Is It Early or Just Really Late?

Word by: Brent Hillier   Photos by: Brent Hillier & Kelli Sherbinin

This past week I got together with the Endless Biking team for a fun lap in our backyard. It was Darren's birthday, it was sunny and the trails were prime. What other reasons do you need? Darren, Kelli, Eli and myself grabbed some bikes and went for a pedal, but the question was on my mind: With winter still not arriving this year, is this the latest bike season or the earliest? Will winter arrive or has it already gone?

Darren cruising along the Baden Powell after a hot lap down Expresso.

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We started on Fromme with the new climb up Griffen, sampling some of the goods that Rocky Mountain Bikes had worked on through the NSMBA TAP program last year. It's still a challenging climb, and has a few punches in it but the overall experience has improved a ton. After Griffen we jumped on King of the Shore and low and behold more new work, this time from the folks at Lynn Valley Bikes. One of my favourite parts of a new riding season is discovering all of the new work that has been done over the previous fall.

The next stop saw us climbing up Mountain Highway towards the new and improved Expresso or as it's starting to get referred to by some: Mach-uccino. Digger and Jerry Willows have been double-tapping this trail for past two years and NSMB and MEC have been working hard.

Just the usual mid-ride check: "Is my toenail still attached?"

We hit the Baden Powell and started our traverse to part two of our ride, but with a quick stop over for a coffee break at the End of the Line Cafe.

This place is a favourite spot on any given day, but on a crisp pedal in February, it's ideal.

Did I mention they are more then bike friendly?

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The next stop was a quick lap in the Demo Forest (LSCR), through Camp Brick and up the Richard Juryn Trail. And once again, more trail work! This time from John Henry Bikes.

Eli fixing my mistakes, once again.

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It was time for a quick repair and thankfully our Endless Biking mechanic was on it. Eli made short work of a quick wheel repair and we were on to part three of our ride.

We crossed the Seymour River and climbed up the Bridle Path and over to the Hyannis network. Darrem and Eli climbed Old Buck to Severed, Schorn and C-Buster while Kelli and I rode the High School Trail and Bottletop.

As the sun came down we regrouped for a pint of Smooth Criminal Stout at Deep Cove Brewing and Distillers and called the day a success.

The question asked remains, is this the latest bike season or the earliest? One thing is for sure, in the great words of Freddy Mercury: "Get on your bikes and ride!"