The Minnesota Noices

All-rounder on Singletrack

I was sure that I wanted to use some of my time off for a little off-road exploration of the bike. So, I popped the fatties on the bike, dropped the saddle, and headed to Theo Wirth for some singletrack. The bike did great! The old Conti Traction and WTB Velociraptor tires seemed to hold-up well, although I did notice a tear in the sidewall of the Conti. But, it held on for today. I’m certain that I’ll take the time to remove the fenders next time – they did rattle and catch a fair bit. Oh, and there will be a next time. What fun! It has been many years since I rode any singletrack (probably a few years before I moved away from CO), so I wasn’t sure how it would go. I did two laps of the A-loop. The first lap was pretty tentative and I avoided or walked the barriers. After all, I was basically a singletrack noob who’s now old and fat. The good news is that there’s basically no climbing in the route, so I wasn’t taxed in the brute strength department (where I would fail feebly). But there were some technical sections with barriers, balance beams, baby heads, etc. As mentioned, I gingerly tip-toed around those on the first lap. But the second lap. Oh, the second lap. It was like my body started to remember how to handle a bike in conditions other than pavement. I charged in and I rode most all of the obstacles. Some of them I nearly bit it on, but I made it through most. Some I did walk. I mean, I am currently unemployed and don’t want to have to trigger the COBRA clause on my old health insurance!

In any case, here are some pics of the day. Note the “late autumn” look of the trail and remember that this is MAY. Winter has been holding on for a long time.

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