good speed up and get the adrenaline flowing.
Then my least favorite part of the ride .... the rocky, creek-crossing
of doom. Where thetodd performed one of his better endos 3 years ago ..
faceplanting in the middle of the creek and cracking his helmet right
down the side on a semi-boulder on the creek bed. The butterflies are
swarming but I pick my line, just like I have a hundred times since that
spectacular crash, and glide across the rocks and up on the other side
like it was butter ....... I still wonder why that section haunts me?
Now it's an up and down .... climb and decent mile and a half back to
the parking lot. Lots of rocks, roots, switchbacks and tight squeezes
between trees. I've got a decent sweat going and just the right amount
of endorphines flowing when I pop out of the trees onto the paved
parking lot and wind down back to the truck.
As always, I sit on the tailgate for a few minutes after loading up and
polish off a bottle of gatorade while contemplating just how much I love
this crazy sport.
Wow .... a vicious snap back to reality. My head is plugged up like a
cement mixer and if I tried that ride today I'd be coughing so hard
after the first log jump that I'd never finish the ride!!!!!
Sigh ..... hope I get better soon .... the trail is calling and this is
as close to riding as I can get right now!
Am I bored or what??????
LOL
Ride hard y'all ......
thetodd