No Brats for You!
by Mitchell Sprinsky on Oct.02, 2005, under Uncategorized
Since it’s getting late, we decide on the switchback trail (only we go
up and most people go down). So we head up the switchback trail
which is the remnants of the switchback railroad used during the coal
mining boom in the past.
the Moon Trail". Basically, the ridge line trail. It’s a
great babyhead strewn tight twisty singletrack. Going up:
climb. It’s the only way up to the trail and it’s getting
worse. This picture does not show the 25% incline and loose nasty
stuff. No, you can’t ride it. It’s almost
impossible to walk up it. One of these days, I am going to attach
a rope ladder to the top.
Eventually, we reach the top and take the proverbial for in the
road. We hit the lookout spot and reflect only to carry on a
conversation with the local hillbillies (age 16, 13, and 12 not
pictured) drinking beer out of the back of their Jeep.
As is normally the tradition on this ride, we get lost. For some
reason we end up on the same rocky piece of singletrack that
dead-ends. By the time you reach the dead-end, you don’t want to
climb back up and so you try to make it back down to the switchback
trail through this crap (not rideable).
very fast) and then always make the second mistake of the trail, the
shortcut. A loose rocky scree pile the always claims a
victim. It never fails. I have made it once on the pig bike
so I try first on the Racer-X. Five feet down and OTB I go.
Bob comes from behind me sliding all over the place. He tries to
cross over and down he goes. F’ing trail!
Back at camp, I head into town and pick up a meatball sandich for dinner. Mmmm… beef!
Sunday pack up and decide on A.S. (trail name witheld to protect the
innocent urinals – get it) as our final ride. After unloading the
bikes, the others worry they might not make it back for the losers, uh
I mean Eagles game so we decide on the Deer Path (another semi-legal
trail) off the Broad Mountain loop. Deer path is great fun.
Tons of tight rocky singletrack. We’re buzzing despite the trail
being partially overgrown (that’s what happens when MTBers don’t ride
it). For the vertically challenged like me, it’s no
problem. I easily get under all the branches. The other two
being over 6′ are getting whipped on every turn. We get out to
the powerlines and they decide to not partake in Deer Path II as it is
even more over grown. We head down the powerlines thinking there
may be another loop, but we stop before heading into the valley of no
return. Actually you’d have to ride the trail tracks back into
town. Not fun. We head back up and finish off the Broad
Mountain loop for a great day of riding and the weekend ends.
Not many pics, but if you look around on my site I have more than enough pictures of Jim Thorpe.
