sirbikesalot.com - UNCW ride

UNCW ride

This morning I rode UNCW with fast John. I hadn't ridden here in months. It was still fast, only a lot smaller now. There was also a fence along the fireroad at one point, which kinda made me feel like a fish in a bowl, a hamster in a cage, a mouse in a maze, etc. you get the point. We were trapped, trapped like rats! It's slowly but surely becoming more and more like one of those landscape buffers like the trees stuck between the highway and on/off ramps. But it was still fun. And there are still areas where you can reroute and add new trail.

I could tell it's not being ridden like it used to, however, there was one new trail feature I really enjoyed. It was a ladder over a downed tree, in the same section where the other one was that I rebuilt a few years ago. It was fun. I gotta build one of these at BC. The other small jumps were still there, as well as the big teeter-totter, the one that I think is one of the most challenging teeters I've ever ridden.

So I attempted it, before realizing that most of the board was on the starting side. The thing took so long to move I couldn't hold my balance any longer and played human lawn dart when my front wheel went off the narrow board. After I rebalanced it, I tried it again, this time making it (just barely). That thing is sketchy, and now I have a sprained neck, back and hand to prove it. I'm sitting here writing this after taking four ibuprofin and my neck and back are just tightening up. But hey, I did it.

UNCW would be more fun at night where you can't see where you are or the boundaries as easily, but I imagine it's getting brighter in those woods. In fact, coming in from Rose Ave I saw a bunch of new road light bases being installed. Which reminds me I have to write a letter to the Cape Fear Community College North Campus for doing this (see photo below) to Blue Clay. When are the aliens landing? It was a erie red color, also known as light pollution. They have about a million lights on that campus where it is a complete and unnecessary waste. I encourage you to write to them as well.

Light pollution from North Cape Fear Community College.

So maybe next week we'll do a night ride at UNCW, minus Steve, because he refuses to ride there anymore until someone cuts some new trail. Oh, and I didn't have time to check out the jumps, and in no condition to jump anyway after my head planting.

-SBA