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In Pennsylvania
at it's peak
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| Fall has
arrived in force this year in the state of Pennsylvania. Making for
some of the most memorable ridding of the season. The color splendor
was outstanding this year. |
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| Adventure
started on multitude of fourth and fifth gear flat trails combined
with sweeping turns that developed into drop offs for a great
start of the day. The autumn splendor was as inviting as it
was deceptive. |
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| Being the
second rider in line mogating down the trail meant that you had to
see through trail wide leaves that are hanging one foot in the air
behind the first riders wake. Making for a challenging event, being
weary of skid plate crushing rocks and washouts rearing their ugly
heads only at the last minute. |
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| After topping
off with fuel and snacks our journey steered us into several short
stories of exploring side dishes from the main trail including tight
woods trails to climbing up an entire mountain side to gain a vista
of the seasons change. A cool 50 degrees and partly cloudy skies befell
a chill coming from the north. The kind of skies that after a summer
of heat, you can sense the first chills of old man winter. There was
much fun to be had traversing one mountainside to another. The cool
air made for a lean running quad giving it just that much more pep
to cut through the woods. |
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Some of
the best riding was challenging the slag piles that in Pa vary from
three to nine stories tall. Among them ever changing challenges made
by riders before you. Carving different lines that bring a welcome
feeling of newness to a familiar trail.
The fall season always brings new changes to a trail system, the thorns
die down the view is clearer along with crisper air allowing you to
see for miles at mountain top vistas.
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| As dawn
drew to dusk and we decided to call it a day and head back to the
lodge. It was decided to take a different route home around the other
side of the mountain. This brought on more challenges to both man
and machine. Luckily rainfall for the week was low and crossing the
creak proved less hazardous.
And not before hammering back 40 miles
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| Looking forward
to a hot meal fait reared its ugly head. No sooner did I complete
a high speed section of over ten miles only to slow down for a tight
trail section then did "my front left wheel fell off", yes
that's right, fell off at about 25 miles an hour (luckily). The first
thing I thought was disbelief! Then that thought turned into a question
asking myself, am I going over the handlebars now? As I viewed my
front wheel pass me, my thoughts turned to rear brakes and steering.
Luckily the front end did some minor squiring then the quad slid to
a stop sideways on the trail riding the front disc to a stop. |
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After finding the wheel 60 feet in front of me
we managed to put it back on with one lug nut from each wheel, making
that three lugs a wheel to make it back to the trailhead.
All in all it was a great fall ride in Pa and
one of many in the weeks to come
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