Night Mountain Biking: My "New" Cycling Love

Cycling is one of those sports where all you need is a bike and you're on your way! Just a one time expense.

Or is it?

You also need a pump, and a helmet, and if you ever plan on riding more than an hour at a shot you'll also need some nicely padded, very smelly sweat producing germ growing shorts, and a water bottle, and a 3 pocket jersey (love them!) and clipless clip in shoes(?), and special pedals, and lights, and a rack for the car, and a *trainer or *rollers, and a *bike computer (gotta know your speed, because if you don't know how fast you're going, how will you ever get speed wobbles just by glancing down?) Oh dear. So much for that one time purchase.

Listen very carefully. Cycling is a blast. It is so much fun you'll never want to stop. It's the funnest way known to man for getting from point A to point B and you will become addicted. Just walk away.

I think it's an addiction that you just have to keep feeding. Riding helps, but can it really be enough?

I never understood the freakishness dedication of cyclists. Like why they need (?) more than one bike.

Until I tried Night Mountain Biking.

We have a little green belt in our neighborhood starting at the park across the street and going around the backs of the houses. It's a dirt trail about 1/2 mile long where Braxton loves to run.

Cycle Guy recently ordered me a special flashlight for my helmet so we can ride together at night. We decided for the maiden voyage we would try it on a mountain bike. Sounds crazy but Cycle Guy reads about some guys who love to go mountain biking at night. (Can you say feeding the addiction?) He really wanted to try it. For some reason I let him talk me into his crazy adventures. So off we went.

I kind of figured we'd go around the loop once and that would be it. Try it out, make the man happy.

Can you say Exhilaration?! I think I need a mountain bike!

I rode Coolio's bike. It has dual suspension and rotten brakes and it was a BLAST! You know when you see teenage boys riding their BMX bikes around always standing up? I was like that. I stood most of the time and screamed through the trail. For the first time in my life I told CG he was slow and tore past him. (Something had to be wrong, I never go faster than Cycle Guy. Don't worry we're all about to find out it was the bike~ not me.)

Out of breath and laughing I heard myself say, "Let's do it again!"

This time we traded bikes. I rode CG's suspension free, older mountain bike and he got on Coolio's. Not quite as fun on the bigger bike and somehow even with it's shorter cranks Coolio's bike was much faster. Maybe it's because I was closer to the ground, but I had more courage on the smaller bike too. I even went over a log once.

I don't know how many times we went around. Enough to be out of breath, but it was worth it.

We took the kids a few days later, just two at a time since we only have two lights but they also had a blast. Thing 1 even took off lightless once.

My advice to you is, "Be careful, be very careful." If you aren't careful you could be like me and I've fallen in love. I think I need another bike!

*If you're noticing prices on these links. Never fear~ we have NEVER paid full price for anything. Don't Do It. Never buy anything on a whim. Study it, watch for sales, be patient and go downstairs at REI, their go back section has been a treasure trove for us and not just for cycling goods!