Ana's first ride at Alafia River State Park

Today we headed out to Alafia River State Park, so Ana could pedal some of the more intermediate beginner trails that the park has to offer. We started off doing Sand Pine - a beginners trail more difficult than any of the beginners trails on the other nearby mountain bike parks. We were pedaling along when we came across this "obstacle": Ana posing after getting past the "obstacle" Shawn attempting to clear it: We finished up with Sand Pine and headed into Rock Garden. It is interesting that Rock Garden is supposed to be more difficult (blue instead of green) but I have yet to find anyone who feels that it is any harder than the other green trails at Alafia. Perhaps it is due to the couple of drops and several bridges found throughout the trail. At any rate, Ana did just fine! Shawn rode the black (difficult section) with ease while we watched him enjoy the run. Shawn riding through the difficult option on Rock Garden:

Here is a vid of Shawn taking the drop on the hard option on Rock Garden:


Here is a vid of Shawn taking the drop back up(and he didn't actually fall):


After Rock Garden we headed back to the trail head for a breather. Ride stats and map for the first part of our ride: Started: Jul 18, 2010 10:01:28 AM Ride Time: 1:33:23 Stopped Time: 0:20:22 Distance: 3.61 miles Average: 2.32 miles/hr Fastest Speed: 12.36 miles/hr Climb: 771 feet Calories: 230
View Larger Map After the break we headed down the other side of the park to do the River Loop. Ana was starting to tire out so we took it easy. The trail was very muddy and was in real need of trimming. We met a man and woman out on the trail looking for the way out, so I gave them directions. It was funny that on our way out of the trails, we caught up to them as they were walking their bikes out of the trail. Ride Stats and map for the second part of our trip: Started: Jul 18, 2010 12:06:43 PM Ride Time: 32:41 Stopped Time: 0:00 Distance: 2.21 miles Average: 4.06 miles/hr Fastest Speed: 10.53 miles/hr Climb: 331 feet Calories: 133
View Larger Map As usual we all had a great time, and Ana is really enjoying the off road trails, and I enjoy having her out with me!