Last Ride of the Year

Mountain Biking at Oak Mountain

With rain coming down in buckets on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, I escaped to Birmingham for my last mountain bike ride of the year, and it was a good one. Checking the weather often, the forecasters were calling for sunny and dry on New Years Eve at Oak Mountain. And, while the ground was saturated at home from ongoing rain, Birmingham has been experiencing drought conditions.

It was a no-brainer, grab the bike and head to one of the best trails in the Southeast, Oak Mountain State Park. Though I couldn’t locate any more hard core riders who were willing to drive 9 hours (4.5 each way) just to ride, I knew I would find some friends there. And, that I did, fortunately.

Once I arrived in the parking lot by the marina I noticed a few ladies unloading there bikes. They were on the trail before I could get ready, but more riders began to roll in. By 1pm I had met Richard from Batesville, MS and Brian from North of Birmingham, and we headed into the woods for a classic ride.

The weather turned out to be beautiful and the trail was in great shape. There were lots of leaves and a few wet spots because of recent rains, but for the most part it was tacky and fast. The time spent on this trail was exciting, exhausting and rewarding.

Nice singletrack curves through the woods with bermed turns and lots of switchbacks. Midway on the trip takes you to the top of the mountain with long climbs on ridges with nice views. While climbing isn’t my strong point any more, I still enjoy the burn. And, I know what goes up, comes down, so the downhills provide me with the most excitement. Bloodrock as it is appropriately called, provided plenty of technicality as well while we blazed down the mountain.

On one of the up and downs I noticed a leak in my tire. With tubeless tires I was not that excited about patching a tire or adding a tube. Fortunately, Brian had some CO2 cartridges and my Stan’s seemed to fill the puncture, at least long enough to finish the ride.

It’s a new year now, 2008, and I plan on many more rides like this one. In my opinion, nothing else compares to pushing your body to the limits while enjoying a long ride in the woods. My last ride of 2007 was a good one!

Ride On,
Barry
www.atbmx.com