August 31, 2007

Mountain Biking Coe

Thanks to Tom J for taking Timber and I to a new place in Henry Coe State Park to do some mountain biking last weekend. We went in a little further south than usual, we exited highway 101 at the outlets in Gilroy and then took Gilroy Hot Springs Road until it ended a bridge crossing. We then got on our bikes and did a 10.5 mile loop that climbed 2000 feet on fireroads and came roaring down on some pretty technical single track. In my experience, the underlying theme of Henry Coe State Park is that it is going to be more difficult than you expect, even if you've been there many times. The trails can be long and extremely steep. And it can get really hot in the summer. The most entertaining part of the bike ride for me was having one of my front brakes fall off, hit my spoke, and then go flying off into the tall grass as I was going down the single track. When I saw that happen my eyes got really big and I had a few choice words. But I was able to get stopped without having to jump off the bike and I was luckily able to find my brake, put it back on my bike, and tighten it up enough for the rest of the decent. Overall it was a fun but challenging ride and I think we'll definitely go back.

Posted by troutm8 at August 31, 2007 11:32 AM