This morning I drove out to the Ladera Ranch Grand Prix, an all day bicycle race event, but I did not go for the race, so if you’re looking for details on it, definitely check out their website. I went for the skills demo and trail ride put on by SoCal Cyclocross. We were a small group made up of SoCal Cyclocross organizer and leader Dorothy, her friend Allison, who is 30 and wins money in bike races, Justin, a helpful, accomplished cyclist, and me, bike commuter and weekend warrior to the min (not max).
I arrived at the top of the hill on my ‘cross bike, and while the spirit was willing when I was in the cool of Santa Monica’s flatlands, thinking about this morning’s “endurance ride” as I loaded my bike up for the 60+ mile trip to Ladera Ranch, the flesh was mighty weak in the hot, hot sun on the top of that roller coaster-sized hill!
It happened after Justin told me that he had not listened to his body one day when he felt tired and should have been resting rather than riding. Instead, he went out on his bike, had a momentary lapse in attention, hit a parked vehicle, and broke his neck in 6 places.
Ladera Ranch Area Mountain Bike Trails
I had shouldered my bike while walking up a steep pathway to get to the trail, and had ridden a couple steep ascents while on the trail. But I knew after shouldering the bike that I wasn’t as well-nourished, hydrated and rested as I really needed to be to tackle that ride. Though I had said I was willing, and that I would walk anything that seemed too dangerous for me to ride, when I crested the top of what I will call a mountain (though my more experienced companions might call it a foothill), I thought, “Ten more miles of this? No way!” I had had enough.
When I told Justin that the hill was too steep for me and I just wanted to turn around and go back, he first encouraged me to ride it. But I had learned from Justin’s story about not listening to his body to listen to myself at such a crucial moment. I got off the bike and sat down on the side of the trail, needing to catch my breath – I think it was still somewhere behind me on the ascent! Either that, or I was visited by sudden-onset asthma as I realized that I could have really been hurt if I had not stopped. I had actually started to descend, then felt that I would not be able to maintain control of the bike. I have not ridden on a trail before, let alone a steep one; it was simply beyond my abilities at this point.
Suffice it to say, it was an exciting morning! I learned that I know my limits – at least once I meet them – and that I’ve got a lot of training and practice ahead of me if I want to be in shape and skilled enough to ride trails on my cyclocross bike, and maybe even eventually try a Cyclocross race.
Meanwhile, here again (as comfort to me) is my favorite cyclocross bike trail-riding video which inspired me to get the bike so I could do some light off-road riding.
