WHICH WAY DO YOU WANT TO RIDE THIS?

As we made our way out of the parking lot at the Lakes on Tuesday, Mark turned to me and asked, "Which way do you want to ride this?"  I instinctfully nodded up the hill to the right.  Afterall, it's the way we always ride it.  That's the way the trail is "suppose to be ridden."  But why?  Somewhere along the line, we decided that riding that particular trail counter clockwise was more difficult.  So...ride after ride, year after year, I've ridden trails 4 and 2 at the Lakes clockwise.  So much so, I could probably navigate the trails in my sleep.  

Taking a break at Rocky Ridge County Park.  All by myself on a solo ride...I thought I'd challenge myself and climb clockwise out of trails 8 and 9.  Super tough...but super cool! -- September 1, 2017

Coming down an off-shoot of Trail 4 at the Lakes.  I hardly ever ride this direction...made for a great afternoon. -- August 24, 2017

David Raymond and Chris Keller.  Changing up our rides at Rocky Ridge County Park has been fun.  Recently we've challenged ourselves to ride a ride we've never ridden.  It's been fun! -- September 8, 2017

All this passed through my mind the second after I nodded my head to the right.  I looked up, motioned Mark to turn left, and off we went.  Yeah...the ride was more difficult...but man, was it fun!  We climbed and climbed and climbed...but for the first time in a long time the Lakes seemed new and the ride wasn't predictable.  I'm a creature of habit and I live by routine.  Lately, I've been having fun forcing myself out of normal patterns.  Something as simple as parking in different lots when I ride at Rocky Ridge has forced me to start on different trails and ride in different directions...helping me to piece together unfamiliar rides in very familiar places.   So..."Which way do I want to ride this?"...not the same as yesterday.


Switching things up at Rocky Ridge County Park...Mark and I headed up "Forbidden Four" only to blast our way down trail #1 to beat a massive storm heading our way. -- September 5,  2017


Life is a journey...not a destination.



David A. Raymond --  September 14, 2017



No post ride ice cream after my recent after school rides....but back yard fire pit mountain pies make a good substitute. -- September 8, 2017

Here's the GARMIN maps and data from the rides featured in this post...







Interested in mountain biking or hiking some of the trails featured in this post?  Check out the TRAIL MAPS and TRAIL HEADS tabs on the ALL TRAILS LEAD TO ICE CREAM website.   

All of my posts are available at ALL TRAILS LEAD TO ICE CREAM and, if you get the chance, be sure to visit HIGHPEAKSHIKING.COM!

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