The day after after
Here I am, approaching day four of my four day weekend, and I'd have to say it was very satisfying on all fronts.
I started the day off with a call to my buddy Al. He and I used to ride together all the time, but things have developed in his life and he has given very little time to mountain biking. Since I hadn't heard from any one else early this morning about going riding, I tried my chances and gave him a buzz. With a little harassment, I was able to convince him that today was an excellent day to break out his Moots and traipse through the rocky funness of Gambrill. Through his own admission, five months was way too long to be off the bike. Soon enough, we were going up I-270.
When we got to the Gambrill parking lot we met an elderly couple wrapping up their hike. They were wearing their blaze orange vests which had me worried a little bit. Discussion among friends yesterday brought up the possibility that there were hunters sniping around Watershed, but Gambrill should have been safe. So I asked the husband if he knew anything about the hunting situation, and his wife said that it was better safe than sorry with the hunters in them parts. The husband said he heard gunshots in the periphery, but we'd be ok if we stayed on the main trail. Dang! I forgot my bear bell, a little bell that dangles from the seat that - besides annoying your riding partners - also lets others know that you aren't some deer rushing through the woods. I decided to wear my bright orange City Bikes jersey, red pants, and red knee warmers. Al commented in jest that there's no way I can be mistaken for a deer, even though I had a white saddle.
(Me, courtesy of Al: alsantos@mtnfreakfotos.com)
After locking up the car I looked over at Al and razzed him about all the stuff he was carrying. I had a glueless patch kit, a Gu, and my keys in my back pocket. On my bike I had a small pump and a waterbottle: just enough to get me back to the car. Mr. Minimal. On the other hand, Al had one of the largest Camelbaks I've seen in recent memory, chockful with a (full) large bladder, powerbars, tools, and various other nick-nacks that we most likely didn't need unless a tornado struck while we were away from the car. In addition to that, he was carrying a huge waist pack which contained his high-end, fancy pants camera, with separate flash. From that description could you tell who was riding the rigid bike, and who was riding the full suspension? ;) He ended up taking some good pics with his honking big camera.
Since he hadn't ridden at Gambrill in many years (methinks), he didn't care what we did. So we crossed the road and attacked the yellow loop clockwise. Every time I've ridden there I've always had a good time and this was no different. From the rocks, the views, and the all around challenging terrain, I thank goodness that we have something so close.
The weather was slightly chilly when we started, but I purposely dressed down because I've discovered many a time that I warm up too quickly. I have a great Craft undershirt that has a huge fold-over zippered turtleneck that rocks when things get chilly enough to necessitate knee warmers.
On the extended part of the loop we ran into Dan and Karen. I think I see Dan about every other ride, and the funny thing is that he's always going the other way. He unsheathed his hand and showed me a nasty cut he got a few days earlier that necessitated eight stitches. I was surprised he was out on one of the bumpiest trails in our area riding, knowing every rock probably shot pain up his arm. The guy's tough, no doubt.
During our brief chat with them, he mentioned he heard a gunshot on the outer edge of the loop. Again, raising our fears. He also told us to look for the blood and fur further up the trail, remnants of some hunter's prize as he dragged it along back to his car. Yuck.
We proceeded on and the rest of the ride was fast, fun, and thankfully without incident. Needless to say we survived without any buckshot in our arse a la Greg Lemond, so it was a good day as we ended it with some righteous sushi and sesame chicken at Taipei Tokyo in Rockville.
I started the day off with a call to my buddy Al. He and I used to ride together all the time, but things have developed in his life and he has given very little time to mountain biking. Since I hadn't heard from any one else early this morning about going riding, I tried my chances and gave him a buzz. With a little harassment, I was able to convince him that today was an excellent day to break out his Moots and traipse through the rocky funness of Gambrill. Through his own admission, five months was way too long to be off the bike. Soon enough, we were going up I-270.
When we got to the Gambrill parking lot we met an elderly couple wrapping up their hike. They were wearing their blaze orange vests which had me worried a little bit. Discussion among friends yesterday brought up the possibility that there were hunters sniping around Watershed, but Gambrill should have been safe. So I asked the husband if he knew anything about the hunting situation, and his wife said that it was better safe than sorry with the hunters in them parts. The husband said he heard gunshots in the periphery, but we'd be ok if we stayed on the main trail. Dang! I forgot my bear bell, a little bell that dangles from the seat that - besides annoying your riding partners - also lets others know that you aren't some deer rushing through the woods. I decided to wear my bright orange City Bikes jersey, red pants, and red knee warmers. Al commented in jest that there's no way I can be mistaken for a deer, even though I had a white saddle.
(Me, courtesy of Al: alsantos@mtnfreakfotos.com)
After locking up the car I looked over at Al and razzed him about all the stuff he was carrying. I had a glueless patch kit, a Gu, and my keys in my back pocket. On my bike I had a small pump and a waterbottle: just enough to get me back to the car. Mr. Minimal. On the other hand, Al had one of the largest Camelbaks I've seen in recent memory, chockful with a (full) large bladder, powerbars, tools, and various other nick-nacks that we most likely didn't need unless a tornado struck while we were away from the car. In addition to that, he was carrying a huge waist pack which contained his high-end, fancy pants camera, with separate flash. From that description could you tell who was riding the rigid bike, and who was riding the full suspension? ;) He ended up taking some good pics with his honking big camera.
Since he hadn't ridden at Gambrill in many years (methinks), he didn't care what we did. So we crossed the road and attacked the yellow loop clockwise. Every time I've ridden there I've always had a good time and this was no different. From the rocks, the views, and the all around challenging terrain, I thank goodness that we have something so close.
The weather was slightly chilly when we started, but I purposely dressed down because I've discovered many a time that I warm up too quickly. I have a great Craft undershirt that has a huge fold-over zippered turtleneck that rocks when things get chilly enough to necessitate knee warmers.
On the extended part of the loop we ran into Dan and Karen. I think I see Dan about every other ride, and the funny thing is that he's always going the other way. He unsheathed his hand and showed me a nasty cut he got a few days earlier that necessitated eight stitches. I was surprised he was out on one of the bumpiest trails in our area riding, knowing every rock probably shot pain up his arm. The guy's tough, no doubt.
During our brief chat with them, he mentioned he heard a gunshot on the outer edge of the loop. Again, raising our fears. He also told us to look for the blood and fur further up the trail, remnants of some hunter's prize as he dragged it along back to his car. Yuck.
We proceeded on and the rest of the ride was fast, fun, and thankfully without incident. Needless to say we survived without any buckshot in our arse a la Greg Lemond, so it was a good day as we ended it with some righteous sushi and sesame chicken at Taipei Tokyo in Rockville.
posted by rickyd 2 at
11:39 PM
1 Comments:
Looks like it was a good ride! I miss the rocky stuff, need to get back up there.
By
DT, at 10:05 AM
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