Today is going in my top 10 favorite days so far this year. I went out this morning and did my first mountain bike ride on an actual mountain bike trail. To put it simply, it was an awesome experience. It completely blows city riding away. Getting out of the city and spending a couple of hours in the woods is not only a great big pile of fun, it's also good for the soul. I went out to Cathedral Pines on Long Island and, this being my first ride, I figured I'd take it easy and try not to hurt myself, or wrap my bike around a tree. It's a six mile trail, with an optional 5.5 additional miles of "advanced hill-climbs." I skipped the advanced hill-climbs. I took my time and made it through in about an hour. I stopped a few times to eat and drink on the way through, I was in no real hurry. I had so much fun that when I got to the end, I didn't quite feel finished so I went for another lap around. This time I thought I'd try to go a little faster. Not long after starting the second lap, I caught up with some younger riders on what appeared to be cheap BMX bikes. One of them was on a bike that was way too small for him, and he appeared to be struggling a bit. The other had obviously been there before and knew his way around the trail pretty well. He was moving surprisingly quickly so I started following him, trying to keep up. We quickly left the other guy behind and went on for a chase down the trail. This was a humbling experience. I realize this was my first real mountain bike ride, but I've been road biking for a little while now and I feel like I'm a halfway decent rider. I've got the fancy padded shorts, the clipless pedals and the special shoes, a good bike and a bag of spare parts and tools. This kid was riding a piece of crap bike, wearing tennis shoes, jeans and a sweatshirt, and wasn't even wearing a helmet but he still smoked me through this trail. I kept up with him ok for about 20 minutes or so but I finally had to stop because my hands had gone completely numb on the bars, and I really needed to eat and drink some water. But he never stopped or slowed once. I was really impressed. I got underway again after I ate and had a rest, and it wasn't long before I saw a herd of deer running through the woods. Man, what a great day. I finished the second loop in about 45 minutes, I think, and I wanted to do it again, but I didn't want to push my luck. Plus I was out of food and water.
I also met a guy named Dan who was there with his son Daniel. Daniel looked to be about 9 or 10 years old. Dan is an experienced mountain biker, but it was Daniels first time out on a trail. They had already completed one lap and were getting ready to start another when I was talking to them. Evidently Daniel hadn't had quite enough either. I was glad to see he was having as much fun as I had. So, long story short, I will definitely be doing a lot more mountain biking, hopefully I can get a few more rides in before it gets too cold and starts snowing.
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