New Hampshire Mountain Mommy

MTB Weekend: Kingdom Trails with our Kids

Last weekend, we took another family trip up to Kingdom Trails. We’re absolutely in love with this huge network of beautifully maintained trails and pump tracks! There are downhill trails over at Burke Mountain that we stay away from (our risk aversion has grown since having kids) but otherwise we are starting to get a pretty good lay-of-the-land.

We’ve been staying at the Wildflower Inn for our last few trips. We like it because (1) it’s located in the middle of the trail system; (2) it’s directly next to the Village Sports Shop Trailside, which boasts a lovely little espresso/beer bar (The Hub) as well as top-notch bike rentals (AND I found my beautiful, battleship-gray Stumpjumper ST Carbon here, so I’m now loyal for life); (3) a stay comes with breakfast included, and the breakfast options are lovely! It’s not luxury accommodations, but it’s not camping; someone changes my linens every day and cleans the bathroom for me; and the location and service can’t be beat.

Enjoying some post-ride libations at The Hub

On this trip, we brought our sitter for two days and arranged childcare for our last day. This meant that my husband and I got a short evening ride in our first day; a long ride on Saturday exploring the trails new to us – up White School and Ware’s Davis; down Farmjunk and Nosedive, and back along the river on White school; and another longer ride on Sunday morning bumping around the trails on the East side of Darling Hill Rd. In the afternoons, we picked up the kids and bumped around the pump tracks – both up near the Trailside shop and also down the hill in East Burke – and, on our last day, took a leisurely ride across Bemis, a relatively flat beginner trail that runs between the Wildflower Inn and the Mountain View Farm.

So how did it go?

Me and the Juliana Furtado

Friday and Saturday, I rode an XS Juliana Furtado. I’m just a smidge over 5’2″, which means I usually fall in between an XS and S frame in most bikes, depending, of course, on standover height. I enjoyed the XS frame; for once, I didn’t feel like the bike was a machine that I had to keep under control, but found it a quick, nimble companion on the trails. I learned to ride on a very basic Trek hardtail, and I like climbing [it hurts me a little to write that, but I’m little and strong and I can house most men I ride with on climbs], so I had my rear shocks set pretty firm. I was happy with the responsiveness over roots and rocks, but felt super comfortable and stable on berms and downhills. So comfortable, in fact, that on Friday I completely bit it coming down Beat Bog, catching a root at a weird angle and flying headfirst over my bike. I landed on the side of my face, took a few minutes to recover, and still set a PR on the trail. After that, I was a little jumpy about roots on descents, but we had a nice ride around Riverwood [my favorite trail – twisty and narrow, with lots of trees and little berms that are good for practice leaning the bike] and climb out on Heaven’s Bench.

 

We didn’t ride this trail, but we sure were happy posing in front of the sign!

Saturday, we descended Heaven’s Bench – I haven’t done this since my first KT ride over a year ago, when I walked the berm, and this time was much more enjoyable! -and noodled around East Branch, giving Riverwood a second run and eventually climbing Beat Bog and then taking Kitchel – a berm-y, roll-y, adult-amusement-park of a trail – down. We crossed the road and set off for the trail that just got officially mapped this year. White School always gives me a run for my money at the beginning, because I have a deep and abiding fear of bridges. I walked them at the beginning of the ride, but, determined not to get off my bike at the end of the day, did ride them coming back! Ware’s Davis is a fun [long] ride through woods and across fields; eventually, we took the left-hand trail onto Upper Pond Loop and managed to get ourselves to Swan Dive, Nose Dive, and Farm Junk. We decided to take the double-track up (a steep, boring, but short ascent) and come back down on Farm Junk. A little predictably, Farm Junk has a bunch of… farm junk all around the trail, but it’s a super fun descent with berms and narrow moments, and at one point I derailed my husband by pointing out a bedspring at the side of the trail. We had an enjoyable ride on Nosedive (not as steep as expected/hoped based on name, but still a fun ride) and took White School along the river to come back out. It was a beautiful ride, even if double track gets a little tedious at times.

Figuring out pedals on the pump track!

After we relieved our sitter, we took the kids down to the pump tracks in East Burke. We started on the balance bike track, because Charles is still getting used to his pedal bike. He gained some confidence pedaling over small rises, bridges, and turns, so we took them down to the first pump track, Leap Frog. This has been a perennial favorite of the kids; Charles killed it on his balance bike on our last trip. This trip, caution, pedals, and fatigue – the kids had been biking the skills park behind the The Hub all morning – meant a meltdown, some time spent digging in leaves while eating a granola bar, and a couple of successful runs. Even Theo, who took on the trail at 18 months with no fear, was tired and anxious. After refreshing with snacks, we made it over to the X-Mass Tree Loop, where Charles figured out how to keep his pedals moving to get uphill and finally enjoyed the newfound power offered by his pedals.

