Work continues on the new climb for the Windrock XC trail loop. Huge thanks to all that came out and worked. Sunday’s work was by far the worst benching we had to do and without all the help it would have taken Brian and I days to accomplish.
Good Downhill, Harder Uphill
Jan 23
I found this video on Youtube. Its a trail up on the Plateau. I rode it as couple weeks ago (this is not video of when I rode it). I was on the 530 and was flying down it picking people off until the group stopped just like in the video and I run up on them and had to lay it down. The hardest part was riding back up it. To my surprise I made it up only stopping once when I ran up on a stalled rider. For slow speeds the 530’s XCW suspension is so plush. Add that to the tractor engine and that bike has some advantages. However I prefer the playfulness of the 250 2-stroke.
Weekend Fun
Jan 23
Late Friday afternoon I took off from work and went duck hunting with my dad and Wyatt for the first (only?) hunt of the season. As usual we didn’t shoot but we did see quiet a few big ducks but they sat down several hundred yards away and wouldn’t move. Just before dark they picked up and few off. Wyatt did pretty good and I think enjoyed it.
Saturday we had plans to do some wheeling we a few friends but everyone backed out because of the weather. That didn’t stop us. We did trail 10 (Cumberland Mtn Trail) in Royal Blue and then stopped by Cove Lake State Park and played on the plyaground for a bit. We had a great day.
Motivation
Jan 17
Yesterday I was lined up to go ride solo after work and I was so unmotivated to do so. Riding at night can be extremely boring for me. I usually ride to slash turns. Riding at night is limited due to darkness and narrow light from the headlamp. So usually night riding is made better by riding with others. The entire drive to the trail last night I was looking for a reason to not go, but couldn’t come up with anything. I unloaded and rode up the hill to the top loop. As usual, 5 minutes into the woods I was glad I was there.
3 Amigos
Jan 16
This is from a couple weeks ago when we took a ride out a trail we call 3 Amigos. I think its trail 51 or 52 but we use it to transfer between section of singletrack. Its just west of Briceville and this nice overlook looks South. Rory was taking the picture.
$5000 per mile?
Jan 16
The past Saturday I lucked into some help on benching the new portion of the Windrock XC loop. Brian and I worked patiently to flag and clear all of the new portion. Not only did it help us see whole trail and thus make it work better, but it would enable us to ride into work. That way we wouldn’t need blowers and chainsaws every time we went to work on the trail. We could just leave the benching tools along side the trail and still get a ride in while we worked. Which to be honest is probably the biggest reason there aren’t more people helping to build trails. Everyone, myself included, would just rather ride than work. Well now we can do both. On Saturday I had plans to do so and ran into Justin and Jon who helped out as well. Man what a difference 3 people can make. A huge thanks goes out to those guys for just 2 hrs of help. It went a long way. It was cool to hear Justin say that he had heard it takes $5000 to make a mile of trail. After benching and being extremely proud of his first section of trail he couldn’t believe what costs $5000. Makes me proud to see some else just grab a $40 tool and make it happen. Don’t get me wrong, I am sure when dealing with government agencies it takes all $5000 to make happen and I’m glad folks like the AMBC are out there for us. Fortunately at Windrock is just take $40 for a Rogue and sweat.
Sunday we did this ride around Red Oak. There was a lot of snow up high and some ice, but the ride wasn’t near as cold as it looked.
Red Oak (1-15-12 9-19-18AM)
EveryTrail – Find the best Hiking near Knoxville, Tennessee
Completely redid my 2008 250 XC.
List of new parts and work:
- Top End (piston, wrist pin, wrist pin bearing, rings, base gasket)
- Front fender
- Rear fender
- Radiator shrouds
- Front and rear brake pads
- heim joint
- Welded swing arm
- Tires (front and rear)
- Chain slider
- Chain
- Rear sprocket
- Spray painted frame under frame guards
- Airbox cover vinyl
- Full scrub and clean under seat, in airbox, etc.
- Polished swingarm and engine with Dremel
Holiday Season
Jan 3
A busy week before Christmas at work had me really looking forward to some time off. Thursday was my last day before I had to return back on Tuesday January 3rd. That was going to be a glorious 11 days off. Other than the holidays I didn’t have much planned other than some trail work, some moto riding, and some 4 wheeling with the family. And that’s just what I did. My sister brought in a bushel of fresh oysters and we steamed them at my house on Thursday night. My folks and my buddy Joey came over to help eat them. They turned out really well.
Saturday was the typical Oneida Christmas followed by Christmas at my parent’s later that night. Then on Christmas morning we opened our presents followed by the afternoon and early evening at Meghann’s parents. Wyatt favorite presents were his Tennessee football outfit and chainsaw. Rory’s favorite present was a glowing flashlight. My favorite presents were my Badlands winch and Ironman compressor. Meghann’s favorite presents were he washer and dryer.
Monday I did a 50+ mile ride with Todd in Royal Blue.
Sugar Ridge (12-17-11 11-08-36AM)
EveryTrail – Find the best Hiking in Tennessee
Tuesday it rained and we staying inside.
Wednesday Brian Poston and I worked on the XC taril at Windrock’s campground.
Thursday we went to Asheville. I rode bikes with Geritt, Josh, and few other guys. We did Farlow Gap and Bennett Gap. Meghann, Wyatt and Rory went to a children’s museum, then we ate BBQ in Brevard.
Friday I did another moto ride with Todd in Beech Grove and installed the winch in the Land Cruiser.
Saturday we played footabll in yard then went 4 wheeling above Briceville.
Sunday I went down to Highland Park with Todd, Jacob, Steve, and Chris Wyatt.
Little River
Dec 19
Yesterday we drove up the Smokies to do a little hiking, fishing, or whatever else seemed fun. It was sunny and nice but the temperatures in the shade were pretty chilly. We fiddled around the river a bit and I even got in a bit of fishing. Wyatt really enjoys playing around outside and filled his pockets full of rocks and sticks from the river bank. Rory was fascinated with the hemlock trees and despite the cold enjoyed himself. I ended up catching two fish, which was two more than I expected. The water is really high and it being December the 18th it was really cold. So fishing is usually pretty slow, but to my surprise I hooked and landed the biggest brown I have ever caught in the Park. I have a mark on my rod that is 15″. When I laid this fish against my rod it was well over that mark and I estimate closer to 17″. I didn’t have my camera and my hands were cold from landing it so trying to accurately measure it was short. The other fish was a nice 10″ rainbow.
New bits
Dec 16
I added a 11-32 cassette and some new sticky meat to my hardtail. Sometimes it makes sense to just ride my hardtail locally. Sometimes I just have more fun on it. The 12-25 gearing was a bit tough in the dry and almost impossible when the trail gets wet. This should transform its ability as a XC bike.
I also traded out my old Oro barkes on my Mbuzi for The Ones I took off my DH bike. They weigh less, stop much better, and are much fresher. Can’t wait to try them out.
