warm and sunny, no snow in the forecast. This is too weird!!! Must ride.
I've got my "winter wear" down to a science, and I am seriously annoyed that
I pulled the bike racks off the roof rack and mounted the ski bars and have
to use the strap on rack... but it's all good.
I'm riding solo today, and decide to investigate some little bits of trail
I've spied my last few outings to riverside. One little bit looks
inviting, but after a 1/2 mile dead ends at the horse concession boundary,
$86 fine to enter on a bike. I'll have to look into that, that's part of the
official "park loop" trail but maybe mountain bikers aren't meant to make a
loop of it? I turn around , retrace my frosty tire tracks, and hang a left
onto #25. I have a good idea where this will take me; up to the old RR
grade, and then a sweet twisty trail into forest. Conditions are
"variable": frost, frozen mud, soft mud, cool shade, warm sun. The trail
looks different as all the grass has died down. It's still narrow, but feels
more open due to the vegetation die back of the winter. Whee. I'll have to
go this way again.
Once I hit the main trail, I decide to ride one of the loops backwards of
usual... this means push the bike UP the Devil's Down but what the heck. I
haven't gone this way in years. The trail is in the shade, frozen and fast.
Haha, I go down the Devil's Up. I have to scan the side of the trail for the
side shoot I'm looking for, eeep, almost missed it. Hmm. #10. OK, this one
is steep down. Note to self, they really need some trails between the levels
that aren't practically fall line trails!! Another observation is that all
the loose [censored]... fragmented basalt and what not is a lot more fun to both
go up and go down when it's frozen.
It's fun pedaling along in the frost and the sun. I take one last explore
up what turns out to be a deer trail.... 100' in and it dissipates. But
it's been a good day, a little mud on me, a little mud on the bike. My new
cycling clothes I've made out of dryskin ( jacket and pants ) are just the
ticket.. warm, breathable, and when I hit melted frost dripping branches,
the water just beads up. Oh, and my new angora socks ( thank you tuffgrrl)
are just excellent for warm tootsies.
It's very bizarre for around here to have this great weather this time of
the year. It's even weirder to hit the ski shop for some boot fitting on the
way home from a ride...
Penny