Well, after riding roadies for many years, I took my first MTB for a spin today. Picked up a 2nd hand Trek x caliber 9 off Gumtree the other day and had my first ride today.
I live in Canberra so thought I’d just go for a local jaunt from my place in Kingston up Red Hill for my first test.
First impressions - it’s like driving a truck compared to my road bike. So much flex in the tyres even with the forks locked. Reached the Red Hill trail after a couple of k’s in the tarmac getting used to the feel of the bike and working out how the gears and brakes work. Even though it’s not fast, I enjoyed grinding it out on the road.
One I was on the dirt, it was all new....getting used to how the bike felt on other-than-asphalt.
I loved how I could just plough through the terrain with ease!
After a couple of k’s on The circumferential track at the base of Red Hill, found a track that took me up to the summit. Well, bugger me, that was an effort and a half in the granny gear. Such a new experience spinning up the loose packed dirt trail.
Down the other side, I was quite tentative as the surface was very loose and sandy and really quite steep. I want to get much faster and jump like the guys on you tube. Maybe get a few more k’s under my belt....
Only had travelled about 15kms at this point so did a half lap around the lake and ended up doing a 2hr ride.
So, not bad for my first outing. Learned a lot and looking forward to having a run at Stromlo tomorrow. My poor roadie might be neglected for a while.
I live in Canberra so thought I’d just go for a local jaunt from my place in Kingston up Red Hill for my first test.
First impressions - it’s like driving a truck compared to my road bike. So much flex in the tyres even with the forks locked. Reached the Red Hill trail after a couple of k’s in the tarmac getting used to the feel of the bike and working out how the gears and brakes work. Even though it’s not fast, I enjoyed grinding it out on the road.
One I was on the dirt, it was all new....getting used to how the bike felt on other-than-asphalt.
I loved how I could just plough through the terrain with ease!
After a couple of k’s on The circumferential track at the base of Red Hill, found a track that took me up to the summit. Well, bugger me, that was an effort and a half in the granny gear. Such a new experience spinning up the loose packed dirt trail.
Down the other side, I was quite tentative as the surface was very loose and sandy and really quite steep. I want to get much faster and jump like the guys on you tube. Maybe get a few more k’s under my belt....
Only had travelled about 15kms at this point so did a half lap around the lake and ended up doing a 2hr ride.
So, not bad for my first outing. Learned a lot and looking forward to having a run at Stromlo tomorrow. My poor roadie might be neglected for a while.