Dirt Bike Date to Snoopers Rock

Last year (I think), Daniel purchased his first dual sport bike after going several years without a motorcycle. He has several friends who enjoy this sport, so when their schedules align, he likes to sneak off for a few hours in the woods.

But he has always hinted (maybe not so subtlety) that he would like me to go ride with him. He has big aspirations of doing a ride out west some day. Last January we watched The Long Way Round, and I have to admit the adventure of an epic ride like this has some appeal (especially when Ewan McGreggor's wife joined him for part of the ride through Africa... if she could do it, I probably could too).

I guess Daniel has had his eyes open for a specific size bike, and when he found out that a friend was selling a TW200 for a good price, he asked if I would at least try it out.

So I did. I haven't ridden a motorcycle since 2004, but I still have my motorcycle endorsement on my driver's license...

Even though I haven't been riding motorcycles, I did take up riding mountain bikes about ten years ago, and I have been driving a stick shift for the last 15 years. So in a sense riding the TW200 was like riding a bike, I hadn't forgotten. Though I did need a refresher on how to start it.

The new-to-us bike was purchased at the end of September, but I had not been on it since my initial test ride. In the meantime, Daniel has taken it out on the trails several times and really enjoyed it. The bike is geared really low with really wide tires, so it is really forgiving and easy to ride. Perfect for learning how to ride (again).

During Thanksgiving, we had a houseful of guests and Daniel requested that we leave our kids with my family and sneak off for a date to ride in the woods.

And so we did.

To start, I rode around the rocky parking lot to make sure I felt confidant on the machine. The parking lot was small and rocky, but I didn't fall off, so we ventured away from our car.

We started out on a gravel forest road. In hindsight, we probably should have just found some jeep trails. The gravel made me nervous and I fish tailed at least once. I also couldn't muster the confidence to ride above 20mph (mostly 15mph). I did a lot of deep breathing from yoga to stay focused and not freak out. Thankfully I didn't fall.

Then I agreed to follow Daniel down the rocky trail to Snoopers Rock. This was the scariest part of the ride and I had a hard time not riding the brakes the whole way down (and I was relying on the front brake only, which I know is a bad idea, but trying to use the foot brake simultaneously for the rear was a bit much for my brain to handle). Thankfully I made it to the bottom without a problem. I immediately hopped off my bike to a break and walk off my adrenaline rush from being afraid during the ride down.

We walked out to the Snoopers Rock viewpoint and I tried not to think about the ride back up. Daniel gave me a pep talk and told me it would be easier if I went faster and that I just had to trust the bike. Both things I know, but it is so hard to do when you are in the moment.

We agreed that I should follow him back up the trail, and it was much easier than the ride down! We also decided he should lead on the way back to the car. After a nerve-racking, narrow, winding gravel climb, I finally got the confidence to keep up with Daniel on the flat parts, going 30-35mph on the way back.

I still have a lot of riding to do before I will be truly confident on a dirt bike, but it was a lot of fun and I always enjoy doing adventurous things with Daniel. When our boys are bigger, this will be a great bike for them to learn on.