BOW - Stony Creek

Today was the MMBA/DNRE's Becoming an Outdoor Woman Mountain Bike Symposium. My group rode with a few girls from the Dark Horse Brewing team and a couple of guys. I had a great time, and gained a lot of confidence riding rocks and switchbacks.

I cleared the big rock garden twice, no problem. This stretch starts and ends with some pretty big rocks which are intimidating looking, but my nerves were eased knowing that there was a crew of guys there to catch us if we fell. I'd say the most challenging part of the trail for me was the roller coaster (or at least that's what I think it was called; maybe it was before that?) with all of its tight turns and switchbacks.

(That's not me, obviously, but this girl rocked!)

I feel the day was a huge success because I didn't technically fall; however, I did have a few mishaps along the trail. First, at one point during some switchbacks, my front wheel's quick release flipped open. This could have been a very scary experience, but thankfully I heard a pinging sound (of the lever hitting the fork) and the front end felt a little loosey-goosey. I was able to pull off the trail to figure out what was causing the problem before the wheel actually came off the fork. Crisis averted.

There was another point where I was going a little too fast and I had a run in with a tree. Well, a couple of trees. I lost control after a tight turn and jammed my wheel between two trees spaced about eight inches apart. I didn't fall off, though; when the bike stopped I was still clipped in and upright. Kind of like a dysfunctional track stand.

Mishaps aside, I kicked Stony's ass, and learned a lot in the process. It was a good day.

Oh, there was a raffle as well, in which I won a giant (22 oz) bottle of Hammer Gel plus a handy little squeezy dispenser. $20 value—it essentially paid for my registration fees. Thanks Rochester Bike Shop!