Monday, October 11, 2010

Nicolet-Roche Mountain Bike

rOn recommendation from a friend, had the chance to hit the Nicolet-Roche trail this fine Fall afternoon.
pretty dang nice riding that includes some crazy natural TTF's that require some variation of gutsy rock climbing and serious dismounting. Click to enlarge and notice the rock face in the background.

The trail kind of follows a line north and south of large erratics left from the last glacier and the Langladians (see below for some local history Wink Wink) made good use of them.



Had a little trouble staying on some of the loops as the leaves had the trial quite covered in a few places.

Facebook link http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Nicolet-Roche-Mountain-Bike-Trail/117595334938159

About a 9.5 mile lollipop loop that took a little over an hr. of riding at a fairly leisurely pace.
Got some nice downhills, solid bermed corners, easy flat pine trails and a couple rock gardens. Similar to 9-mile but without the confusion, little like Underdown but with more speed. Has a couple short granny gear uphills.

The TTF's are pretty dang neat. If you like technical climbing up rock faces and some serious drops and jumps you could easily spend 2-3 hours making the loop by spending time with the TTF's.
All the TTF's have bail outs, as well.

They seem to have a sense of humor up there:

The Story of the Nicolet Roche*

The original Langladian people were a short statured, blonde haired tribe hunted nearly to extinction for their valuable pelts, a thick thatch that was highly-prized as Winter material among the aborigines of ...Southern Canada.

Surviving tribesmen disbursed through the Midwest, preferring Scandanavian communities where their low intellect blended well. Once assimilated, the Langladians adopted mainly Nordic names such as Johnson, and Larson. A lone exception being the Sommors tribe. An outcast heretic group known for refusing to use most modern comforts and conveniences (such as gears and shocks).

The Langladians were generally a solitary clan/gaggle/collection, for few humans can adjust to their rather singular habits--mainly digging in dirt and creating seemingly random paths leading to nowhere. Sometime during the Stone-Age, the Langladians’ developed an incurable, and eventual instinctual, obsession of digging and path building.
Recent studies have theorized the ancient Langladian pathways were important meditative centers or perhaps useful psychotherapy. It is speculated that as the pathways became more difficult to traverse there was a spiritual goal intended. Mainly, chaos, destruction, and finally rebirth and order.
Current day remnants of the Langladians are easily recognized by their shuffling gait, calluses on their knuckles and infrequent outbursts of their ancestral language, consisting mainly of grunts. Another giveaway is the vacant, glassy-eyed stare, particularly on the mornings of weekends.
Unfortunately, for the modern day descendants of the ancient Langladians, the age of senility comes at a relatively early age, arriving just after the onset of puberty. By the age of 50 their lives are virtually over, and they wander off to their ancestral homes under interstate bridges, city parks and large forests.
The descendents declining numbers are also due in part to their mating habits which
tend to be solitary; however, you can sometimes hear their nocturnal mating
calls, a distinct staccato , "Please, please, please."
The remaining pathways, now know as the Nicolet Roche Mountain bike trail, recently cleared of non-traditional debris, are the sole remaining original Langladian pathways. Whether it be for their consummate trail building skills, or out of pity, please Celebrate the efforts of the aboriginal Langladians. Use these trails, and enjoy them in the spirit with which they were created.

*As researched by RA Roberts


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