This is part two of Starting to Mountain Bike with my GF!
Saturday afternoon while eating breakfast and watching playoff Hockey (yes gentlemen IrishGirl is THE perfect woman!) I do the requisite pre-first-ride maintenance (reflectors--, water bottle cages++, GOOD lube on chain++, warning stickers--). We get dressed, fill up a couple water bottles and head to our local trail, Des Moines Creek Park. I’ll save a longer description of this trail system for another post but it IS the home of the Wednesday Night World Championships! The coolest thing is that DCP is about 10 minutes from our houses!
We get to the trail head and are ready to head out… I can tell IrishGirl has a few butterflies and I’m just trying to play it cool… truth be told I’m so excited (giddy?) to be there with her but I’m also a bit nervous – what if she hates it? Bottom line – and I think all my friends can attest to this - I am honestly just happy to be on a bike. The fact that she wants to be out there with me is SO amazing!
We ride for a little bit on a paved trail just to get the hang of things then we head into the woods and start the climb to the top of the system… at one point I had to tease her with “well after this last little climb we’ll be at the cemetery” but really she made it up with no problem! I’m very impressed -- for never having mountain biked before this girl has chops! Sure we stopped a couple times but remember YOUR first ride? While pedaling hard up a steep little climb/embankment hitting roots and exposed rock will STOP you if you’re not used to it! We take a quick break and look through the chain-link fence at the cemetery. I’ve always wanted to get in and look around (we both have a love of cemeteries) but I’ve never seen an opening in the fence. On this trip we decide that instead of exploring it was time for the down-hill! In the back of my head I’m hoping that, like the rest of us mountain biking freaks, that she’ll be addicted after flying top-speed down some nice single-track!
I guess you could say I was right! On the way down I hear all sorts of giggling, laughing and screaming (happy kind) from behind me! It was SO awesome to hear! I had a HUGE smile on my face the whole time. Once at the bottom she wanted to do more and more and more! I had SUCH a great time. We’ve been out three times so far (with more planned this weekend) and I can honestly say I can’t remember when I’ve enjoyed cycling so much! I think IrishGirl thinks I’m humoring her but I am not… mountain biking with her has been so much fun! =D Maybe we should start on this list of tricks??
Here is a link to the details of ride number 2!
EDIT: I forgot to mention IrishGirl’s first mountain biking accident! SO we ride a little over 5 miles, some of which is pretty gnarly single track – no it isn’t a hard-core downhill but there are a fair amount of roots, rocks and mud. Irish comes out TOTALLY unscathed! I was so proud of her! We get back to my truck, lean our bikes up and she is SO excited she jumps into my arms… in the process really clocking her knee cap directly against the edge of the door jamb of my truck! OUCH! Honey – your FIRST mountain biking injury!