Out of shape, out of (my) mind...

Saturday the Beast drove over from Georgia and we met up at Oak Mountain State Park for some fun on the red trail. I was worn out from Friday's 9 hour shift on the Scout Christmas Tree lot, where I had shoved my hip out of joint hauling a tree, (leaving me unable to walk for about an hour).

Jeff and I hooked up at the south trailhead parking lot and began our ride clockwise, with 7 Bridges as our first section. The air was cold. And by cold I mean that I didn't bother to shed my arm warmers or tights for the whole ride. Unusual because you warm up really fast mountain biking without the wind to keep you cooled off. But there was very little "warming up" to be done.

We had a pleasant ride through 7 Bridges, and The Chimneys over to the North Trailhead, where Doug was waiting for us.

The 2.5 mile climb up to the ridge on the fire road hurt. I gave serious thought to the possibility that I might actually be certifiable for riding with these two while I was in such lousy shape. My HR was constantly over 180 for the entire climb. Pain. Lots of pain. Lots and lots of pain. (to be followed by the way, by another 9 hour shift on the tree lot).

Jeff and Doug would pull ahead on the steep sections, then I would close the gap down on the easier parts, then ahead again, and pull it back again, all the way to the BUMP Trail, where the fun really begins. Miles of downhill singletrack, twisting and winding through the trees as it traverses down the mountain side again.

It's been about 2 years since I've ridden at OMSP, and I could tell that I needed more experience to relearn the twists and turns, and most importantly, the proper line past Blood Rock. Past that, Johnson's Mountain and Mister Toad's Wild Ride are always a ton of fun, and I didn't have much trouble keeping up with my two ride partners, except on the uphills.

The one thing that is clear is that I'm going to need to ride more than once per week if I expect to even maintain any conditioning.