Finally some updates (ride report)

I finally have some updates. I know I said I was going to post pictures a while ago about what burned on M-hill here in Rapid City. I never made it back up there until today. So, I have some pictures of that...

The short stuff is where it burned

I actually think the fire helped out the vegetation. Even with the lack of rain the grass is so green and pretty. There isn't the brown under brush that's usually there.

Right below the Sun Climb... up and to the West is where the burn happened.

I love having this hill right in the middle of town. It took me 3 minutes to ride my bike from the front door of my office to the base of the hill. I'm so blessed to have something like this in town.

On that note, I was in Nebraska on work last week. At the last minute I threw my bike in as I hoped I would have a little extra time to explore the cities by bike and maybe even find a trail or two. Lucky for me I work with a guy from Omaha who gave me a few tips and locations. 

On Monday evening I was in Lincoln. I was able to ride their version of the rails to trails bike path which had  a few little spider legs branching off into very lush single track. Not hilly but certainly buggy. It was very interesting and different to ride in an environment unlike the Black Hills. Lincoln was very humid and it felt like I was riding in a rain forest. 

This trail was one of the longest, straightest and flattest I have ever been on. It travels from Lincoln to Beatrice on an old railroad bed. Roughly 44 miles long one way.

Then after I rode in Lincoln I got to travel to Omaha. While I was there I was given a few different trails to check out. Sampson was the one that was raved about the most but it was the furthest from my hotel so I opted for Tranquility. It is about 9 miles of varying single track in Tranquility park. The bike club T.H.O.R. does a good job maintaining it and it was a lot of fun. I could tell the trail is used a lot because of the depth of the track. There was a variety of small climbs, little whoops in the advanced section and some tight turns. Nothing crazy and very smooth trail. The one feature that sticks out in my mind the most is how smooth all these trails are. I rode my Fargo which is a rigid 29er. I'm very happy I didn't bring my Blur LT because the 5.5" of travel would have been overkill. 

Tranquility Park overlooking Omaha to the East

All in all this was a very worthwhile trip in the mountain biking world. I am happy I brought my bike along and asked around to get some locations. It was different and exciting to see what else is out there to the East. I'm so used to riding in my location where it's hilly and rough... the change of scenery was just what I needed.