Creeper Trail - George and Jeff style!!

Well I finally made it out on the old mountain bike yesterday after being sick for the past 2 months. I didn't go to Bent Creek with the NTMBA crew because I felt that the ride and the riders would be way to much for me to handle on a first ride back. So I got together with local legend Mike Thomas, George and Jeff and headed towards Damascus for what I thought was a nice easy ride up to White Top courtesy of the Creeper Trail. First I need to set the scene for everyone. I was talking to Mike on Friday and mentioned Bent Creek. He told me that he had talked to George and Jeff already and made plans to go do the Creeper Trail. George and Jeff are known for their epic mountain bike rides, which include goat trails steeper and nastier than I prefer. But they were doing the Creeper because Jeff broke his foot a few weeks back and this was just a ride to see how his foot would hold up. So off we go........

As we take off from the parking lot heading up the Creeper Trail the pace is moderate but nothing to bad. The ride to White Top is all uphill, probably about a 2% grade if that, but enough to where you have to keep pedaling (no coasting). Well about 5 miles in we came to the first juncture at which point Jeff and George told Mike and myself that if we veer off from the Creeper Trail we could get into some nice single track for a few miles and then connect back to the trail. This should have been where I said "I'll meet you at White Top"...but I didn't. Instead, I pointed the Chameleon in the direction of the single track and off we went. Now I tell you this, and doubt me if you will, but I promise you that we climbed non-stop for about 5 miles. And this was nasty stuff. Not your typical single track like at ETSU or Warriors. This was more like a service road that hadn't been used in years. The weeds were as tall as our bikes and sometimes you literally had to make you own track through them. There were some gravel spots that had some pretty loose gravel that made it hard to keep the momentum up but I made it to the top. And there, finally, was the "real" single track that was mentioned before. We had a nice 1 or so miles of single track going through the woods that led us to a creek that we had to cross on foot. Hopping off the bike and putting it on my shoulder I waded through knee deep water to get to a embankment that was steeper than hell. You couldn't ride up it. You had to literally climb out of there dragging or pushing your bike just to make it back to the Creeper Trail. I must say though that it was a fun experience.

After making it up the bank and back onto the Creeper Trail we had about 7-8 miles or so up to to White Top. It honestly hurt after doing all of the climbing earlier but the ride back to Damascus was worth it. It was all downhill back to the car. You still had to pedal but you could really get some speed up. Unfortunately Mike cut his tubular tire on his cyclocross bike and had to push for the last mile or so. All in all, a great time and a good workout. I think Jeff said his computer registered around 30 miles so for me that's a good start. I plan on building on this so it looks like Warriors and ETSU are in my future.

On the family front, no news yet. Daughter #3 still has not arrived. We are approaching the due date which is this Saturday!! I can't wait! I know my wife feels the same. I don't know how women do it. Being pregnant like that has to suck, especially when its hotter than hell. Alright, I'm outta here. Thanks for reading