Mohican Mud

Our schedules and weather aligned.  Ryan and I headed down to Mohican for an off-road ride.

The bikes had not seen each other in a while.

The weather had been a little warmer but I did not expect to find the mud spots we encountered.  It was still a fine afternoon for a ride through the woods.  The temperature was in the upper 30's and I added a vest layer atop my wool jersey for some extra warmth.

No leaves or under story to block the views.

I tried to eat more often to keep some energy going.  At the covered bridge I ate up a homemade energy bar and we got to business on Mount Doom.

Doing some climbin'.

We cut the loop short at about mile 21 and headed back to the car via road.  This gave some opportunity to fling mud of the bikes.  They were still quite dirty upon return to the parking lot.

Wash me!

It was a good early season ride.  My forearms seemed to get as much workout as anything, just holding onto the bars.  Maybe some spring weather will show up for the next ride!

Heading home.

Gravel & Mud Along the Rail Trail

With cross bike on the car rack I met Ryan in Fredericksburg for a ride.  The forecast for today called for temperatures approaching 60 degrees.  Choosing clothes was a challenge, it just didn't seem right to head out with so few layers in January.

Ellen tests out my clothing choices.

We jumped on the rail trail and headed south.  At a road crossing after Holmesville we left the trail behind in search of some quality Holmes County township roads, from the point of view of a cyclocross tire.

Not so much a gravel road,

it was more so a muddy road.

 

The roads zigged, the roads zagged, and our bikes were getting dirty.  Perfect.  We linked together some previously unknown roads and made our way into Millersburg.  The run into town ended up being on a state route as one of the township roads we intended to use was a road no more.  I guess the map needs updated.

A good road for fenders.

We rode our way back to the rail trail and headed north.  Along the way we had both shed some layers, it was feeling warm.  In Holmesville we once again detoured from the trail trail, but this time to the west instead of east, in search of more unpaved roads.  I think the sloppiest road of the ride was discovered in the final few miles, and this road made a post ride hose-down of the bike necessary.  We found some good ones.

Enjoying the cross bikes.

Ricardo at the Knob

Ricardo, a friend from work, wanted to hit the Knob before transferring to a new job out of state.  He is headed to South Carolina where I'm sure he will be able to find some good trails to ride.

Arriving at the Knob after work I watched lightning and dark clouds moving in.  Is it really going to rain?  I guess it's been so seldom to have rain this summer it's surprising when the skies actually let down some water.  Ricardo and I set out on a lap and rain it did.

Weather moving in.

At the first crossing of an access road I led us back to the pavilion.  Soaked to the core, we stood in the pavilion and watched the show.  Torrential down pour, lighting, and nearby thunder was frequent.  About 20 minutes later the storm had passed by and two guys rolled into the pavilion having experienced the storm out on the course.  It sounded pretty sketchy.

 Our mounts picked up some mud.

Already geared up, and muddy from our short ride, we decided to head back out and see what we would find.  Puddles were frequent but it seemed much of the rain had run off.  We had a fun, slightly sloppy time riding.  Ricardo's bike handling skill was impressive, the conditions did not seem to affect him.  I'm sure Ricardo will be able to find some off road, two-wheeled fun in his new neighborhood!

Back to the vehicles, sporting some wet dirt.

I enjoyed riding the Karate Monkey for the first time at the Knob.  The handling once again felt natural, which made mazeville fun.  The rigid front end did not beat me up to much, which was a little surprise.  Good ride and display of weather this afternoon!

Guess it's time to wash the shoes.