Bouncing off rocks

So, as per normal, Colin and I needed to go for a ride on Sunday.  And I was very keen to get out the yellow bike and see if I could still ride it.  I somehow managed to talk Colin into a trip into his backyard.

The ride was great and as usual a real workout for this unfit old fart.  I pretty much stayed on the bike except for a couple of drops (no proper offs).  We took in some pretty gnarly tracks through the pine forest where there was plenty of steep and/or slippery climbs and massive bog holes to avoid.

Then there was the zig-zag which was great fun going down but I had one nasty hang up on rock step which stopped me and resulted in me requiring a rest (huffing and puffing like a steam engine) before we pulled the bike out of the hole and finally managed to get off the steep bit.  I then charged up the rest of the hill in second, bouncing off everything and somehow managing to stay on...

Slippery rocks in streams were also a problem a few times.  Momentum is your friend in most conditions...

The faster bits were great as you get a better rest and tend to run a bit cooler.  I always enjoy charging uphill and steering the bike on the throttle but I also enjoyed the downhills and hanging off the bike to help in the corners - I probably didn't look like a moto-x star but I was having fun.  Gotta love a 450!

Colin even got some pics of the action too.