Friday, July 30, 2010

Pee-Yay

Well I didn't get my pics uploaded BUT I did get the video done! It's definetly one of my longer videos but not really the best I've every made. The trails were like riding a roller coaster all day but they were just about all the same which didn't really make for a super exciting video. You see some of the feel you get does not translate over to film very well but I'm sure in another couple of years that won't be the case. I tried my best to keep things interesting by changing up camera angles and throwing in different stuff other than just footage of the trail as I fly down it. If your half way trough and getting bored hang tight as there is a little interesting surprise thrown in close to the end, something I've never done before and there are no bikes involved. So go ahead and check it out and see what you think.



Enjoy!





http://vimeo.com/13769533 from Greg Carr on Vimeo.



Now that you've seen it first hand here's the low down on the trip.



We hit the road early Wed. morning and in true Mother-In-Law style mine brought everything and the kitchen sink, I didn't actually see the kitchen sink but I swear it was in there with as much stuff as she loaded into the camper. I had to add more air to the ECO's tires once she was loaded down and I won't even get into how sorry the gas milage was. Who buys 7 bags of chips for a 5 day trip? Once we got there she bought another full size cooler to add to the pile.

Our destination, Raystown Lake and the Allegrippis trail system built by IMBA and the Army Corps of Engineers. From what I can tell the entire trail system was machine built which meant it was wide fast and made to feel like a roller coaster. The weeks leading up to our trip I read something describing the trails as "buttery smooth". While they were pretty smooth I don't think buttery is the correct word, maybe compared to the rest of the Pee-Yay trails. The soil has alot of small flat rocks mixed in, some loose some dug in. I've ridden alot smoother but I've also ridden alot rougher. Don't get me wrong the trails were not boring especially with 30+ miles of fast flowing singletrack. I think if I lived there I might get bored after exhuasting every loop, combination and route of travel but for a long weekend it was definetly worth the trip. The only problem I could find with the trails was they all seemed to mirror each other. No real long climbs, TTF's, creek crossings, or spectacular views, just mile after mile of roller coaster style dips that if they weren't loose and situated on curves in the hillside would be a never ending air session. The high rate of speed and endless possibility for air could easily see anyone taking a ride in an ambulance. I was forwarned ahead of time so I kept my tires on the ground for the most part.


Since my new frame was delayed yet again I took the Karate Monkey on this trip and she performed flawlessly and only made my legs feel shakey on the longest day but that was a good thing.

I spent most of my free time working on the video so I still have not uploaded any pics but hopefully I'll get around to that tomorrow.

2 comments:

khswes said...

Cool, I like the smoothness of the video on the view from the front of your seatpost. Plus you get to watch the fork work. Too cool!

Riding with dogs said...

gracias!