Napper and I headed out from Lansing Cycle shop Thursday night and drove to Columbus Ohio. I arranged a ride through a Dr. (!) I met online through Ktmtalk.com. Napper knew Robbie Jenks lived down there so he called him and he was meeting us too. We checked into the hotel and made arrangments to meet for breakfast Good Friday. Next morning we meet at Bob Evans and Freddie the Dr., his father and Kody his friend arrieve, we eat breakfast and get aquainted. Freddie is from Purto Rico, was the Off road chamion for 3 years in this younger days, his father even sold KTM's sorts bootleg in Purto Rico many years ago too. Kory owns 2 musical instrument shops and is a musician as well.
These guys ride mostly where they can on private land and they had a friend named Jimmy that had a place to ride so off we went.
Jimmys place is in the freaking hills man! I never thought Ohio would look like Kentucky but it did! This guy has trails all over near his home and a MX track in his front yard - perfect!
The entire evening Thursday night and morning Friday it's raining but about the time we decide to ride it stops and gets partly sunny -awesome. After waiting for all to arrive including Robbie off we go. HOLY CRAP IS THIS STUFF SLIPPERY! Lets just say Napper and I were "in training" these days. The trails were gnarly, HUGE technical hill climbs, off cambers with logs, slimy leave covered trails, creek beds, up and down and very tight at times. It was fun but we rarely got out of second gear in the trails and were "humbled" by many of the hill climbs. I suppose we rode like 25 miles before heading back. When we get back Freddies dad is grilling lunch for us. Awsome! A few of the guys did a few hot laps on the MX track and then we ate. Napper did some spring swaps on his bike under my brand new EZ UP. After an extended lunch period 4 of us decide to go for a short ride before calling it quits. Off we go through the back of the property down a creek bed and then an immediate left hander up about a 20 foot hill. Well Napper tried it first and looped out -jeez it's so slippery you can't believe it! I try it next and I can't make it. To save further humiliation after a few more tries we take another trail out back. We truned around and Napper had a hell of a time, got hung up in brabed wire, fell and wrestled a few more times and called it a day. I didn't know it and here i am out on the gnarliest loop of the day, in the rain, with short legs riding with 2 other guys that are used to this stuff. Lets just say the that 9 mile loop felt like about 40 miles and I picked up my bike 15 times. BRUTAL. Napper was wise to take a nap. Hmmmmm - Napper, what a coincidence! Well we arrive back, beat, wet, muddy and exhausted. We laod the bikes and head back to Columbus after spending over $10 at the car wash. This stuff is like glue! We contact Freddie and after I got my pain medicine from our room we go to Freddies dad's house for the HOT TUB. We stop a wally world and buy swim trunks and DVD's and off we go. Oh man, these people are the most gracious hosts that you can meet. They gave us beers, food and great stories about Purto Rico and their lives-it was cool. The old man was awesome. It was pretty cool sitting in a hot tub talking with a Dr. about various stuff, medicines and treatments for our ailoments. napper learned that 4 Alieve at once is a bad thing!!!! We go back to our room and I was asleep in 13 seconds-snoring just a little.
Sat morning arrives and I feel great! (Well except for the back and shoulder spasms I've had for 6 weeks) But well rested. We hang out, watch TV and go for breakfast. We meet Freddie and his Dad again and today we go to some property their club is trying to buy. We meet a guy that looks EXACTLY like shane Watts and rides a 200! He knows the trails. We make it out there and one guy is on a WR Yammie dual sported it out there on very worn tires I might add. More on this later! After dealing with the "care taker" of the property we are good to go riding and off we go. It's about mid 50's and sunny so it was just an awesome day to ride. We get to the trails and we're doing great, the hills here are not as huge as the first day, but we find that the first one is not possible. Guys looping out and just can't get a run at it because it's an immediate left turn at the bottom and then a slimy steep hill climb for 20 feet. "Wattsy" makes it but no one else can. Off we go to find a new way. Basicaly we are riding a 3 mile HS loop that for the first time through was 1-2 gear mostly, ithgt, gnarly, slippery and full of up and downs that were 10-15 feet but challenging. We come upon another lefty and up, Wattsy makes it up and then I saw something I've never seen before. Napper guns it at the base of the hill and heads up but the rear tire loses traction and PASSES the front tire up a steep hill and he spins out headed down hill and gets hung up in a tree. You would have never believed it coukld happen if yoiu didn't see it! After that mess we made an different approach to that slim climb and then we were OK. So we off again and then my nemisis happens as I slow to get the bars past a tree and and then up a 5 foot slimy hill but I lose balance at the top and fall over upside down. I couldn't lift the bike betseen not being able to stand up, sore weak back and shoulder muscles so Freddie comes to the rescue and helps me lift my bike. That ended up being the onkly time at that spot I had trouble but I was wasted for a few minutes wrestling the bike. We did a few laps and the course got fun and tacky-but still slippery. I had a few great laps and eventually we called it a day. We loaded up, went to the car wash and then ate dinner at Chipoltes -the Burritos were great. The riding was challenging but fun. What causes you pain makes you stronger was the lesson in Ohio. :cool:
These guys ride mostly where they can on private land and they had a friend named Jimmy that had a place to ride so off we went.
