Wednesday Night Ride

By the time we got off work Wednesday night, the skies had clouded up, making it a lot darker than it should have been. I met up with Jeff P., and he suggested we go up the Hobart road, and loop back down into Timberline. I hadn't done this climb since the early 90's, and Kathy and Sandie did it back in November. My memory and stories of the ride brought up visions of a painful climb. Not wanting to appear a sissy in Jeff P.'s eyes, I said, "Sure! Let's do it!".

When we finished the asphalt climb and were about to begin the real climb, I shot an energy gel. Man those things work good! We began the first gear grinder climb, and were both pleased that the sand was a bit wet. Jeff P. tells me we would've been pushing the bikes in some sections otherwise. We were able to ride the whole climb, only stopping for a couple pictures and rest breaks for me.

The downhill was a steep single track, that had a few downed logs laying across it. The single track ended at a fire road that was crazy steep. I'm glad we were going down it, and grateful for the fresh tire I had just put on the back. The fresh tread saved my butt a couple times when trying to avoid some deep ruts. We dropped down quite a ways to a road I was familiar with. From here it was another 1,000 foot descent back to town. We finished up around 8:00, and it was getting pretty dark. Just enough time to drive home, eat, and go to bed!