I recently moved to Ogden, UT and have been excited to get going on the trails before the season ends. I picked up a few bikes off craigslist. The first ride went pretty disastrously, as I barely made it a mile out before my tire got a weird blister on it and then popped. My wife headed back to the road to grab the car (we were riding parallel to the road on the trails) and ended up wrecking very hard on the asphalt. She's done for the season.
Today, I went out determined to have a better day, and it didn't take long for that to happen. I headed down by 22nd st where I'd heard the trails where a little less gnarly than the trails by my place (Beus Canyon) for my beginner self.
What a blast. I can't speak to what makes a good trail or not yet, but it was like a playground of single track trails just spider webbing everywhere on the base of and up the front of the Wasatch front, up and down over and over. I started south along the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, which was a blast, and then turned around and just kind of played on the trails, picking random directions that looked good.
I found several places where the climb was too steep and I had to walk (though the knowledge that getting going again on the incline was going to be a PITA was a big motivator to keep going), and the downhill was always a blast. I hit some steepish (to me) stuff, one where I was on the brakes and it was steep enough that my bike just slid down without the wheels turning. I felt like I was going over the handle bars like 3 times on that section but managed to stay afloat. Another time I could keep the wheels spinning but the back tire just kept sliding around because of the steepness and loose gravel. I just kind of steered into it and widdled my way down. So fun.
In the end I went about 6 miles with 800 feet of total climb (and subsequent descent). I don't know how that compares to a typical ride but it felt like a pretty good workout to me. My legs were screaming from the climbs and my forearms were screaming from gripping the handle bars from the descents. Not sure how good of a leg workout mountain biking is compared to the gym, but it would be great if I could swap out my leg day at the gym for much more fun bike rides.
In the end, I learned a lot on my inaugural ride. Chiefly, that I need to bring more water on my rides. I brought the same amount that I usually bring for a run of similar duration and went through it much faster. There's nowhere to mount a bottle on the bike so I guess it's gotta be a hydration bladder.
Can't wait to get back out there, and I don't expect it to be long (today!).
Today, I went out determined to have a better day, and it didn't take long for that to happen. I headed down by 22nd st where I'd heard the trails where a little less gnarly than the trails by my place (Beus Canyon) for my beginner self.
What a blast. I can't speak to what makes a good trail or not yet, but it was like a playground of single track trails just spider webbing everywhere on the base of and up the front of the Wasatch front, up and down over and over. I started south along the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, which was a blast, and then turned around and just kind of played on the trails, picking random directions that looked good.
I found several places where the climb was too steep and I had to walk (though the knowledge that getting going again on the incline was going to be a PITA was a big motivator to keep going), and the downhill was always a blast. I hit some steepish (to me) stuff, one where I was on the brakes and it was steep enough that my bike just slid down without the wheels turning. I felt like I was going over the handle bars like 3 times on that section but managed to stay afloat. Another time I could keep the wheels spinning but the back tire just kept sliding around because of the steepness and loose gravel. I just kind of steered into it and widdled my way down. So fun.
In the end I went about 6 miles with 800 feet of total climb (and subsequent descent). I don't know how that compares to a typical ride but it felt like a pretty good workout to me. My legs were screaming from the climbs and my forearms were screaming from gripping the handle bars from the descents. Not sure how good of a leg workout mountain biking is compared to the gym, but it would be great if I could swap out my leg day at the gym for much more fun bike rides.
In the end, I learned a lot on my inaugural ride. Chiefly, that I need to bring more water on my rides. I brought the same amount that I usually bring for a run of similar duration and went through it much faster. There's nowhere to mount a bottle on the bike so I guess it's gotta be a hydration bladder.
Can't wait to get back out there, and I don't expect it to be long (today!).