Breaking Away

PMBAD
Pisgah Mountain Bike Adventure Derby
Team Gaines/Nelson finished 8:20 (8:00am to 4:20pm) 25th place of 76
We beat last years time by 3:00 hours.

We nabbed 4 check points: Turkey Pen, Laurel Creek, Cantrell Creek, Club Gap-> Beer!
After riding most the day with Drew and Forrest's team, we broke away heading up to Black Mountain and finished in a heated race down the mountain.














Sunday
The Devils Backbone trail
This trail is in the Cherokee National Forest, and is mostly ridden by the local river rats.
We stopped into Hartford, a river town along the Pigeon River of rafting guide companies. We hooked up a shuttle; by heading back onto I-40 to the Wilton Springs / Cosby exit and headed east on 73 about a mile, then hang right on Sweetwater Rd, then another right on Crum Hollow (Halls Top Rd.) which eventually turns into a gravel road and goes all the way to the top of Stone Mountain (Hall Top Mountain). There is a fire tower at the top. The singletrack is marked by a can of Spam. The top part is scrappy, rocky and leads through Rhododendron tunnels. There is a knob at the top of the first climb which has a 360 degree view, seen through the trees. This trail eventually comes out on a forest service road; head downhill through one switchback and keep an eye to the right, where the singletrack picks back up. The next section has steeps and jumps. Its a blast! The trail ends in the town of Hartford.




Our trustworthy guide: