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Old 12-07-2012, 12:21 PM
jgas jgas is offline
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Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 149
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Obstacle course is a good way to put it. Or maybe a natural terrain Endurocross course? If you ride technical stuff, it can be done in about 15 minutes. At least Guy Cooper did it in 15. My best time is about 17 minutes. I did it at night in 22 with slightly better than stock lights. I say it takes 45 because most people don't practice the tough stuff so they make alot of mistakes, bikes overheat, people overheat, people get mad after falling over 15 times and break their foot kicking the crap out of their bike, (that's a true story, I saw it happen. The feller kicked his bike and broke his toe, then had to ride out anyway, and also had a busted foot). One thing that really messes up people who ride this trail is they don't have their bike set up to handle it. You need a really low first gear, torquey motor, (flywheel weights for most bikes), a trials tire really helps. And most people spend so much time spinning, clutching, falling over they overheat their bikes and have to let them cool off which all adds to the time.

But the bench racing stories! And the scenic nature of this trail! It's the only place I've ever ridden where you feel like you are riding in a cave at times. There are two places where you ride between 60 ft tall sections of solid rock that are only about 5 feet apart. Places where the sun never shines. You ride right up to a 30 foot tall waterfall so close you can feel the mist on your skin. In the winter sometimes there are icicles ringed all the way around the waterfall's edge that are as tall as the falls, and touch the ground. It looks like a crystal sculpture or something. There are off cambers with drops into a creek if you screw up really bad, but when the water is running fast you are riding beside several places where the rushing water makes you want to stop and take pictures. Then after you ride up to the waterfall at the bottom you climb out of the creek and ride to the top of the fall. Unfortunately that creek doesn't run year round, but from Dec to June it is usually running. One reason I like being able to do the technical stuff is it lets me get into the remote places that very few others ever see.
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