Jimmys place is in the freaking hills man! I never thought Ohio would look like Kentucky but it did! This guy has trails all over near his home and a MX track in his front yard - perfect!
The entire evening Thursday night and morning Friday it's raining but about the time we decide to ride it stops and gets partly sunny -awesome. After waiting for all to arrive including Robbie off we go. HOLY CRAP IS THIS STUFF SLIPPERY! Lets just say Napper and I were "in training" these days. The trails were gnarly, HUGE technical hill climbs, off cambers with logs, slimy leave covered trails, creek beds, up and down and very tight at times. It was fun but we rarely got out of second gear in the trails and were "humbled" by many of the hill climbs. I suppose we rode like 25 miles before heading back. When we get back Freddies dad is grilling lunch for us. Awsome! A few of the guys did a few hot laps on the MX track and then we ate. Napper did some spring swaps on his bike under my brand new EZ UP. After an extended lunch period 4 of us decide to go for a short ride before calling it quits. Off we go through the back of the property down a creek bed and then an immediate left hander up about a 20 foot hill. Well Napper tried it first and looped out -jeez it's so slippery you can't believe it! I try it next and I can't make it. To save further humiliation after a few more tries we take another trail out back. We truned around and Napper had a hell of a time, got hung up in brabed wire, fell and wrestled a few more times and called it a day. I didn't know it and here i am out on the gnarliest loop of the day, in the rain, with short legs riding with 2 other guys that are used to this stuff. Lets just say the that 9 mile loop felt like about 40 miles and I picked up my bike 15 times. BRUTAL. Napper was wise to take a nap. Hmmmmm - Napper, what a coincidence! Well we arrive back, beat, wet, muddy and exhausted. We laod the bikes and head back to Columbus after spending over $10 at the car wash. This stuff is like glue! We contact Freddie and after I got my pain medicine from our room we go to Freddies dad's house for the HOT TUB. We stop a wally world and buy swim trunks and DVD's and off we go. Oh man, these people are the most gracious hosts that you can meet. They gave us beers, food and great stories about Purto Rico and their lives-it was cool. The old man was awesome. It was pretty cool sitting in a hot tub talking with a Dr. about various stuff, medicines and treatments for our ailoments. napper learned that 4 Alieve at once is a bad thing!!!! We go back to our room and I was asleep in 13 seconds-snoring just a little.
Sat morning arrives and I feel great! (Well except for the back and shoulder spasms I've had for 6 weeks) But well rested. We hang out, watch TV and go for breakfast. We meet Freddie and his Dad again and today we go to some property their club is trying to buy. We meet a guy that looks EXACTLY like shane Watts and rides a 200! He knows the trails. We make it out there and one guy is on a WR Yammie dual sported it out there on very worn tires I might add. More on this later! After dealing with the "care taker" of the property we are good to go riding and off we go. It's about mid 50's and sunny so it was just an awesome day to ride. We get to the trails and we're doing great, the hills here are not as huge as the first day, but we find that the first one is not possible. Guys looping out and just can't get a run at it because it's an immediate left turn at the bottom and then a slimy steep hill climb for 20 feet. "Wattsy" makes it but no one else can. Off we go to find a new way. Basicaly we are riding a 3 mile HS loop that for the first time through was 1-2 gear mostly, ithgt, gnarly, slippery and full of up and downs that were 10-15 feet but challenging. We come upon another lefty and up, Wattsy makes it up and then I saw something I've never seen before. Napper guns it at the base of the hill and heads up but the rear tire loses traction and PASSES the front tire up a steep hill and he spins out headed down hill and gets hung up in a tree. You would have never believed it coukld happen if yoiu didn't see it! After that mess we made an different approach to that slim climb and then we were OK. So we off again and then my nemisis happens as I slow to get the bars past a tree and and then up a 5 foot slimy hill but I lose balance at the top and fall over upside down. I couldn't lift the bike betseen not being able to stand up, sore weak back and shoulder muscles so Freddie comes to the rescue and helps me lift my bike. That ended up being the onkly time at that spot I had trouble but I was wasted for a few minutes wrestling the bike. We did a few laps and the course got fun and tacky-but still slippery. I had a few great laps and eventually we called it a day. We loaded up, went to the car wash and then ate dinner at Chipoltes -the Burritos were great. The riding was challenging but fun. What causes you pain makes you stronger was the lesson in Ohio. :cool:
