Newbie from NC (Wionston-Salem) area

[EnlistedX]

Hello All,

My name is Ryan and I live in Pfaftown NC. I’m 30 years young and been married for ten years with two wonderful children.

I’m new to the cycling scene and I think I have found my new hobby with MTB’s. I have been a police officer for the Winston-Salem Police Department for the past seven years. The past couple of years I have found myself getting lazy because of my other hobby which is web graphic design and graphic art… More than that it’s a definite risk getting out of shape in my job field.

Finding myself looking back to my childhood and remembering all the great times I had on a bike I though why not give it another shot. I recently bought my mountain bike (2008 Trek 3700 / I had to start somewhere..lol) and I am loving every minute of it. At 5’10 and reaching a nasty max weight of 260 (currently 245) I think this will definitely help loose some unwanted dangerous pounds.

Anyway, I look forward to getting to know everyone… maybe I will learn a thing or two while I am here.

[GoldenGoose]

Welcome aboard. This is probably the most addicting sport I can think of. Especially if you like being outside and can spend the time to check out new trails in your area. NC has some great trail systems so you definately are in a good location to start. Talk to the guys in your department and I bet you will find a couple of other guys that share the passion too. I was surprised to find out out how many guys in our department are avid riders and it’s always good to have a couple of riding buddies to push you and help you learn new stuff. Start on a simple, non-drastic diet and go out and have fun and you’ll be amazed at how fast you start dropping weight. I know guys that have dropped 20-30lbs in 3 months without even feeling like they were trying. Good luck and enjoy your bike!

[EnlistedX]

Thanks,

I am definitely excited about riding. My partner like to ride as well but mainly road bikes.

I have rode some of the trails at Tangle Wood and they were not that bad for a beginner. I have been to the Horizon Park trails the past two days. I must say that my riding skills and confidence need some work for the trails there. Although I am sure that the avid MTB Rider has no issues with them. I like the technological aspect of riding but I have found myself hurting in the uphill combined with roots etc… gotta get that endurance up..lol

I live in Pfafftown and I have not heard of any trails in my immediate area with the exception of Tangle Wood, Horizon park, and Hobby Park. Both Tangle Wood and Hobby park are decent drives just to go ride everyday. Horizon is closer but a smaller trail and a lot more picking myself up off the ground. I have also been told that Hobby Park trails are not for the newbie rider.

I do however ride the road at least 60 minutes when I do not trail ride.

[GoldenGoose]

The biggest thing about MTB riding on a trail over road riding is the different terrain you will encounter and knowing where you have to have your weight on your bike in order to get through it. With nasty terrain the key is MOMENTUM MOMENTUM MOMENTUM. Pedal hard into most objects and pull the front wheel as you get right up to it. If you are not resting all your weight on your wheels you will be really surprised how many things you can roll over. On rough terrain, let your legs be your shocks even if you are riding a full suspension. For the hills, keep your weight more on the back tire and either "mash" the short steep hills or sit and spin up the long ones. You’re probably already a pro at spinning from your road days even if you don’t fell like you can do it nearly as long. Don’t worry though, people have told me that 4 miles on the road is like 1 on a trail.

There’s a really cool book a buddy gave me called Mastering Mountain Bike Skills with a lot of neat little tricks in it that will help you on everyday rides as well as when you start kicking it up a level and trying out tricks and free ride type stuff. Check it out if you can.

http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Mountai … 956&sr=8-1

When you’re ready for a day trip, head out to Bryson City, NC and try out the Tsali trails. Its one of the International Mountain Biking Association’s "Epic" trails in your area and it lives up to the title. Enjoy your new sport and have fun learning along the way!

[trussman]

Welcome Ryan. I too am new to mountain biking and just as Jeremy said it is quite addictive. I am in a very similar situation to yours, 36 years old, 2 kids, and married for 9 years to a wife I could not live without. Taking my 6 year old boy to football practice kind of gave me some motivation to get in better shape. He is fit as a fiddle and I was 200# at 5’8" tall.

I started back riding my bike around the ATV trails on my farm and on the road. When I first started back riding (about 3 or 4 weeks ago) I would ride about 20 minutes and be completely exhausted. After riding almost every day since then I have increased my time to 50 minutes and I am not exhausted at all. I can’t get enough of it, just don’t have much more time than that to ride.

