Thursday, May 24, 2012

First 2012 adventure ride: part 4

Overdose

Adventure riding is quite satisfying when everything rolls, but when it gets bad…

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[Hells way] This path, which looks somewhat easy, got my attention before arriving to the little creek (see part 3).  As I had to turn around, I decided to take a peak at it when I passed back in front.

Sooooo bad idea.


 

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[#$&* MUD!] Oh well, not that bad, I thought – slope is going down.  I can do it!

Effectively, up to then everything went relatively well…


 

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[Lake Doré] Hey! Really…it was a good idea to follow this trail.  A sign indicating Lake Doré (the lake was on the left side) - I am probably closer to civilization than I thought.


 

Unexpected workout

[Strike 1]  Crap!, I’m in deep sh..trouble.  What seemed to be an easy trail suddenly transformed into a painful process!  Mud all around the place.  I tried to avoid it by riding on the side, but that made it even worse.     

Going down a muddy trail is not too hard, gravity helps.  But going upward is another story.  With a heavy bike – if you are hesitant on gas, something like this is bound to happen…

Sad smile

The last thing I expected on this sunny day was a bonus workout.  Push forward…pull back…push forward…all I achieved doing this was to sink further.

How the heck I will get out of that?  Finally, the solution was to spin the bike again (see part 3).  I put a big rock under the kickstand…but it was not enough, this rock was sinking under the pressure.  I had to pile another one over.  Then I was able to spin the bike enough to go into the opposite direction – downwards.

So turning back again…but it was not over yet, I still had to go up against the other slope.  Unfortunately, my fears were founded.

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[Strike 2] Yet again.  I swear…if I get out of this darn hole…I’ll go back home and SELL THIS #$#%# BIKE RIGHT NOW!

I really need a lighter bike.

Open-mouthed smileOpen-mouthed smileOpen-mouthed smile

The bike was so deeply stuck that it stood on its own.  Unable to spin this time, the kickstand was out of reach and there was a big rock that blocked the front wheel.

The fatigue started to take over and I was out of resources.

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[Light at the end of the tunnel]  Of course not! I’m not dead yet.

I got out of trouble by laying the bike on its side and putting 2 logs under the rear wheel so it wouldn’t go back into the hole when I lifted the bike back up.

Fortunately, the front wheel placed itself on the big rock on the side (and not back into the hole), which allowed me to get the bike out of this hole and continue my journey.

Phew!  That was a close one!


 

I learned my lesson – without the right bike and the right tires, mud is a no go.  There’s no way I’m going back there with my bike…

…well, unless I install a K60 on the back wheel too…

be right backBe right back

To be continued…part 5

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