More
Fun With the Ladies in WV
This
past weekend (Sept. 15-17) I headed to Slatyfork, W.V., to be a tour
guide for a women's weekend featuring Trek/VW pro rider Sue Haywood.
This is the second time this summer
I've guided a women's weekend tour at Elk
River Touring Center, and I was glad to be back again.
Thursday
My
weekend got off to an early start -- I drove down on Thursday and
met Sue for a big ride that afternoon. Carrie of the ERTC staff shuttled
us over to the Little Laurel Overlook on the Scenic Highway and dropped
us off. We
rode up and over Tea Creek Mountain, up Bannock Shoals, across Boundary
Trail, up Bear Pen and in Gauley Mountain trial to Mine Road. Then
we took Power Line and Black Cherry down to the bottom of the mountain.
It was a sweet 25-mile singletrack bonanza. We hit the showers and
then hit the bar and restauarant, where pro
mountain
biker Kristy
Lanier-Mantz joined us
for
a delicious
dinner (Kristy also would be helping to guide the weekend tour).
Friday
On
Friday morning Sue and I drove over to Marlinton to check
out the Dirtbean Halé, a coffee shop/bike shop that Kristy
owns. We had some delicious coffee and checked out the place
before heading back over to Slatyfork to set up an obstacle course
in preparation for the arrival of the 18 women who were signed up
for the tour. We built logovers, step-up bridges and other obstacles,
then suited up and got ready for introductions and our first ride
as a group. After working on technique in the yard we headed down
219 to hit the base trails off of Mine Road. We rode up Roaring Run
and then down Power Line trail, then headed back to ERTC for drinks,
dinner and dessert in the restaurant.
Saturday
Saturday
we got up and had a great breakfast with the ladies. Then Sue,
Jen and I made 23 sandwiches (ham & cheese, turkey & cheese,
or PBJ) before rounding everyone up for photos before heading out.
The
ride started with an 8-mile climb up Props Run, followed by picnic
lunch at the top. Some of the ladies decided they had had enough
after Props Run and several miles of gravel road, so they rode
back down the mountain to ERTC, finishing with an impressive 20 miles
for the day. The rest of us continued out the gravel
road to the intersection of Boundary Trail, where Sue, Kristy and
Amy took the ladies with the most energy across Boundary
Trail. Jen and I took the rest of the ladies on out the gravel
to
the intersection of Boundary/Saddle Loop/Bannock Shoals. We went
in on Boundary for a bit, just to give them a taste of what the
other group
was
doing on Boundary in the opposite direction. Then we retreated
and headed down Bannock Shoals, a 4.5-mile dowhill that ends at the
Williams
River Campground. MThe shuttles were parked there,
so we drank Cokes and waited for the group that had added on Boundary
before
ultimately
heading down Bannock to meet up with us. My group logged 25 miles
for the day and the Boundary group logged 28. Miles don't roll
very easily in Slatyfork, so all three groups should be proud of
the long
miles they pedaled on Saturday.
Everyone
washed their bikes and enjoyed chips & salsa (homemade by Mary Willis,
of course) and drinks in the bar before sitting down to another awesome
dinner. After dessert, we moved outside for a bonfire. The stars
were out BIGTIME and I lay on a picnic table and stared up at them
for a long time.
Sunday
Sunday
we had a great breakfast followed by a tech session -- Sue demonstrated
how to fix a flat and discussed other trailside maintenance concerns.
Then we headed over to the Base Trails for a final ride together.
We had a great session on a switchback in the pine trees, and everyone
cheered as each rider made it up the final hill on Power Line Trail.
Descending Roaring Run was a blast, and we stopped at the bottom
for some pictures in the trees. After showering and cleaning our
bikes one last time we met for lunch on the back porch and said our
goodbyes.
This
was the fifth (sixth?) women's weekend I've helped to host at Elk
River, and again it was one of the most satisfying things I've done
all year. It is so cool to ride with women who take extra care to
encourage one another to try new things and to feel
good
about their accomplishments. The positive energy was inescapable!
So,
thanks all of you great ladies: Kelly, Tara, Stacia, Jen, Sonja,
Connie, Julie, Marci, Kerry, Christina, Amy, Claudine, Jill, Hattie,
Theresa, Bonnie, Teresa, Lora, Sue, Amy, Kristy, Jen and Mary. You
rock!
--
Meredith
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on the images below for larger images and captions.
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