Too much of a good thing?

Another visit to the Oakwood mountain bike trails in Napoleon left me plenty sore and seeking the relaxation of the hotel hottub!!

I took another spin around the various trails, then after I got nice and warmed up, I focused on “hill repeats”… going up and down some of the sharp ascents and descents.  I figured this would be great practice for some of the hills in Cincinnati that I loathe on my road bike.

I’m not sure how recommended this is, but I found that I had a better go of the hills when I reached down and “locked out” the front forks before the ascent.  Otherwise it seemed that the shocks absorbed so much of the energy I was putting into the pedaling that I ground to a halt before the summit.  Once I locked out the forks, I was able to tackle any of the hills, even those with many roots.  Of course, once back on flats, or before the descents, I would reach down and unlock the shocks so that I didn’t get jarred to death or bounced off the bike.  It only took me a short steep decline to learn that lesson… LOL!

Anyway… that hot tub sure felt nice… and my back is looser…. now… where is that Aleve!!

I’m sure looking forward to getting back on the road bike when I get home!!  There’s a potential group ride Saturday morning for the Cincinnati Bike Club I just joined, and a Saturday night ride in Xenia with a group from Greene County and the Pedalopolis forum.