Yesterday I decided to go for a ride after work. Since my road bike is at the shop getting tuned up for bike and build, i was left with my 'cross bike. Given the limited amount of time (approx 1hr) before sunset, I decided to take my cyclocross bike in the woods behind my house for some singletrack action.
I thought this would be a good idea because
1. I was interested in trying out my Mavic Kysrium SL's as 'cross wheels (I'm using my cyclocross wheelset for bike and build because they use normal spokes and have a high spoke count, and I actually want the weight penalty of a heavier wheelset)
2. Theres not alot of riding that can be done in an hour and considered a good workout, unless I was doing high intensity intervals. An hour in the trails (at least for me) is a much more challenging ride.
3. I bought what has amounted to another expensive toy this past November as part of the Upenn Team deal (in the hopes of racing 'cross next fall) and had taken my cross bike out all of five or six times for the entire year. I wanted to see what this thing could handle, and what I could handle, as I've never spent any time mountain biking, even though I have one of the best trails directly behind my house.
I had a lot of fun sloshing through puddles, running up hills, and having one of those great moments where you just feel like its just you, your bike and the path in front of you. In many instances, it is those moments you feel the most detached from the rest of the world that you feel the most connected to it.
I thought this would be a good idea because
1. I was interested in trying out my Mavic Kysrium SL's as 'cross wheels (I'm using my cyclocross wheelset for bike and build because they use normal spokes and have a high spoke count, and I actually want the weight penalty of a heavier wheelset)
2. Theres not alot of riding that can be done in an hour and considered a good workout, unless I was doing high intensity intervals. An hour in the trails (at least for me) is a much more challenging ride.
3. I bought what has amounted to another expensive toy this past November as part of the Upenn Team deal (in the hopes of racing 'cross next fall) and had taken my cross bike out all of five or six times for the entire year. I wanted to see what this thing could handle, and what I could handle, as I've never spent any time mountain biking, even though I have one of the best trails directly behind my house.
I had a lot of fun sloshing through puddles, running up hills, and having one of those great moments where you just feel like its just you, your bike and the path in front of you. In many instances, it is those moments you feel the most detached from the rest of the world that you feel the most connected to it.
As much of a spiritual experience this ride became, (today may have been the first time where I really enjoyed riding off-road), I can still say it was probably a bad idea.
1. apparently my kysrium SL's are not as bomb proof as I thought, and I sent the front one out of true-- this only further reinforces my belief that my original cross set was the right choice for bike and build.
2. Stillwell is one of the most overused trails in the county, and as a result has become a bike shop's best friend as alot of the dirt has been replaced by sand and traction is tricky at best.
3. my lack of experience led me to fall over and crash several times and I slightly twisted my ankle- this is not what I should be doing before leaving for a 9 week bike trip that I will never have opportunity to do again if I dont do it this summer. Other than a few scrapes and bruises, thankfully I was alrite and I can say that falling on dirt is alot softer and safer than crashing on pavement and speeds are much slower.
4. With nightfall fast approaching, I wound up getting quite lost and only by pure luck wound up making it out of the woods before it became dark.
5. Cleaning a 'cross bike is a royal pain, and I did a half-ass job at best.
Although this ride gets chalked up in the bad idea column (i've been doing that plenty lately it seems), I still was glad to have done it, as its the first time this summer I've gotten in a ride after work.
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