Also I have shed 11 pounds since I started, down to 189 now.

Stephen

[lmxloco]

Welcome back to the addiction!

You definitely live in a good area…there are some nice trails around WS and Greensboro. If you don’t mind the short drive down this way, parking at Bur-Mil Park off of 220 right north of Greensboro will net you close access to several great trails (Owl’s Roost and Wild Turkey I highly recommend).

As far as Hobby Park, it’s definitely on the tougher end of the spectrum. I’ve been there once a while back (when I wasn’t as strong) and the climb there was more than a little humbling.

If you ever want to swing over this way, send me a message…we’ll get together and hit the trails…I’m always looking for someone to ride with. There are still trails around here I haven’t ridden, too!

There are also a few guys on here from the triad area, so if you ever want a partner to ride with I’m sure most of us will be glad to accommodate.

[EZ-E]

Welcome! As mentioned above, you are in a perfect location in which to practice this sport and lifestyle!

Just a suggestion to mix it up and also maybe save a little commute time instead of heading through WS and GSO traffic all the way to the trails in Greensboro…there are a couple trails on Singletracks up in Mt Airy, which is a few miles closer with less traffic:
– Fisher River(Easier of the two): http://www.singletracks.com/php/trail.php?id=816

– Westwood(appears to have sections which are a bit more difficult): http://www.singletracks.com/php/trail.php?id=741

These would make great "work day" rides.

Another AWESOME trail to help you work up to a ride like the trails at Tsali and it’s only about an 45mi west of you is the Over Mountain Victory ("OMV") trail: http://www.singletracks.com/php/trail.php?id=1842
OMV is a perfect trail for a hardtail offering flowing trail with few uphills of any significant length and a great opportunity to improve your cornering and handling at speed along with stamina training(5.5 out-n-back=11mi total lap)

There are a few more trail networks in the same area as OMV which require more technical skills and endurance, so good goals for a novice rider to work toward…
Dark Mountain: http://www.singletracks.com/php/trail.php?id=752

Fish Dam Creek & Warrior Creek: http://www.bmcc.us/kerr_scott.htm

Have fun and be safe…maybe we’ll see you on the trails!

[Jason_B.]

Another new rider from NC here (45 years old – now don’t you all feel young 😃 ).

I had to ask my 36 year old buddy that got me into this is if it was okay to feel like a kid again – he assured me it was fine. Thanks goodness as I’m having a blast.

I’m up in Roanoke Rapids so I’ve been doing all my single track riding up in the Petersburg/Richmond area in Va since it is close by (Raleigh is equal distance and i hope to hit Crabtree soon – closed last Sat). We do have a local trail I hit during the week (just got back).

Anyway, just wanted to pop in and say hello…. now get out there and ride!

[EnlistedX]

Thank you all for the positive reenforcement, it makes me want to go ride a marathon (lol). I will look into the information provided. During my work week, it’s tough to hit the trails so I have been riding the road. Just got back from a 54 minute ride… It’s funny how things happen, I missed my turn and had to ride an extra 8 miles most of which was steep uphill. I made it in one piece… I am sure the people who passed me in cars were thinking OMG should we call 911? That fool looks like death.. hahahah

Thanks again everyone… I really look forward to getting everyone!

[aabiking ✓ supporter]

Welcome to singletracks and mountain biking. YOu do have some good trails within driving distance but the way gas prices are you will need to find a dependable riding partner that loves to ride like you do to help share the exspenses. The trails mentioned around your area are really good trails and you should put them on your list of must visit trails. Once you get your climbing down head to Danville, VA to Anglers Ridge http://www.singletracks.com/php/trail.php?id=1468 and ride the 16 miles of trail there. Then when you want some real climbing try these trail further north in VA.

http://www.singletracks.com/php/trail.php?id=521

http://www.singletracks.com/php/trail.php?id=523

Me and some guys from the Southern Virginia Mountain Bike Association SVMBA http://www.svmba.org will be heading to DuPont State forest for our yearly Epic ride from Sept 18th through the 21st. At the moment we have 8 riders committed. It will be my first time in SW North Carolina for MTBing. I can’t wait!!! We will also be riding Tsali one day.

If anyone would like to come and ride along you can keep a check on our website http://www.svmba.org for updated info on the EPIC about where and when we will be riding. Come on out and joing in on the fun. All are welcome.

