Wednesday, May 27, 2009

The Ganny May 10, 2009




Have been up to the Ganaraska forest three times now this spring on my lil red zinger (CRF230). This has been a big gap in my biking education, and I'm finally filling it. The first two pics are of one of the entrances where you park to access the trails. Finally bought a season pass - a bargain: $130 for the whole summer. It's the most wonderful experience to be riding through the forest -- I love how beautiful it is. One of the single-track trails we rode was blanketed on both sides by a carpet of trilliums; a feast for the eyes.

I think I'm going to buy a winter pass, too - so I can go cross-country skiing there next winter.



The next two pic are of Ty with his KTM505. He LOOOVES that bike. I swear he'd marry it, if he could. I've never seen him grin as wide as when he's on it. And the smile stays for hours afterward.

I still want to try my YZ250F, even though my feet dangle nine inches off the ground on both sides. Moto Marta, who rode a KTM with racing tires on it on the track, assures me that I'll get used to that. But I'm increasingly convinced I'm going to prefer the CRF on the trails. Now that I'm used to an electric start, I sincerely doubt I'm going to want to work up a sweat kicking the YZ over, when I stall. And, given how awkward stops are going to be on the YZ, I think stalls are inevitable.

The CRF is more than enough bike for me and is giving me a lot of valuable experience throttling through loose materials with a squirrely rear wheel. The first time we went up was before the end of April -- we didn't know that you're not supposed to enter the forest on a motorized vehicle until after April 30. And there was still snow on the trails. I hate riding on snow, even with knobby tires. You can't get ANY traction, like you can in mud, and can't correct your direction, either, or you slide and go down. Even sand lets you steer. Snow is weird.

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