The weather forecast said only 15% chance of rain. Uh huh. Ok. Well, it started raining just as we started riding, ensuring that the wooden features at Tony’s trials park were all wet and really slippery. We had a couple runs at one of the phone pole skinnies before the skies opened up; after that, it was a bit treacherous.
Despite the fact that ‘Forte Trials Park’ is at Tony’s company, was wasn’t able to ride with us. However, he did swing by to deliver something, which required the use of a forklift. And that led to some additional shenanigans.
Normally we don’t ride when it rains, but when you’re already there, you might as well give it a go. Even though the course was slicker than snot, it was still a fun ride. Maybe the increased likelihood of a wicked crash adds to the adrenaline rush. Or maybe it’s just because… trials. I’m not sure the reason. But you can see in the video that some of the moves had some added fear factor because of the traction loss.
Due to a recent bike problem, I have my Inspired Arcade instead of my Echo competition bike. Maybe that was for the best for this course. Lately I’ve been favoring the Echo, but with it out of commission until new cranks arrive, the Arcade has been my ride. It’s been a challenge to get used to it again since I haven’t ridden it much lately. In particular, the rear wheel moves are harder due to the lower bottom bracket. Well, that, the slippery wet surfaces, and the sketchy obstacles. That certainly didn’t stop me from trying some rear wheel drops. Not all of them ended well. All part of trials.
One of the interesting things about riding with other trials riders is that each of us has different strengths. For example, Scott is pretty good at skinnies… which are prevalent at Forte Park. There are a few good shots where Scott is riding along the sopping wet 6×6 beams (seriously, if we were going fast, we’d have been hydroplaning on those things!). At several times, he actually rode the entire outer phone pole skinny, which includes an obstacle that you need to roll over. Me? I only got a couple feet past that obstacle.
Jim rode with us as well, also demonstrating his unique skills – for example, his knack for tossing the bike about a mile while riding on two wheels, and rolling up onto obstacles. Watching Jim ride is always inspiring.
Despite the crazy weather, hanging out and riding with the crew is always a good time. And while everything was ridiculously slippery, it was still good practice.
0 Comments