Phillip BarronThe Herald SunJune 12, 2008 WAKE COUNTY — “This is my first race, and I got third place,” says Edgar, a sixth-grader at Brogden Middle School in Durham. Out of breath, Edgar just raced a mountain bike through lakeside trails of Harris Lake County Park at the TORC Spring Skills Clinic He wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for Andrea Hundredmark. Hundredmark, a science teacher at Brogden Middle, launched this school year the Triangle’s first chapter of Trips for Kids. Trips for Kids, she says, is a program for disadvantaged youth. Whether you call it drop-out prevention or leadership […]
The Outspokin’ Cyclist: Can mountain bikers be green?
Phillip Barron The Herald Sun DURHAM — Many mountain bikers pick up the sport as another way to spend time in the woods. But not all trails let an environmentally conscious rider enjoy the ride. Improperly built trails soon develop deep ruts in the ground and can damage sensitive vegetation, especially if those trails are carved through low-lying areas that stay wet. Perhaps worse are the poorly constructed stunt zones where deep holes are dug or wooden structures are built hastily. If built of untreated lumber, these structures quickly rot becoming both neighborhood blight and safety hazards. Trails like these […]
The Outspokin’ Cyclist: Saturday good time to learn about mountain biking
Phillip BarronThe Herald SunJune 8th, 2006 MORRISVILLE — Do you have a mountain bike that just sits around while you say to yourself, “I really should go ride sometime?” Have you been looking for an event that will introduce you to the local mountain bike community? Or maybe you’re already tapped in and want to show off your skills to a local audience. This Saturday, June 10th, says Camye Womble, is your day to ride. The Triangle Off-Road Cyclists (TORC) are sponsoring their first ever Fat Tire Festival — a day-long ode to the mountain bike. From 9:30am until 2:00pm […]
The Outspokin’ Cyclist: Bike commuting on the rise
Phillip Barron The Herald Sun October 13th, 2005 DURHAM — In April 2004, I took a road trip to the Grand Canyon. Just inside the Arizona state line, I stopped for gas. I’d always heard that gas is more expensive on the west coast, and here was proof. The price of “premium” gas began with a “2” — I cleverly took a picture of the sign so that my friends back home could have a good laugh at gas prices in excess of $2 per gallon. Now, the joke’s on us. Gas prices are hovering around $3 per gallon, and […]
Column: Outings introduce kids to dirty fun
Phillip Barron The Herald Sun September 22, 2005 DURHAM — This July, my nephew visited from Canada. Matt, 15, is a skilled athlete – a hockey star, a track phenom, a confident snowboarder – and like most teenagers, difficult to impress. As often as he’s heard me talk about mountain biking, though, I realized this summer that he’d never ridden singletrack. I took him for a spin around the trails at Lake Crabtree County Park, and by the fifth mile he was hooked. I could see it in his face. He confessed later on that he’d never experienced anything like […]
Column: Could the Triangle be the next mountain biking mecca?
DURHAM — OK, OK, we don’t have the steep slopes or off-season ski resort infrastructure of British Columbia or West Virginia. Even in the state, we’re at a bit of a disadvantage. Western North Carolina already boasts the world-famous Tsali and Pisgah trail networks. You might think it’s unlikely that folks will come to the Triangle just for some off-road action. But, consider some other unlikely mountain bike destinations… the 33-mile Womble Trail in Hot Springs, Arkansas or the Alafia River trail network in Brandon, Florida. Both have earned the distinction “epic rides” by the International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA), […]
Column: Women’s biking group offers fun, support
Phillip Barron The Herald-Sun DURHAM — Susan Crosjean of Raleigh practices “popping” her front wheel off the ground again and again. Once she’s comfortable with the move, she aims her bike at a tightly packed row of logs, each 12 inches in diameter. Riding toward them, she gathers speed. She’s cheered on by her friends and encouraged by spotters, who are there just in case. She lifts her front wheel, then the rear, and rolls gracefully over the stunt. I ask later whether she’s ever cleared that stunt before. “Never,” she says, “but I don’t let anything stand in my […]
Column: Try out new bikes at Durham, Carrboro centers
The Herald-Sun March 24, 2005 DURHAM — Picture yourself riding a Six-13 — the bike so light, Cannondale claims they had to “add weights to the frame just to make it UCI-legal.” A plush blend of carbon fiber (hence the six – check your periodic table of elements) and aluminum (the thirteen) not your style? Then how about taking a spin on the Prophet – Mountain Biking Magazine’s pick for Bike of the Year? Next week, you’ll get your chance. Cannondale is touring the country, showing off its latest technology by bringing it with them. On Thursday, March 31st, Cannondale […]
Column: Wait for bike trails to dry completely before riding
The Herald-Sun Mar 9, 2005 DURHAM — If he sees one or two fresh sets of tire tracks on a wet, muddy trail, Stewart Bryan of the Durham-Orange Mountain Bike Organization gets frustrated. Three or four sets and he’s angry. “Five or more,” Bryan jokes, “and I heat up the branding iron.” As DOMBO’s trail construction coordinator, Bryan knows that even the best-designed trails are more delicate when wet. Keeping the flow of a well-designed trail depends on riders respecting the trail by taking a minimal-impact approach to their rides. But recently, conscientious mountain bikers have noticed more and more […]
SSpots of Time
Phillip BarronOriginally published by BikeReader. Sweet are those moments when all your skills converge and you clear a technical section with more grace than you thought possible. That’s what I call flow. Others call it groovin’ or dialed-in. “’Spots of time’ was the phrase Wordsworth used for such moments,” says Appalachian writer Ron Rash, “but the poet’s words were no better than mine because what I felt was beyond any words that had ever been used before. You need a new language.” I hope you have experienced what I’m talking about. It’s a rush like no other. In the mountain […]