"Have we done this trail before 'cuz it's really kicking my a@#"

That was the comment made on the trail as we ventured out for our weekly Chicky ride at Explore Park. 4 of us ventured for this week's ride. Since we've been doing the same trails for a few weeks I decided to mix it up a little & see if we were up to the challenge of the "Endurance Loop".

We skipped the beginner loop and headed out on the intermediate trail. There was an awful lot of grunting and moaning as we climbed the hill after the wooden bridge...that's when it dawned on me we usually do the beginner loop as a warm up. Having skipped that and heading straight downhill for the first part of the ride, no wonder the gals were making so much noise!...we headed on our way. I decided to do the endurance loop backwards so we wouldn't have the giant climb w/ the 2 switchbacks. As we descended down the fire road, there was a giant tree in the middle of the road. We hike a biked around it & turned on to the Endurance Loop trail. The first section is littered with baby heads (small rocks)..and climbs a little. I was worried about Kirsten with her hybrid bike and slick tires. She skidded quite a bit but was a trooper.

We contined to climb and twist and turn along the trail, as we journeyed farther, that's when Kirsten asked...."have we done this trail before because it's really kicking my a@#". We all chuckled...then I informed Kirsten..no I've never taken you on this trail before. We continued on..doing a little hike a biking as we went. Moe & Jannie were even trying log crossings that I was too chicken to do! Way to go gals! We eventually came back to the intersection of the endurance loop & the first intermediate leg of the trail. We descended back down working on our switchback skills. Finally back to the parking lot.

It was a great night for a ride..not to hot, not too cold, Just Right!..Hopefully the gals weren't too upset that I tried to kill them....we'll save the endurance loop for a little later in the season when we have more riding under our belts. Everyone did a fantastic job!

If I remember to bring the camera, I"ll post some Chicky ride pics soon!