Jason's blackside...

Well I've already embarassed him enough by using that title for this entry. I won't attach any adjectives to his backside. I will, however, say that I saw a lot of it tonight.

I chased Jason around Fountainhead tonight. I won't delude myself into thinking that myself into thinking that I was keeping up with his fast stuff, but I did have fun chasing him on the hills and sorta keeping him in site. Luckily I've got really good eyes and he was wearing bright colors. ;)

I started feeling a *little* better tonight. I took the geared monkey out tonight for a ride. I need to put more rides in on it before we ride in the 24 hour race at Big Bear. I counted tonight and even though I've had the bike for just short of 3 months now, tonight was only the 8th ride on the bike. It was also the second ride in Virginia.

Back to Fountainhead. Jason was riding really well tonight. I let Brian and James follow him at the beginning and I kinda hung back with Corey. As I warmed up, I felt like I could pick up the pace a little. I certainly wasn't in Jason's league, but I felt good on the climbs and I kept him in site for the rest of the ride.

The really fun stuff was all the roots and rocks. I know Brian was wishing he could get past me to let loose on the descents, but I had a damn fun time riding the bucking bronco that the monkey becomes on some of those big roots and rocks. My shoulder didn't complain a bit.

As a quick side note, DAMN THE NEW TRAILS ARE GREAT!!!! The cool thing is that they're only going to get better. As they ride in a bit more, the roots and rocks will work their way up and the trail will get all ripply and bumpy like much of the rest of the trail.

I'll also make a comment about how much fun the rigid 29er is on those trails. There are plenty of sections where it is rooty and rocky and you still need to be putting some power down. The cool thing is that you can just lift off the saddle a little and let the bike float underneath you as you pedal through the rough sections. It is a cool feeling. It is like there's a lot of dancing going on under you as your elbows and knees soak up the bumps, but the upper body feels smooth and level as you pedal through. Cool feeling.

Thanks guys for a great ride.

Pete