CRWMA Bike Riding

I was feeling kinda puny and didn't do so well the last time I went riding with Richard and we are supposed to ride this Tuesday so I decided to take a little trip myself and see how I would fair. I took off from the house and headed toward the Cahaba River Wildlife Management Area (CRWMA). I had marked it off with the Jeep so I knew it was two miles to the creek at the bottom of the big hill right before the CRWMA started.

Once on the dirt road of the CRWMA I took the dirt road to the right. Slid my bike under the gate and took off. That is a well graded road that brings you behind the gate at the shooting range. I hung a right and went wheeling on down the road. Of course I very quickly came to a slick hill that 4-wheel drive vehicles spin up. Needless to say I had to walk my bike up it. Once up it I kept turning to the left and stayed on the road that will bring you out on the first road past the shooting range road.

Of course this road is washed out, has overhanging limbs, two streams cross it and it was wrapped up in spider webs. It made for a very eventful ride. Only once did I have to stop to remove a spider that looked like it could take down a rhino. I had to stop twice to cross the streams and once when I encountered a rock covered hill. I finally made it out to the first road past the shooting range road mentioned above. This road is much better.

So I hung a left there and headed back to the main CRWMA road. This was a nice ride. However I happened to go by a grown up side road that I had seen scrapes on last year. I thought, hey, I can ride down this road and very quickly see if there are scrapes this year. Now that was an exciting ride. I was dodging small trees, bouncing over small dead trees in the road, riding through small limbs blown off by the last hurricane and riding through a thick mat of leaves.

Unfortunately I only found one small rub at the beginning of the road and nothing else. So the ride out wasn't as exciting as the ride in since I had nothing to look forward to except surviving and getting out.

So I made it out and headed on to the main road. Of course it was at about this point that I ran out of water. I rode on by the shooting range with people blasting away below but I didn't hear any bullets whining overhead so that was good. For some reason I was able to make some really good time by the shooting rangle. :-)

I hit the main road and hung a left to go back home. I hadn't realized how rough the road was coming in but going out I was bouncing all over the place. It was nice to get back to the highway. However now I had the hill from down under to contend with. The last time I had attempted it I had to stop and walk part of the way. But slow and steady wins the race and this time I paced myself and made it all the way to the to top without stopping.

The hard part was over and I was ready to get home and get some water so I brought it on in. I was pleased with how well I did and how nice the ride was. I look forward to the next time I can challenge a portion of the CRWMA.

First Oak Mountain Bike Ride

I know this started out as my hiking/trail running blog but I want to add biking to it now. As of today I now have a new respect for cyclists. Today I rode 14 miles in about an hour and ten minutes with a co-worker. We rode from the horse stables parking lot to the main front gate and then back all the way to the spillway between the two lakes at the other end of the park.

Just that ride alone was enough to take me out. My legs were about rubber by this time and my muscles were screaming. My co-worker, Richard, had circled back to stay back with my several times and finally had gone ahead and waited on me at the spill way.

On the way back he told me that he would try and go slow enough to stay with me. I would have never made it without him. I needed the encouragement he provided just by being there. My right knee started to hurt about a fourth of the way from the finish line when I had just two more small hills to take on.

I was able to climb them but the will power to do so was amazing to even myself. It made me see how much more you could push yourself with someone there than when you are by yourself. There were two other cyclists out there who very quickly came by us on a very steep hill. Even they spoke words of encouragement as they came by. I am sure they had been struggling like I was when they were first starting out and remembered how it felt.

I hope to keep at it with Richard and one day be able to be an encouragement to someone else on the road as they struggle up a hill on their first bike ride in Oak Mountain State Park. After I survived Richard teased me by telling me how it was nice for him to just take a leisurely ride through the park for once.

I commented on how I had to use every gear I had on my bike. Richard said he normally didn't use his really low gears but that he had to today in order to go slow enough to stay back with me. He is too kind. By the way, Richard is only 64 years young.