Berryman!

I'm not sure what the high was today, but whenever I woke up this morning and headed outside it was nearly warmer outside than it was in my bedroom! There is only one thing that means: MOUNTAIN BIKING! Its not everyday in January in Missouri that you can bike comfortably in shorts.

I finally made the pilgrimage out to the legendary Berryman Mt. Bike Trail, and boy am I glad I did. This trail was everything folks have said it is. Its located Right in between Steelville and Patosi on Hwy 8, only about 50 miles from Rolla. I arrived at the trail head at 12:00. Berryman is a 23 mile loop and I figured I'd take me about 4 hours.

The trail was one fast, saucy decent after another, and the best part is that, because the fellas who built it actually knew what they were doing, the climbs were not that bad either. The trail had some technical stuff (but not much), and good climbs and lots of great descents, everything you could ask for in a trail! And unlike most awesome trails, there was absolutely no one riding them besides me.

I must have had one hell of a Christmas break because I was one tired puppy half way through it, I felt like an elephant on my bike. The 23 miles got a little long, but I can honestly say I enjoyed every mile. I did develop some cramps in both quads at one point, which caused me to fall, but other than that, the trip was fairly uneventful. (Note: uneventful = no blood).

The carefully crafted singletrack that lay before me.

My total ride timed ended up being a little over 4.5 hours and I returen to the Caprice around 4:45. Boy was I glad to see my car.

After completion, I was tired! (and check out those shorts!)

On my drive back, I passed a bald eagle literally 5ft off the side of the road chowing down on something. I pulled over and tried to sneak up on it to get a pic, but i guess i got too excited and he flew off. This is the best i could do.

Trust me, there is an eagle in there.