oobaa47
Well-Known Member
Ok, so I wasn't too sure where to post this, but being that I'm new to the site and relatively new to the xc universe, I decided to post here. Me: over 40, over 210 lbs, (ie, old and slow)......been dh'ing at mcbp for the past 4 years or so. Only bike I own is a dh bike. So since the off season is so long (6 months) I decided to purchase a trail bike to keep me in shape during the dh offseason and to satiate my two wheeled fix. Last time I rode xc was at Ringwood over a quarter of a century ago on a fully rigid with rim brakes (my god, how did we do it??!?!??). So my new trusty steed arrived a few days ago and I quickly built it up (xmas came early for this guy). I begin to surf the internet looking for places to ride. An abandoned zoo was one place, a convenience store was another (wawa?), sterling forest looks like it's being built currently, and then Ringwood. Ah yes, the place I vaguely remember being there so many moons ago. So then I refine my search and begin to look for a specific trail/loop. Most of the feedback was that it's a place that's very easy to get lost and not marked well. I stumble across something called the rvcc race course. Looks like it's near shepard lake lot C which I easily find on google maps. So I figure, let's go for it!! I arrive at 8:15 am and an employee is just unlocking the gate. As I pull into the parking lot, there is not a soul there. In addition, the fog was so thick you couldn't see 20 yards in front of you. Ok, so a few thoughts begin to enter my head: haven't ridden a trail bike in eons, haven't been here in 25 years, visibility is atrocious, my skills are beyond pathetic, no one even here to pick my carcass up off the ground after my lungs explode or I go OTB, and I have no idea where I'm even going. So I start to toggle between strava to determine exactly where the hell I am, and some other website I found that shows the rvcc loop (how did we even ride back then without such technological advances??!?!?!). So I begin to peddle up the fire road, in the wrong gear, my suspension not even set for my weight or terrain (what the hell is ctd and a dropper post anyway??!?!?!?), and completely improper attire (sweat pants, a cotton hoodie, and a 15 year old helmet with broken straps). So within the first 3 minutes of climbing this fire road, I start breathing heavily. A few more minutes later and it feels like my heart is going to come flying out of my mouth. A few minutes after that and my legs start to feel like they're on fire. I use all of this as an excuse and take a break. To make sure I'm headed in the right direction I compare my strava location to this website map of rvcc. So far, so good. I decide to push on. I keep on trucking and encounter these gnarly ascents with rocky switchbacks (do you guys actually get up this without dabbing????). Needless to say, due to the aforementioned confluence of factors, I'm unable to clear this section. So the trail has slippery soak and wet leaves, on slippery soak and wet roots, as well as slippery soak and wet rocks. Getting back on is an impossibility. So I glance around the mountainside just to make sure no one is watching this videotaping me or rolling around on the ground laughing. I manage to get back on and venture onward. Multiple stops later, and a few strava checks, and it looks like I'm headed in the right direction. Despite my body telling me to surrender and just turn around, I start to feel confident and push ahead. I hit some descents. Awesome, my wheelhouse. Except this twitchy, noodly, steep angled ride is nothing like descending on my dh monster truck. Luckily, I take it easy and make it down in one piece. Now I start to hear multiple gun shots. Great. Just what I need, a reckless hunter mistaking my screeches for wildlife. The gunshots are getting closer and closer and coming with more frequency. My map I'm viewing tells me it's a shooting range to my relief. At this point I seem to catch a second wind and forge ahead. After all, there's no turning back because I'm so far into this mess. I begin to get lost a little bit and start guessing on the direction as not all intersections have that rvcc trail indicator. But overall, it looks like I'm headed in the correct direction. For some reason I thought the last part of the rvcc course was all downhill. I start to get pretty depressed to see more climbs with more hairy uphill switchbacks. I have no choice now so I somehow get up these (lost track of the dabs). To my elation, I see shepard lake in the distance. My God, I made it back. Soak and wet, exhausted, my throat killing me, my legs on fire, and my lungs burning. And you know what, I loved every minute of it! I can't wait to do it again!!! The moral of the story I guess is not to take a quarter of a century off......or on your first ride after said hiatus, don't try to tackle the rvcc race course, try a paved road first!! Take care and see you out there.......
