Three out of the past four days I have hit the same loop on the Candlers Mountain trail system here in Lynchburg. Mike and I have switched to these trails from the Peaks View system for awhile to get our tread on some more challenging stuff.

The loop has taken up to a hour and a half in the past but this morning Mike and I decided to shave that down as much as possible and sure enough we rolled into the parking lot right at sixty minutes trail time.

It was rough though. The last twenty minutes of the ride is almost a constant climb. It starts out pretty gradual over some rough terrain and then it points sharply up and stays there until you hit the fireroad that leads you out.

This morning Mike actually took more falls then I did, which was a nice change from me biting it into a couple creeks and on a couple big log crossings over the weekend. But I welcome the change of scenery and riding more challenging trails. I know the harder trails make me better and if I’m not falling I’m not riding, right?