Town Run Trail Park at last!

So I left the house at 15 'till 11a.m. with the sky threatening to rain. But the sun was trying to keep the scheduled isolated thunderstorms off as long as possible.

I got to the TRTP, loaded my bottles, set my glasses in my helmet and started towards the beginning. The start of the TR trail has a nice little slope, but one side has a nice (rocky, twisting and just slightly unsafe. Note the sarcasm just dripping from my voice... I mean words... text whatever.) rut. I had to stand at the top of the hill for a few minutes to get myself prepped for it. Finally I eased off the brakes (only slightly) and shot down. It wasn't too bad.

My first lap I decided to take it easy and just get re-aquainted with the terrain and hazards. A few miles into it I took one hand off the handle bars and took a drink. Bad idea. I was still pedaling and my front tire glanced off a rock... I got to know the weeds of TRTP very well. Some must have had little thorns/needles because my leg and arm began to burn like a million misquito bites. I thought "Oh boy, there goes my ride!" but after a quarter mile of going slow and itching (and scratching) like crazy I finally forced myself to stop scrathing and after a bit the ichiness went away.

The rest of the lap was pretty much uneventful except for when I had about 3 miles left to go and I pulled over to let a biker with a blue jersey (male, mid-thirties or so) pass me. About a half-mile later I heard a shout and crashing and a deer jumped right across the path! There was another biker going the otherway on on the path (and these sections are about 20 feet apart) and he yelled "Did you see that?!?!" I yelled back "Yeah!", and he was like "That's so cool!" I've never had that happen before!

When I pulled out of the woods, I took a brake uner the pavillion. The first lap was good, I didn't make all of the hills (some due to my rear derailleur not shifting properly, and some to me not having enough speed) but I went over all of the obsticles, with the exception of a log pile that's just too hard for me right now.

The second time down the beginning it wasn't so hard. I decided to go faster this time. I passed a guy (white jersey, late twenties) talking on his cell phone on the top of a hill. I asked him if he was ok, and he said yeah, so I went on. Five minutes later he passed me. (much to my chagrin) When I went under the bridge on the way back there was a dad with his daughter and son. The idiots were standing all over the pathway, so I had stop untill they moved. (They did have nice bikes though)

A couple miles from finishing I heard another crash and saw the hind-end of a deer disapear in the brush on the side of the trail. I was like "Wow! Twice in one day!"
It was a great ride! I might not win the DINO race, but I shouldn't come in last.

Lap 001
Tm: 48 minutes
Mi: 7

Lap 002
Tm: 45 minutes
Mi: 7

Total (2 laps combined)
Tm: 1 hour, 36 minutes
Mi: 14.05
Tp. Spd: 17.7mph
Av. Spd: 8.7mph