Riding the Truck Trail

Last Wednesday Brady and I parked at the bottom of the Guild Trail on Ochs Highway and pedaled off up the trail on our truly ancient mountain bikes. There are almost always vehicles in this parking lot and by the time we were leaving, it was just about full. Everybody was out enjoying an absolute perfect November day with blue skies, colorful leaves, and temps in the low 70's.

Back in the old days we would park every Wednesday at the upper Ruby Falls lot near the Eagles Nest and ride the truck trail. Terry Hamrick, Mark Wolinsky, Otis Farmer, and later Jerry Patten and I would race back the 5 miles or so to the end of the truck road, then pedal out. Decades later, Brady and I had the same plan, but being older and wiser we were starting even further down the mountain to make the trip more challenging.

we needn't have bothered. The roadbed is much rougher than it used to be, the hills somehow steeper. I was on Annie's old mountain bike, and every bump threatened to bring me to a complete stop. Still, Brady and I set a new record of 1:46 round trip (a record mostly because we'd never done this particular route before). It was dark by the time we got back to the truck, so good thing we weren't even slower. Still, there were people out biking, walking, and running the trail even in the darkness. It's fantastic to live in such an active outdoor town, a place where treasures such as Lookout Mountain have been preserved and protected for the use of all.