Trinity Valley Trekking

Alicia finally finally got some Texas dirt under her tires.  We had strong chilly wind to contend with, but she hit it head on with her new Schwinn, and we had a blast.

The ride today at Gateway could have only been better if there had been a little less wind, and if the trails had been a bit more dry.

Paint Ball Players

There was lots of leaf coverage, and it was damp, so it made for some slipping and sliding.  We also had some issues with some kids in the park playing with what I'm assuming were paintball guns.  They seemed to not realize that dumping their guns and ammo in a pile on the trail, while they gathered around for a conflict conference was an acceptable thing to do.  I nearly ran over a couple of them, and their little guns too.  When I braked to avoid a crash, I lost too much momentum to climb the hill past them, which nearly put Alicia running into me from behind.  In their favor, they apologized and cleared themselves and their G.I. Joe gear off the trail as soon as we cleared their spot.

Schwinn, Schwinn and a little more SCHWINN!

Alicia liked the park.  She said it has excellent technical challenges without the high-hill hauling.  The trails are also fairly well marked.  She couldn't actually see that they were well marked because of the leaf-carpet, but it was easy enough to follow in my tire tracks.

Locked and loaded.

While we were unloading, a guy pulled alongside us in a truck and asked if I rode the park frequently.  I confirmed that I do, and he asked if I'd run into any pigs yet.  I had to think a moment, wondering if he meant people who I'd consider rude enough for me to deem them pigs, or if he meant oink-oink-here-piggy-piggy pigs.  He meant the oink-oink-bacon-for-brekkie sort.  Per ham, I mean him, there are several oinkers that have been roaming the trails at Gateway Park recently, and they've even taken up residence in an abandoned house near the park property.  Much to the man's disappointment, I had to tell him that I've not yet encountered pigs of those sort at all during any of my rides on the cycle trails.

Cliff hanging.

He drove off looking disappointed but determined.  He said he's wanting to catch them and keep them.  He didn't have a cage in his truck, so I'm wondering what he'd have done if I'd pointed and said, "Yes!  I've seen pigs in THAT direction!"  Maybe his plan was to let them climb into the truck cab with him.

Nee getting shots of the Trinity below.

So far I've only seen cyclists, walkers and folks walking their dogs on the trails at Gateway.  Today, Nee and I found some tiny pony prints in the soft dirt, but even those type of tracks were a first for me.  And, it must have been a very tiny pony.  The tracks were no wider than the width of my palm.  I wish I coulda seen the pony, or donky, that made them.  I'm betting whatever it was, was really cute!

Tight fit and close riding.

After we completed the three sections of intermediate trails today, we called it quits.  It was pushing 1300, and I was needing to get to bed soon.  However, we took our cycles back to the house, unloaded and made a quick trip to Wally-World.  It was packed.  But, we wormed our way through the peeps buying all sorts of Christmas paraphanalia, and discovered we were the only ones interested in cycling equipment.  I picked up a new helm, because Nee insists that mine, after suffering a melt-down in the diesel-dually, isn't safe.  We got two new hydro packs and some bull extensions for Nee's bars.  It'll help her alot to alleviate carpal tunnel issues when she rides.  At least it helps mine a lot, so I'm assuming it will do the same for her.  If not ... she can hang things on them.  (I'm teasing about that last bit.)

Spokes :)

Before we made it out of the shop, Nee wanted to stop to look at some camera equipment.  I met this really cute and jolly guy in the photo lab.  I asked if I could take his pic for my weblog and he agreed, but he kept asking me to sit in his lap.  I declined the lap-time but DID take his picture and gave him my business card.

"Wanna sit in my lap?"

Hopefully his wife isn't a weblog reader or he's gonna be in a whole lot of trouble when he gets back to that workshop with the short people he kept talking about.  When we left the store, we checked the parking lot thoroughly for reindeer, but didn't see a single one.  I was disappointed, but not enough to climb up and have a look on the roof. 

Alicia, Greg (her husband), and the Cueball (my nephew) will be leaving in the morning.  (Crud!)  And, I'm for sure hating to see them go.  I've loved them being here, and home hasn't seemed quite so far away for the last few days.

Nee loves "parts & pieces" for pics.

Next time it will be my turn to head their way, and I'll get to take my Schwinn on a counter-initiation on some Kentuckiana dirt.  Alicia says the trails there aren't as well set up, but they're a whole lot longer and the paths are much more remote.

Marsh cruise-by before the last
wooded circuit.

I can't wait!!!

'Til next time .... safe spinning!!

No Flat Tires & No Broken Bones

Excellent ride today.  No one got hurt.  We didn't have any mechanical failures.  The trails were dry.  Woohoo!!! 

