Double Dipping

Yesterday's ride with DPOW just wasn't enough. I mean it's November and Ma Nature is putting out in the form of warm temps like a Prom Queen hopped up on Rohypnol and wine coolers.

So it goes without saying that I could not keep myself away from the mountain. I put all the non practicing Catholic guilt associated with not going out to visit my Dad aside and went to the mountain for a double dip of mountain riding.

I knew after yesterday's ride, the legs were just not gonna be the same, but I still had a blast. I only did about 24 miles, but most of it was single track, double track today, or straight UPPP hill on some forest roads. I think I was on pavement for about 200 yards all day.

The leaves were loud and crunchy, the temps were autumnal and perfect, and I once again rode the mountain, knowing full well that in a weeks time there could be snow were I was riding. And that's fine by me. I love the freakishly warm temps and the chance to ride 13ish hours this week in freaking November, but I am also down with the rules of nature and know full well that it needs to snow and rain now.
The mountain needs to have their blanket of white to saturate the ground and to keep businesses like Seven Springs going. If those businesses go away, races go away, land is sold, creeps buy said land, places to ride go away, and life sucks. SO, while I hope to get a few more rides in this year, I am also fine with letting nature have it's way.

Today I hit up Lookout Loop near Hidden Valley, then up Red Oak to Beltz, and down into the land of vacant Boy Scout cabins. Then forest roads to Martz/Pump House and up Ridge to Jones, and then climbed Pritts Distillery Road to some of the Seven Springs single track.

I did some of that, and then rode forest roads and Fire Tower back to 31 and the xB. The ride sort of packed it all into 24 miles, and gave me some good ideas for next week's ride (I hope).

I got about 6 hours of riding in, in two days, and the is NO way i can bitch about that. Today the single track was boss, and it was a nice break from yesterday's forest road/pavement binge. There was still a lot of climbing, but more dirt, more roots, and more rocks. The constant crunch of leaves was a bit maddening, but is to be expected this time of year.

So ends a great weekend of mountain biking. If the winter rains and snow come tomorrow I can rest easy knowing I took full advantage of Ma Nature's gifts of dirty pleasure. As luck would have it though, it looks like we may be in store for at least another few days of pretty OK weather.

Hope you all got some miles in this weekend too. No ride tomorrow, I have a TON of work to do. Time to get my design freak on.

Later.