Michael and I went over to the “Adrenaline Gateway” trails at Lee Quarry last night. It’s great fun, quite reminiscent of the good bits of the Marin Trail in fact, but very, very short. Apparently the loop is about 5k in length. I reckon it’s even shorter than that. As a first step though, it’s pretty good. It’s a nice thing to have as a destination too – I can make it over there across the moors, do a loop, then ride back, giving me a 40-ish mile off road ride. We went there in the car last night though – 40 mile off road rides are not the thing for nurturing a 14 year old’s enthusiasm.

There’s one section on the “red” loop that’s a bit daunting – a rocky staircase with plenty of opportunities for going over the bars. On our first loop Mike didn’t fancy it so waked down. The second time around he still didn’t fancy it so I told him to drop his saddle a bit and then try it.

I held my breath for what seemed like an eternity whilst he picked his way down the rocks. I didn’t dare shout encouragement or helpful riding tips…no, all I could think about was the consequences of an over-the-bars incident right now and the resulting hospital trip. Oh, and the earful I’d get from my ex 😉

He made it. He even did it with some style. We both went home happy and celebrated with a chip butty and a natter in the car.