Would have been a little more exciting if the rest of the pack had been able to ride with us, but there were two out from being under the weather, and one had a conflicting schedule.  Jared's still recovering from blisters on his feet and Kim had an allergic reaction to the company carpet cleaner.  Torres had to work.

Heading into the Hobbit Trails @ Gateway Park

That left Luke Skywalker and I to head out on our own, which was OK because we had a great weather, and a really good ride all by ourselves.  We kept to the faster tracks today, maneuvering between tight trees and jumping small logs, and occasionally had those fast dips and short inclines.  Riding the fast trails which are more technically challenging is my preference.  Lukas likes the advanced circuit with the higher hills.  I'd like them, but leaning over my bars to get up an incline takes all of the fun out of it for me.  The ride back down is really fast, but the only technical challenge is to stay on the trail.  There are no jumps, and the turns aren't as many, nor as tight.

Luke Skywalker re-mounting to get clear of my Sidewinder.

I used a new camera today.  I recently purchased it from Kimi-Jo.  It's far more souped up than my cam, but it's also harder to handle when I'm riding.  To get most of my shots today, I had to dismount and click, then get back into the ride.  I'd have brought my own, but the battery was down, so I took this one out to see how well it would do.  I bought it for Alicia as a back-up cam, and I think for what she plans to use it for, it'll work great.  But, next ride, I'll have my own cam stuffed snugly in it's spot in my pack.  Every time I use it, I thank Torres for finding me a blonde-friendly digi-cam with beeps and buzzes loud enough to accommodate for my hearing loss. 

Over my bars.

The recent rains had left a good size patch of mud in a field we have to traverse to get to the far starting point of one of the three trail areas.  We skimmed over it and kept to the dryer parts along the sides.  But, once in the woods, we encountered only a couple of places that were soft enough to pull at my back tire.  They pulled my the rear of my bike far enough to the side, that I nearly lost my seat but it only lasted for a couple of seconds and I was able to compensate before it slid completely out from under me.  Lukas managed to avoid nearly all of them.

Torres was so disappointed that she couldn't make the ride with us today.  Since our schedules are nearly opposite these days, it's much harder for all of us to be off at the same time.  But, we're hoping to get in an outing this coming Sunday or Monday to make up for lost time.  A bad consequence of not riding frequently is getting saddle-sore.  I'm hoping I don't wake up with it tonight when I get ready to go to work, or I'll be standing at my desk for my shift, rather than sitting.

Lukas finishing up this circuit and nearing the woodline exit.

I didn't take my hydro-pack today either.  Several weeks ago, I picked up a basic Schwinn water bottle to take along when the weather got cooler and I wouldn't need as much fluid.  The bottle looks very cool, and it rides in the cage great.  But, when I actually tried drinking out of it, I had nearly as much of my sports drink dripping off of my chin as I did to swallow.  It was pretty messy, and very annoying.  Therefore, I think I'll switch back to my hydro pack regardless of the weather.

I pulled ahead and dismounted so I could catch some shots.

Lukas is coming along nicely with maneuvering techniques.  He did mention that his front rim is out of line again and he's noticing it's getting worse.  As good as McGuyver is, it will likely have to be replaced.  So, we kept a little slower pace today, just to be on the safe side, and he made it back home with no wipe outs and no broken bones.

Lukas observing his dad during his bike upgrade.

I'm using the same saddle Lukas is using now.  A Schwinn with Clear Gel Technology.  There are lots of gel saddles out there, but this one has near perfect contouring for a comfortable ride.  It's made a beyond impressive difference for me compared to the standard gel saddle the bike came with.  The original was a Schwinn saddle as well, and even had more padding, but somehow, the contouring of the new smaller one works much better.  It's the most comfortable saddle I've ever used, and that's even without the padded bike shorts I used to wear.  With this one, I don't even need them.  I should have guessed it would be because Lukas always rides in jeans, and even he stays comfortable on our long rides.  It was a great switch that was under $30 and worth every cent.  McGuyver installed the seat on Luke Skywalker's cycle when it got re-outfitted.  Lukas was kind enough to install my new one for me, and I'm way happy with the switch.

Lukas switching out my saddle and adding bull-horn
extensions to my bars.

Hopefully, by next ride the entire pack will get to make it for an outing together.  Hope so anyway.  It's great when all of us get to hit the trails at the same time, but we've gotta be a little more careful with tailing.  One bump into someones rear tire can topple the whole line like dominoes.

That aside, it's way worth it.  The company is excellent and we challenge each other in good ways.

That's all I've got for you for this ride.  Hope you liked the photos and commentary.  If you're in our area and would ever like to come along on a trip in the woods, let us know, there's always room for more!

Email or leave us a comment at the bottom of the blog and we'll be sure to get back with you ASAP.

'Til next time!