Although it has been several weeks since my last update, I haven't abandoned my adventures just yet. To the contrary I have spent my last few weekends either on the road bike or working. The bright side is that I have had many moments to plan and day dream about my next outing. All of that planning came to fruition this morning when I met up with my buddy again and hit Papago Park in Tempe, AZ.
We had both done various forms of research into this particular area and had heard a vast array of reviews: too easy, bunny slope, great lunch time run, convienent location. On my way to work one morning I met up with a guy on a single speed surley mountain bike and we got to talking about single speeds on the trails. He mentioned Papago and said it's a great area for beginners and advanced riders alike for one reason: speed. I believe his exact words were: "any trail can be difficult if you ride fast enough."
Now, my original plan entailed riding from my apartment to the park to get in a few extra miles. Although that didn't happen, we made up for it by exploring the park. It was fantastic. The area is riddled with different trails so you can literally make you're own loop. If you see something ahead that might seem a bit technical, look around and you can probably find a trail that goes around it. There were definitely some places that I could see requiring a little more skill, but they were interspersed with some easy flat areas to catch your breath.
I had some unfortunate tensioner/chainline issues that resulted in a few hold ups. It is an easy fix though and I think I might have to head out there a few more times solo and put my skills to the test. The area is wonderfully scenic, despite being right smack dab in the middle of a city. Although we had a camera, we forgot to use it. Oops.
I would highly recommend the area. It has great potential for adventure.
