better late?

Ugh, didn't get to post up early this morning...

I've got a couple items I can choose from to ramble on about here... so I think I'm going to crunch two together for a quick recap here.

The other week I rode a new trail (to me) and it was pretty cool.  Well, the best feature of the ride was the fact that it was randomly 70+ degrees!!  I was talking to one rider at the trailhead and he said he had never seen the trails so busy, outside an organized race.  The trail in question is Fisher Farm.

The trails were well marked, and identified as easy (green circle), intermediate (blue square), and advanced (black diamond).  As with a lot of trails here that use these trail designation, there is always a negligible difference between the green and blue.  Which then, in effect, makes the labeled black diamonds more like blue squares.... hmmm, I have a hankering for Lucky Charms right about now.

Bucket O' Charms

There were two black diamond segments.  One which had a skinny at the "entrance" and was clearly avoided by most riders as evidenced by the piles and piles of leaves covering the trails (= no love for the trail).  I wouldn't say that this stretch was particularly difficult, more so "rough."  It consisted of frequent ravine dips, some with boards down a side and across the bottom (I'm guessing to help when it is wet out?), and of course the treacherous rootiness that some riders shy away from here.  The other black diamond segment provided a nice climb with a challenging boulder decent.  With the leaf cover I opted to walk it rather than take a nasty miscalculated tumble somewhere.  Another rider at the trailhead mentioned that riders had been med-evacuated because they have gotten "in over their head" on that section.  I can see that.

Overall, the blue square was a fun flowy route to follow.  On my first lap there was a blue square split, one going up and one going down, and I unknowingly picked the short cut (up).  On my second lap I found additional mileage I had missed by taking the "up" option - which also led to the "rocky" black diamond option.  It was also on this leg of the blue loop that I wiped out on a fast turn - leaves just slide out from under me.  It was ok, my left leg needed some road rash to match the scabs on the right leg from my last crash.

Overall, nice little trail.  I was clocking the mileage in at about 4 miles (less for that first lap where I accidently took the shortcut) and it was a trail that was easy to do multiple laps on without getting too bored of the terrain.  And, I guess it's part of the Wednesday night summer race series, so I may just be riding it more in the future.  It won't be a trail that is in the regular rotation as it is a little bit of a drive for me, and probably not enough pay off for just a regular ride.

Ok, the other bit of info is less involved.  I think I've put together a decent loop that is mostly bike friendly for the road bike (perfect, since it's "winter" and trainer season... right?).  There should be options to expand the loop section to add mileage on as needed/desired.  The "leg" to get out of town may be further refined to ensure easier navigation surrounding heavier traffic areas and whatnot... but it was an easy enough time.  So, that is exciting.  It's pretty key to have a road option right out your door... I mean that is the point of riding the road, the easy of it... if I'm going to drive to bike, you better bet it's going to be on dirt!!

I did get to wave at the mountain bikers getting ready to hit Sherman Branch as I rode by.