This past Saturday, Jollytime came back to CT for a visit and we decided to hit Soapstone Mountain for a few hours of riding. I rode with JT and our friend Mike, non-monkey, and we explored some new trails out at Soapstone and also rode a few familiar ones. JT and Mike really rode great and I played the role of sweeper most of the day trying to keep up with the two of them - JT rockin his new Yeti 575 and Mike rockin a Heckler.
Soapstone is aptly named and it took a toll on my Ted Wojcik - my bike was creaking and clanking a bit by the time I got back to the parking lot after about 2.5 hours on the trails.
I left Laura's house at about 7:30 in the a.m and was able to see a few hot air balloons up in the sky - they were part of a local hot air balloon festival. The pic doesn't capture the beautiful colors of this balloon - cool stuff to see first thing in the a.m.
After about an hours drive - I forgot how long it takes to ge to Soapstone - I hit the parking lot and got ready and we were off climbing a road up to the top of the mountain. From there we headed down some rocky singletrack and then explored some new trails to JT And Mike - some pretty cool stuff that will be even cooler once it gets bedded in some more.
Then JT found this roller out of the corner of his eye and he had to circle back and hit it, so I caught it on film:
It was a little steeper than it looks in the pic.
We rode some more (the pace was fairly quick or maybe I'm just in ****ty shape) and then got a little lost but we found our way back to the good stuff real quick like.
Here's JT riding a chute like a pro - this is harder than it looks and he just ate it right up on his new Yeti:
As you can see, Soapstone has some pretty tough rocks - one of them decided to take a bite out of my Survival Pro rear tire. Youch!
It was a super fun morning of riding and it was great to be out on the trails again with JT and with Mike too! I hadn't ridden with Mike in well over a year. He's a good rider and in very good shape and he really rode fast, as did JT.
After the ride was over we just kind of hung out for a bit on a picnic table and talked bikes and stuff until Mrs. Jollytime came back to pick up the King of the Kingdom.
All in all a great way to spend a Saturday morning!
Soapstone is aptly named and it took a toll on my Ted Wojcik - my bike was creaking and clanking a bit by the time I got back to the parking lot after about 2.5 hours on the trails.
I left Laura's house at about 7:30 in the a.m and was able to see a few hot air balloons up in the sky - they were part of a local hot air balloon festival. The pic doesn't capture the beautiful colors of this balloon - cool stuff to see first thing in the a.m.
After about an hours drive - I forgot how long it takes to ge to Soapstone - I hit the parking lot and got ready and we were off climbing a road up to the top of the mountain. From there we headed down some rocky singletrack and then explored some new trails to JT And Mike - some pretty cool stuff that will be even cooler once it gets bedded in some more.
Then JT found this roller out of the corner of his eye and he had to circle back and hit it, so I caught it on film:
It was a little steeper than it looks in the pic.
We rode some more (the pace was fairly quick or maybe I'm just in ****ty shape) and then got a little lost but we found our way back to the good stuff real quick like.
Here's JT riding a chute like a pro - this is harder than it looks and he just ate it right up on his new Yeti:
As you can see, Soapstone has some pretty tough rocks - one of them decided to take a bite out of my Survival Pro rear tire. Youch!
It was a super fun morning of riding and it was great to be out on the trails again with JT and with Mike too! I hadn't ridden with Mike in well over a year. He's a good rider and in very good shape and he really rode fast, as did JT.
After the ride was over we just kind of hung out for a bit on a picnic table and talked bikes and stuff until Mrs. Jollytime came back to pick up the King of the Kingdom.
All in all a great way to spend a Saturday morning!
: 
Didn't you recently graduate from college in Boston? NY part of New England?
and looking forward too seeing you and lisa again as well.