MikeT
~SPONSOR~
- Jan 17, 2001
- 4,112
- 11
Hey guys, I finally got moved to Charlotte and was able to go riding on Saturday at TNT. It took me about an hour and 20 minutes to get there from home and that was probably aided from this guy I hooked up with on I-77 that did about 80 the whole way there :scream: . The directions on their website (and as recited by rote from Gomer) are exactly correct. That is very important to me because I am "directionally challenged" on the street.
Anyway, I go there at about 10:20am and there were about 20 riders with numbers growing steadily as the day went on. I waited in line and paid my $10 then got suited up. TNT has a kids track which from the local stuff I'm used to seeing was a pretty good track. ALL the jumps on that track were very safe and looked like a good starter track for the little ones. They even had some open field area where you could teach someone how to ride for the first time. The place has a small covered area where you could grill out or just get out of the sun. That wasn't a problem because it was a little chilly that day anyway.
It took a little to get my bike started because of some old gas, but once I was underway I gave the track the once over. The big track has a bunch of doubles small and large, tabletops, and camel backs. They even have a whoop section that most people went around. I didn't see anyone go through them with ANY style at all. Even the fastest rider I saw that day didn't do anything more than put through them and maybe double one. I think I'll wait to see someone really ride those before I give them a try. After you go across the front jumps you head for a high speed down hill double that is pretty fun. You need to be prepared to brake because if you clear the double you are going at a decent clip. After that is a right-hander to a table top that I wasn't able to clear. After that was a large double that you had to hit with some speed to clear. When I hit that for the first time I had my front-end way high but thankfully I actually remembered to hit the rear brake, which brought the nose down a lot, and I cleared that. After that is a right hand double that will turn you on to the back straight which has a series of three doubles in a row. I was able to clear all of them. Then comes a VERY large double, which I wasn't about to try to clear. Then a few more interior sections that leads you what I will call the “finish line” jump which is a GIANT blind camelback style jump. I wasn't able to get up the guts to clear that one. It seems to get you way high and I think I might be able to do that one in the future. Anyway there is some more interior stuff and then an uphill "ravine" double. It seemed like you were jumping a 10-foot deep hole. I can't say how long it was but I was in I believe 3rd at every bit of 3/4 throttle to clear it, but I did it :) . Most of you guys do these jumps with no problem. I on the other hand actually audibly yell with joy the first time I clear some of these jumps. Partially because I did it, partially because I'm still alive!
Now for the trail section.
After I went around the track enough times that I started slowing down, which is a sign to me that I will start to screw up and then have a catastrophic crash if I stay on, I got off. I then went on to the trails, which were clearly marked and well maintained. I went on what they called the doublewide trails, which were wide enough for our four-wheel friends to travel through. I was told that bark busters are a prerequisite for the singlewide section, so I opted not to traverse that. The trail I went on was a whole lot of fun! It had LOTS of tight bermed grooved turns on it that made for an enjoyable experience. There were like 3 or 4 bridge crossings along the way, one was in a turn which would mean disaster if your tires were wet because the bridge was made of wood :scream:. The trails were the sight of my only get off. I encountered a fork in the trail with a tree in the center. Wouldn't you know it, my bike went left and I went right. :confused:. I bumped my hand a little but nothing more than that. Small scratch on my fender and that was it. Everyone I came up on in the trails was kind enough to step aside at the nearest passing area. I also was aware when faster guys were behind me and I let them by too. Those trails went on for a LONG time. I don't know how many miles they were but it was long!
I don't know if any of you were there on Saturday but I had a good time. I didn't like riding by myself only because I couldn't talk to anyone about it. There were many guys out there if anything happened so it is a safe place to ride. I plan on going again and will meet some of you there. The track owner (I believe) Jimmy Parrish is a really nice guy. He has a nice park and my $10 was well spent.
Anyway, I go there at about 10:20am and there were about 20 riders with numbers growing steadily as the day went on. I waited in line and paid my $10 then got suited up. TNT has a kids track which from the local stuff I'm used to seeing was a pretty good track. ALL the jumps on that track were very safe and looked like a good starter track for the little ones. They even had some open field area where you could teach someone how to ride for the first time. The place has a small covered area where you could grill out or just get out of the sun. That wasn't a problem because it was a little chilly that day anyway.
It took a little to get my bike started because of some old gas, but once I was underway I gave the track the once over. The big track has a bunch of doubles small and large, tabletops, and camel backs. They even have a whoop section that most people went around. I didn't see anyone go through them with ANY style at all. Even the fastest rider I saw that day didn't do anything more than put through them and maybe double one. I think I'll wait to see someone really ride those before I give them a try. After you go across the front jumps you head for a high speed down hill double that is pretty fun. You need to be prepared to brake because if you clear the double you are going at a decent clip. After that is a right-hander to a table top that I wasn't able to clear. After that was a large double that you had to hit with some speed to clear. When I hit that for the first time I had my front-end way high but thankfully I actually remembered to hit the rear brake, which brought the nose down a lot, and I cleared that. After that is a right hand double that will turn you on to the back straight which has a series of three doubles in a row. I was able to clear all of them. Then comes a VERY large double, which I wasn't about to try to clear. Then a few more interior sections that leads you what I will call the “finish line” jump which is a GIANT blind camelback style jump. I wasn't able to get up the guts to clear that one. It seems to get you way high and I think I might be able to do that one in the future. Anyway there is some more interior stuff and then an uphill "ravine" double. It seemed like you were jumping a 10-foot deep hole. I can't say how long it was but I was in I believe 3rd at every bit of 3/4 throttle to clear it, but I did it :) . Most of you guys do these jumps with no problem. I on the other hand actually audibly yell with joy the first time I clear some of these jumps. Partially because I did it, partially because I'm still alive!
Now for the trail section.
After I went around the track enough times that I started slowing down, which is a sign to me that I will start to screw up and then have a catastrophic crash if I stay on, I got off. I then went on to the trails, which were clearly marked and well maintained. I went on what they called the doublewide trails, which were wide enough for our four-wheel friends to travel through. I was told that bark busters are a prerequisite for the singlewide section, so I opted not to traverse that. The trail I went on was a whole lot of fun! It had LOTS of tight bermed grooved turns on it that made for an enjoyable experience. There were like 3 or 4 bridge crossings along the way, one was in a turn which would mean disaster if your tires were wet because the bridge was made of wood :scream:. The trails were the sight of my only get off. I encountered a fork in the trail with a tree in the center. Wouldn't you know it, my bike went left and I went right. :confused:. I bumped my hand a little but nothing more than that. Small scratch on my fender and that was it. Everyone I came up on in the trails was kind enough to step aside at the nearest passing area. I also was aware when faster guys were behind me and I let them by too. Those trails went on for a LONG time. I don't know how many miles they were but it was long!
I don't know if any of you were there on Saturday but I had a good time. I didn't like riding by myself only because I couldn't talk to anyone about it. There were many guys out there if anything happened so it is a safe place to ride. I plan on going again and will meet some of you there. The track owner (I believe) Jimmy Parrish is a really nice guy. He has a nice park and my $10 was well spent.