[EnlistedX]

Thank You…

[Stamps]

My friend you are in the dead center of a lot of MTB trails. You’ve come across some good trails already with Hobby Park. However, there’s some others that you should not miss that are a maximum of an hours drive from Winston.

First, check out Salem Lake. I’ll describe these trails in greater detail because there’s not much trail beta on the net. I know you’re in law enforcement and the trails have no mountain biking on ’em but everyrider I know rides the trails there.

There’s a gravel double track path that circumnavigates the lake. Get off Bus. 40 at Linville Rd. exit and head down towards the lake. Park on the side of the road near the trail head of the gravel trail. Down the trail you’ll find some off shoot trails that go up into the woods. Explore around as there are trails all up in there all the way to the bridge. The trails on one side of the power lines tend to be more cross country while the other has some pretty sick free ride type stuff.

Next, check out Dark Mtn./ Over Mountain Victory trails just outside of Wilkesboro. There’s a breakdown of the trails on this website. Its fast becoming some of the best singletrack in NC outside of Asheville/Brevard.

As for afterwork or short commute rides, come over to my backyard in Greensboro. Go to either BurMill Park or Battleground Park; the trail networks accesible from either. The two major trails are Owl’s Roost and the newest addition to the Triad, Wild Turkey. Both are great rides but Wild Turkey stands out as its built by MTBer’s for MTBer’s. Tons of flow and challenges for all skill levels.

On top of those trails there’s a network of shorter trails both at Battleground Park and BurMill that are great including a freeride jump park near Battleground park.

For the Triad trail beta this site or http://www.biketriad.com are great resources.

Finally, once you’ve gotten your skill set up and are ready for the REALLY fun stuff, head to Asheville/Brevard. There are so many places to hit its truely a MTB mecca for the Southeast. Tops on my list are the following in no particular order:

Bent Creek
Wilson Creek
Dupont State Park
Black Mtn (aka Clawhammer)
Kitsuma
Tsali

Sorry for the long post but I hope you find this info useful. MTBing is a truely great sport and like those posts said above, its addictive. Most all riders are cool people and for a career like yours, it’ll keep you in great shape. As long as you don’t put down too many beers after those epic rides!

Good hunting!

Stampers

[CraigCreekRider]

Greetings from VA. Glad to see another convert. Seems theres plenty around your area to ride judging by the number of posts. Lots of riding up our way too (Roanoke area). I think we are about 2 hours north of the Winston Salem area. The "lower" trails around Carvins Cove lake (see AA’s post) are not too vertical and quite popular with beginner and intermediate riders. Our city market district has mountain bike police – ah- to get paid to ride. Talk your bosses into creating a position like that for you and you will be set for life 😆 . Again, welcome aboard.

[EnlistedX]

We have a downtown bike patrol as well as a park ranger position which is paid by the state. There is only one opening per that position.. almost impossible to get.lol

On a positive note I road what I call my "short" road route today (7.4 miles).. been averaging 26 minutes, today I did it in 19:32 and not nearly as winded.. nothing special about it, mainly uphill though.

On a good note, our park ranger which patrols Salem Lake, was my training coach when I was a rookie… *wink* *wink* Power lines FTW!

[EnlistedX]

That great.. nothing around the house that steep. Although I strive to stay above 2/5. Practice makes perfect

[Jason_B.]

"EnlistedX" wrote

That great.. nothing around the house that steep. Although I strive to stay above 2/5. Practice makes perfect

Keep in mind that on the Trek 3700, you have more of a raod crank as far as gear ratios go ( the crank is 28/38/48 ) so 2/5 on the 3700 is a bit tougher than 2/5 on a bike with a 22/32/44 crank.

I strive to find a gear that gives a good balance between anaerobic and aerobic workout (I’m a cave diver and lung capaccity was my main reason for entering this sport – the thrill of the ride has taken over though!).

Speaking of caves – how is north Florida holding up to all the rain there Mongoose?

[Jason_B.]

"Mongoose" wrote

I am so ready to go riding, but most all the trails were either destroyed, damged or are still under water.

Bummer – hope you guys get some relief soon.

I saw this on you tube the other day and I guess it suits you right now – Might be the thing to do.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0CPqyYmflg

[Author]

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