September Recap
Texas Enduro Cup Race 1: Spider Mountain
September was pure chaos and so I admit this recap is a bit light relative to others. So much happened that I actually did not have much time at all to write about it. The good news is that I have not one but two video edits for your enjoyment, and a ton of photos.
(Night) Riding Season is here!
The days are getting shorter, but the temperature is finally falling, and I am not sure about you, but it means my endurance and fun factor is increasing. I can push harder, ride better, feel finer, and spend more hours outside digging and stacking dirt.
If you are relatively new to the sport, you might be experiencing your first night riding season – how exciting! Your favorite trail becomes new in the dark. Climbs become a little bit easier when you can’t be intimidated by what is ahead of (above?) you. Drops and jumps become a bit more thrilling, and the trails typically are less crowded (particularly true for pedestrians).
Night Vibes - South Austin trail Network
There are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to venturing out into the park in the dark:
Safety: it’s more dangerous to ride at night. Less traffic means less help from other trail users should you find yourself in an emergency. For this reason, it is always a good idea to ride with friends or find a group ride. Visit the recurring rides section and consider joining one of these platforms for social ride meetups.
Lighting: you are going to want a helmet and a bar light of at least 600 lumens in my opinion. You can make it with a bar or helmet light only, but it is not optimal. If you ride gnarly trail or send jumps and drops, you should budget as much as possible for a good light setup. I know quite a few people who are fond of the Outbound Lighting combo, but here is a recent review that includes plenty of options. Don’t just focus on intensity, factor in the battery duration for each mode and the beam pattern too.
Navigation: unless you can follow the stars or are very familiar with your trail system, a navigation app is essential. There are fewer visual cues to follow in the dark, and you can find yourself turned around a few times without realizing it. Strava is great for logging your rides and performance; however, the best navigation app with the most Central texas trails is Trailforks, in my opinion.
Curfew: is your riding spot open? Be mindful of any posted hours for where you are riding. As an example, Maxwell Slaughter Creek closes at dusk, and that means the gate is shut and your car is stuck in the lot for the night.
Racing Season is here – meet the MTBATX Racing Team
Clint, Juan, Cullen, Dale, Brooks (Missing: Philip, Aidan, Marcus)
Numerous racing events are scheduled for the fall starting with the Texas Gravity Enduro Series. The first race was at Spider Mountain Bike Park and the next one will be at Sansom Park in Fort Worth. Check the events page to see what is on the calendar.
Last December I tried to get a race team going but it took almost a year for that goal to be realized and finally happened thanks to a lot of motivation from my friend and riding buddy Cullen.
MTBATX – Velorangutan Racing formed from a group of friends and through a shared passion for progressing our skills, supporting the community, and having the best time while we are at it. We prioritize the camaraderie over the competition, but our family extends well beyond the team. Racing brings energy and awareness to the sport of Mountain Biking, and that is also one of the central goals behind MTBATX. When we are not racing, you will find us on social rides all around Austin or throwing dirt on trail maintenance and build days.
We are thrilled to be supported and sponsored by Velorangutan, Idlewild Coffee, and Wilde Supply Co.
Please note that the team is sponsored by Velorangutan, we are not the shop team. They are a shop sponsor or “title sponsor” and thus they get top billing as part of the team name which is a fairly common thing in sports. Please do not contact the shop asking how to join the race team! I can’t believe this requires saying, but here we are. we do not have extra spots on the team at this time.
Texas Enduro Cup Race 1: Spider Mountain
The first race of the fall season was Team Trail Party’s Race Down Spider Mountain, Part of the Texas Enduro Cup.
You can read the full race recap here.
Ride Reels #5
This episode is exclusively footage from Dirty Church this summer and includes an extended intro that gives you an idea of what our Sunday Morning Prep looks like. I have one more episode planned for this year and there will be a fair amount of fresh scenery I promise!
You can also check out Hippie Josh’s edits on TrailPirate.net
Crank N Drank
I missed a few rides in September, but I’m really proud of my ride on the 13th, I had my best run ever at 45 Flow which is a trail I did not expect to improve on given the dry conditions.
Crank N Drank is Now a “lights mandatory” ride going forward.
Wednesday Night Groadie
I only did one Wednesday night ride in September, but it did include Pizza! This one was a lot of fun. We stopped at Home Slice for a recharge. You can get in on these Wednesday night rides (and others) via the Austin MTB Discord Server.
Dirty Church Gallery
Take a moment to check out the photos from Sunday morning at the Walnut Creek Pump Track.
Site Updates and other news
I am currently working on the following items:
Trail pages: I still have some trail system pages to build out, as well as a bike parks and skills parks page that is close to complete.
New riders page: all the info you need to get going in the sport.
There is a new page for the MTBATX Racing Team.
“ReCycle” graphic Tees have been shipping this week! There is more merch in the works. I am really excited about the next item!
Cheers <3
