It was done today at Hickory Glen in Commerce as the MiSCA youth riding club held race number one (not sure how many are slated) and yours truly patrolled with a handful of others. I did witness a few tumbles but no one needing this pedaling St. Bernard to assist them.
As far as the social distancing, the racers/riders were told ahead of time to arrive 30 minutes before their departure time (chip timed - riders started separate about a minute apart) and leave the park once you finish. No lingering. Most parents (lot of helicopter parents at that) were masked up with very limited clustering so a gold star to the group putting it on under the circumstances.
The bike tour headed to potato country this past week to....bike. And sweat just a bit as the temps were up there so morning rides were on the docket (my brain was still on eastern time so early was not a problem). Boise, Idaho did not disappoint.
Downtown Boise more or less sits a little above sea level but is surrounded by hills/mountains/rivers. The foothill trailhead access is only a short drive/pedal from downtown and found that a great start to dabbling my feet into these incredible trails. A local mountain bike patroller gave me the lay of the land and where to park so thank you to the riding gods for having this individual present while I was looking lost finding the trailhead.
The second day's ride was no dabbling of the feet. A 16+ mile drive up (way up, about 6,000 feet of zig-zagging at 20-25 MPH until you park) Bogus Basin Road to Bogus Basin Ski Resort. The main trail's name is "Around the Mountain" and that is literally what are doing on the ride. Some manageable climbs to get you to the berms that run on the side of the mountain while you look off onto some of the most beautiful mountain ranges in the distance. The mountain bike gods were again looking after me as I ran into a few riders to show me where to start as the internet's recommended path start no longer existed (the internet was wrong??? - shocker)
As noted, the drive up to the ski lodge was 16+ miles and while the drive was crazy enough, I saw about 30 road cyclists slowly plodding up the mountain on their 10 speeds. That didn't look fun to me but am guessing it's quite a feeling of accomplishment and there is always the fun of going down the hill once getting to the top. One word of warning for those attempting the task in that bicycles share the road with vehicles and must obey the same local speed limits. Friend Gus back in the day pedaled down Brockway Drive in the U.P. and we clocked him at 45. While that is hauling, a Boise local advised me he was pulled over by the police coming down the mountain via bicycle and was clocked at 60. The cop gave him a warning but that is hauling some back side and would be quite a tumble if a rock were to grab your front tire.
There are no 60 MPH views in the video below as I was dragging ass most of the time but hopefully it captures some of the beauty this great state possesses.
Trail Head
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The helmet cam today takes us to the suburbs of Ann Arbor, an area so pompous (with the university nearby), it has street signs blue and yellow instead of the standard green and white (a nudge to their friends down the road in East Lansing). Bitterness aside, today we venture to Pinckney Recreation Area, home of the 17 mile Potawatomi Trail. A quest through the hills of hell (that have seen their better days; lot of erosion), many bridges, a couple prairies and many many roots/rocks to navigate through, it isn't for the leisure rider. The park also has shorter loops via the Crooked Lake and Silver Lake Trails; although even those have their difficult moments.
trailhead
The park resides about 10 miles west of US-23 via North Territorial Rd (for those coming from the east) to Dexter Townhall Rd, north to the park entrance. Riders share the parking lot with the beach-goers at Silver Lake, a beautiful lake and a treat to jump into after a long ride.
positives
For the hardcore rider, the trail has everything. Some of the hills are impossible in my eyes to climb but assume there are riders out there who don't leave their pedals the entire ride. I did my share of walking up hills during the ride. The trail has it's share of hills, however, most can be conquered by pedaling, rather than coasting, on the downhills to get momentum up to the next hill. Always be looking ahead and you won't have too many issues getting through it.
It is a beautiful park/forest with lake views at various portions of the trail.
A great sense of accomplishment after finishing with the lake jump in front of you afterwards.
negatives
As noted above, the old lady has taken a bit of wear over the years and is showing it. I don't dare mention it on the trail condition sites as the too-tight-spandex-riding mafia might call me out. "How dare you want to alter our trail!!!" Lighten up Francis.
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As promised a few months back, attached (no fake news, that is me) is a four month attempt at growing facial hair. Not exactly the Ron Swanson/Thomas Magnum (fictitious people) 'stache I envisioned in my dreams but could probably go into the next decade not shaving and still have the same spotty, mixed color with various patches. I'll miss getting an extra drink of water walking out of the shower from the mustache grabbing excess water or looking like I'm thinking about something serious while rubbing it, but the experiment ended this past Friday as the razor made an appearance. I'd like to say it was a good run but no.
Trail Head
It was done today at Hickory Glen in Commerce as the MiSCA youth riding club held race number one (not sure how many are slated) and yours truly patrolled with a handful of others. I did witness a few tumbles but no one needing this pedaling St. Bernard to assist them.
