I have apparently forgotten how much fun it is to ride a mountain bike. I spun over to Frick Park, navigated through the hordes of people in the hollow, and then went up and down, up and down on the singletrack. No clue as to the total distance, and riding time was roughly 90 minutes. First, it’s really amazing how well maintained the singletrack is. Nice work, PORC. Second, the thing I used to hate about riding in Frick–you are either going donwhill or climbing–is now the thing I like best. I found myself riding down on mostly smooth double track, then climbing fairly steep singletrack back up. There was some walking involved, but that’s okay. I am anxious to return and ride down the final trail I climbed–mostly rolling singletrack, some banked corners, and no scary drops. Trail conditions were surprising good. The only really muddy bit was a stretch of Lowe Riverview Trail. I could have done a relatively clean ride had I just climbed Riverview proper.
Why did I stop doing this?
The Monocog itself felt very nice–stable, comfortable, predictable. I don’t mind the Ritchey riser bars, but I envision a set of off-road drops (gee, now I wish I didn’t sell the Midges). That position would be perfect, especially given the suspension-corrected fork that puts the cockpit waaaay up high. The WTB ExiWolf tires are fine, though they don’t deal with thick mud very well–the knobs were packed by the time I left, and cruising home along Beechwood Boulevard, the mud promptly sprayed everywhere, including a perfectly aimed ball right up my nose. I don’t envision replacing them, however, until they’ve lived a long and usual life.
Posted on 22 December 2007