ROCKS + RAIN + ELECTRICITY = NOT WHAT YOU THINK -- September 29, 2015

A helmet is a must when mountain biking.   Knock on wood...I've never forgotten mine.   With clipless pedals on my Stumpjumper...biking shoes are also a must.   I've forgotten them once.  Today, at Rocky Ridge with Mark, I forgot my gloves.   Nowhere near as serious as forgetting shoes or helmet...but a big inconvenience.  

Power lines coming from TMI were filling the air with electricity today -- September 29, 2015
The weather guys said the rain was going be over the area after 5 PM but the atmosphere was already like a sponge and, like an elderly man in the middle of the night, unable to hold it's water.  I did okay without my gloves for about 20 minutes but, after I began to sweat and after the rain began to come down, things got tricky.   Rocky Ridge can be tough in dry weather.   Add a little rain, sweat, and bare palms and it gets pretty interesting.  

After riding up "Forbidden Four" and then back down "Rusty Chair" Mark and I came up Trail One.  It's a nice wide walking path that connects the northern ridge of the park to the southern ridge.

Trail One looking back toward the north.   The circular patch in the middle of the picture is a duck pond that has completely dried up because of the extremely dry weather in central PA the past few months -- September 29, 2015
The trail meanders underneath the power lines that come from Three Mile Island nuclear power plant.  The air was electric.  Literally.   You could hear it and you could feel it (at least I could...can't speak for Mark.)   Take a listen for yourself!


Mark's plan today was to ride for about an hour and then commute on his bike to his home in York City.  Considering the conditions and the short time we ended up getting in a fun ride.   A few big climbs and a few excellent descents.   We split up at the bottom of trail 8.  He headed down and out of the park to Druck Valley Road.  I climbed up and out and back to the truck.   Soaked with rain and sweat and feeling pretty good.

Life is a journey...not a destination.



David A. Raymond -- September 29, 2015

Look out on the northern ridge of Rocky Ridge -- September 29, 2015