No class until three on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I was up early to shoot in dawn light, but after the sun was up I had nothing to do but kill time. I got some tips on two possible trails for the mountain bike within 10 minutes of campus, and decided to check them both out.
Trail one: steep downhills, but not very technical for the most part. Dusty ground with dry leaves over the top = one long skid all the way down. My back wheel was locked for 90% of the runs, and when it wasn't I was going so fast I couldn't even tell what I was riding over. Awesome. I hit a creek at the bottom, pulled an endo, and over the bars I went. Great fun, but the back wheel hit a rock on the way back down and I had to retrue it to get it to spin again.
Trail two: What trail? I rode for 30 minutes on wide gravel paths through the woods, wondering what the person meant by, "I don't know how people ride on those trails." I saw a little offshoot, took it, and there I was in the scariest riding I've ever done. Narrow, steep hills with sharp turns at the bottom, super sharp and pointy rocks waiting for skulls, and some downhills I almost couldn't even push the bike up. I walked all but the easiest parts (gnarly roots running across an almost-cliff), and won't ride the harder stuff until I have a riding buddy with me.
So, all of this exploring without any injuring except to the bike. I get back to the dorm, riding with a tripod in one hand, and lock the brakes while on the sidewalk 20 feet from my door. All my weight shifts forward, and since I only have one hand on the bars, they turn 90 degrees. Down I go: bar end to the bicep, eggbeater to the shin bone. Both are nicely bruised, and my shin is pretty swollen.
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