Back to NCMP for another workout. Today’s goal was to go non-stop as hard as I could for 3 laps (aprox 22 miles). Probably wasn’t going to make it but wanted to get an idea of where I stood endurance-wise.
First loop was OK but a little sketchy. Front suspension is still deflecting all over the place on small stuff yet it’ll roll over an 18″ log like nothing…. There was stil enough mud in spots to keep things interesting.
On the second loop is where things started to fall apart. Legs and knees were OK but my triceps and forearms started to get tired. The first crash came about 11 miles in. Semi-sharp muddy right-hander, front wheel washed out and sent the left side of my body into a tree. No damage beyond a few bruises and a bent hand guard….took a minute to regroup and got back at it. Another mile in and down I went again over some wet roots. At this point I knew it was time to stop, upper body was going away in a hurry. Decided to ease up the pace and just ride back to the pits. Of course, being me, that ‘easy pace’ lasted about 50 feet before I was back on the throttle again. Sho’nuff, another mile down the trail and I bit it hard. Didn’t get the front wheel up high enough over a mud puddle; when it came down it hit the side of a root and skated right out from under me. I landed face-first in the puddle, the opening in the front of my helmet scooping up what felt like a gallon of mud. There was mud everywhere – my mouth, ears, hair, goggles, in my gloves, soaked into the left side of my jersey and pants, packed into the vents of my chest protector…. Cleaned up best I could, rode back to the pits and called it a day.
-Bob