Lately I've really wanted to do more mileage than the shop ride (25 miles) and ride my CX bike more. Yesterday, I accidentally combined the two.
Drew and I set out to do a ride at Betzwood. He just likes getting out on a bike, and I really wanted to play in the mud. I more than got my wish. It rained two days ago but Betzwood looked like it rained five minutes ago. In the first section, it was super sloppy and traction was occasional. I would have loved smaller gears to just spin through it, but thems is the breaks.
The second section we hit up was muddy in spots, but there was enough grass around to keep it manageable. It's the longer and more fun of the two sides, so we did it twice. With single track running through grass fields, I managed to collect a nice amount of grass in between my cassette and my hub. So much so that my bike would ghost pedal, make terrible noises and added a bunch of friction. It kind of sucked, and I have to bring the wheel into the shop tonight to remove the cassette to get the rest of it.
After the grassy field is an awesome wooded section that takes you around shallow ponds with trees growing out of the water (nicknamed "he swamp"). Even when it hasn't rained, it's a little wet back there. The path is twisty and fun, with roots and logs to hop over. When Drew and I got to the swamp, there was just the thinnest layer of ice covering them. It added a ghostly feel to it with the trees rising out of the ice, no leaves anywhere, everything was grey and for whatever reason, you could faintly hear dogs yelping in the distance. It was awfully eerie and strangely beautiful all at the same time.
After we did two laps we decided to get on the Perkiomen Trail and just ride the gravel path for a while. After some talking, it came out that Drew had never been out to Spring Mountain, so we decided to head out that way. The only problem I had was that I hadn't planned on A) being out that long and B) riding that far. I was ill-prepared at best. 1 apple, a gel and a 20oz water bottle with H.E.E.D. in it. There's a Wawa in Collegeville, so I wasn't too worried... until I remembered I didn't bring any money.
We passed through Schwenksville and came to an intersection and I made a turn and the front of my bike just started bouncing and hopping. The pressure was way down, so I pulled off and started changing the flat. I got the wheel off, popped off the tire no problem, checked the tube, but found no puncture. Checked the tire, and found nothing sticking in it. I chalked it up to a small pinch flat and decided to swap out the tube. Better safe than sorry.
When I left my house, I grabbed a tube Isaac had given me from the shop, because it had a rubberband around it, and the spare tube I usually bring does not. What I didn't check was the valve length. The new tube barely stuck out. I tried to jam my CO2 on the valve, and when I twisted, it was like watching NASA footage of the fuel tank blowing off of a space shuttle. I closed it as fast as I could but the damage was done. Drew, had a tube, but nothing to fill it up with (WTF!) so I was screwed. We walked up to 29 and headed back down towards Skippack Pike because there is a bike shop on the way. The shop has never been opened when I ride by, so I was worried, but when we got there, it was open and staffed with two very helpful and nice guys. The hooked me up with a pump and Drew spotted me the cost of a new tube and CO2. I pounded my remaining H.E.E.D. and filled up with water at their fountain and we were on our way. Drew asked if we were going to head back or go to Spring Mt. and without hesitating, I said Spring Mt. We were 2 miles away, so why not?
When you get to Spring Mt. there is a big yellow sign that says "12% Grade next 1/4M." When you get to the hill, it's downhill, but then you quickly realize that you have to come back up. I've never gone down the hill. Drew stopped, thought for a second and was like "lets do it!" So we bombed the hill. At the end of the path is the bottom on the ski slope and a parking lot called "Bike Launch Park." Hmm... might as well check that out.
There are a bunch of wooded ramps setting up some pretty big jumps. We didn't do any of them, but it was fun to check out. There's also, oddly enough, Paul's Cemetery there with what looks like a little hut that a robot gravedigger would live in. It was kind of creepy and we joked that Paul's Cemetery is where they bury people foolish enough to try the jumps on their cross bikes. So we left to climb Spring Mt.
The climb wasn't as bad as we thought it was going to be. I was stupid though, and on the steeper section tried standing and was met with wheel slippage immediately. Had I been smart, and moved to the center of the road where the gravel was more tightly packed, I would have made it up quicker and been less tired. But I didn't figure that out until I was 3/4 of the way up. Up top, jack-ass.
The ride back was pretty uneventful. We were both spent, my knee was starting to hurt and it was a nice, slow pace back. I said goodbye to Drew at Valley Forge and rode the remaining 5 miles home by myself. I just put my head down and pushed through it. The hills in Bridgeport hurt, but I had just enough gas in the tank to get home. 5+ hrs, 47.49 miles with a touch over 1,000ft of hills, more mud than I've ever rode in and an absolutely awesome distance cross ride later and I was ready to pass out with a smile on my face. Next time I think I' pack a samich and a ten spot.
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