Day Four starts at Black Mountain Trail Head again, heading out on the Promised Land Loop for 39 miles and a whopping 8,000 feet of elevation gain. Geezus. Turkey Pen and Squirrel gap are two of the most psychotic trails in WNC. Thers’ some sort of Native American voodoo going on out there as well. I cut my teeth on mountain biking on this trail, as well as broke my arm on it. My first winter ride was on Squirrel Gap, tossing me off of the mountain on six different occasions, as the trail is not quite wide enough to be considered much more than a balance beam.
Day Five ends the race with a little jab in the gut on the Transylvania Loop with 42 miles and 6,400 feet of elevation gain. This is the day I would love to run around with the Go-Pro video cam. Laurel Mountain is one of the most technical trails around, offering 20-foot rock gardens with no bailouts. It’s either ride it, walk it, or plunge to your paraplegia down a steep, rocky grade, hoping not to be impaled by a sharp stump. What a beautiful way to end such a race. Breathetaking views from pilot Rock will be an excellent way to say goodbye to a race well done and a trail so very incredible. Just be on the lookout for timber rattlers.
Every day the racers will be prpovided a massage option, as Healing Touch will be in the Brevard Music Center from 1:30-6 p.m. Only those who are panicking will actually take advantage of the opportunity – and the pros. The rest will spend the remainder of the month sucking on their bikes because they didn’t take proper care of themselves. They will oil their chains, add air to their suspension, but a new deraillerur, but they will not flush the toxins from their legs, mend scar tissue and loosen hampstrings turned to steel, cranking on their lower backs in such a a crooked way that their necks hurt, sending electrical impulses down their arms, numbing their hands so that they cannot properly shift, or even peer over their handlebars.
Just sayin.