 

My new BFF and me at the bottom of Troll Stroll

Sunday, I traded out the Juliana for a lime green Specialized Stumpjumper Carbon. I rode the women-specific bike, which comes with Specialized’s women-specific saddle and slightly narrower handlebars than the men’s. This model of the Stumpjumper came with 140mm of suspension in the front shocks and 150mm in the back. I will admit that I expected a bit of a saggy ride, so I made my husband pack the shock pump. We set off down Fox Run, and I fell in love with the rear suspension. We came up River Run and Eager Beaver, and I fell in love with the ease of locking out the rear suspension (at perfect arm’s length between the handlebars and saddle, an extremely easy-to-find-blind flick of the adjuster). Coming down Webs, I found out that halfway-locked suspension on this bike is still soft but pushes off roots with the satisfying power I expect of a hardtail. And climbing out on Burrington Bench, even with my rear suspension half-open, I passed a gentleman who had the gall to ask me, “Are you sure you want to pass me?” as I dusted him. We came down Troll Stroll and I felt stable enough to ride the whole thing (a week ago, or a day ago, on a different bike, I’d have cried and walked). Climbing Burrington Bench a final time, I decided that, while the Juliana was a worthy, nimble companion, the Stumpjumper was my Horse of Power, a trusty steed that could fly like the wind and carry me securely on its back, with barely a hand on the handlebars.

A quick check at the Village Sports Shop: for sale was a battleship gray Stumpjumper ST [short-travel] carbon. I’m excited about this because I rode the lime-green demo Stumpjumper with the shocks half-locked besides the initial descent on Fox Run, so don’t feel I need quite as much travel in my suspension as the bike offers. I don’t downhill! This bike is the “men’s” version – the women-specific frame doesn’t come in ST, for no discernible reason – so the lovely folks who work there are cutting the handlebars down and putting a women-specific saddle on for me. We’re picking it up this coming weekend. I. Can’t. Wait.

Nutrition Review – Skratch on the Road

After our MTB weekend, I’m back to the road bike grind. Because I wasn’t thrilled with how I felt when I drank Hammer HEED, I decided to try Skratch products. They’d been recommended by our local bike shop. For the purposes of this review, I’m comparing the nutrition information for orange flavors of both drinks. 

I was a bit dubious about the Skratch products, because after reading this article over at Total Women’s Cycling, I’ve been trying to find products with maltodextrin as their sugar source. This has eliminated a lot of heavy-stomach-feel for me on my rides, and a lot of sugar crashes I didn’t realize I was having before. Skratch Sport Hydration Mix lists cane sugar as its first ingredient, boasting a full 19g of sugar; HEED lists only 2g [to be fair, both list a similar total carbohydrate count – 20g and 27g, respectively]. Worse, Skratch contains way fewer supplements (and claims many fewer benefits). although it is flavored with and contains real fruit. Surprisingly, it has 380mg of sodium vs. HEED’s 40mg.

On Tuesday, I mixed Skratch across 2 16-oz water bottles – 3/4 in the first and 1/4 in the second – and set off to ride 21mi on a 92-degree afternoon. [See my ride here.]

Bottom line: There isn’t a lot to say except that Skratch tastes like gatorade and I felt GREAT on my ride. I was slow and hot on the first half of my ride, but had a great boost of energy at the end – something I think we ALL love when cycling – and finished strong. Is it the sodium? the real fruit? I don’t know, but I’ll try Skratch again!

On Wednesday, I went for a 25mi ride in 80 degree weather. I didn’t feel like a hydration mix was as necessary then, but spread 1 1/2 packets evenly across my water bottles because I knew I wanted to push my speed on the ride.. I was able to stay on my bike much longer than usual without stopping, and needed far less in terms of other nutrition/snacks than usual – only 3 clif blocks about halfway through! Had my front chain ring not gotten stuck halfway up a killer hill, I’m sure this would’ve been one of my best rides to date. [See this ride!] A+, Skratch. I’m also not getting any sugar crashes! 

Nutrition Review: Hammer Products while Mountain Biking

We just took a 3 day trip up to Kingdom Trails. Each day we had a slightly different ride; I tried to tailor the energy supplements I used to the particular ride, to varying degrees of success. 

Map and nutrition: ready for our evening ride!

Day 1: Hammer Gel – Raspberry flavor – on a short ride

I did eat a Clif protein bar before this ride, because we started out around 4:30 and I hadn’t eaten since lunchtime! About an hour in, before we started our climb out, we both had our Raspberry gels. They tasted like melty Starbursts. I tend to think the fruit flavors of these gels taste like melty candy. But it gave a nice burst of energy, much like it did when I was road biking. Thumbs up.

 

 

 

 

Caffe Latte: with a little caffeine for my tired husband

Loved the Orange Vanilla!

Day 2: Hammer Perpetuem – Orange-Vanilla and Caffe Latte – and Hammer Gel – Nocciola 

We knew we’d be taking a long ride this day, and that it was supposed to be a warm day (not hot, but in the high 70s), so we mixed a package of Perpetuem into our Camelbaks and set off. I was initially worried about mixing in the Camelbaks, but it was surprisingly easy. Whether it’s because it was super diluted with a full pack of water, or because these Perpetuems just have a nice mild flavor, we again found both flavors of the Perpetuem to be a bit chalky and very mildly flavored like Creamsicle and coffee, respectively. Like when we had it in our water bottles, the flavoring came out more as the water in our packs got warmer, but it was never unpalatable or overwhelming.

I had my nocciola flavored Gel about 2/3 of the way through 3 1/2 hours on the trails. It gave me a nice boost of energy to finish the ride, and tasted, as my husband said, “Like Nutella. Kind of crappy Nutella.” He supplemented with it earlier than I did, and was fine for the end of the ride.

I was, like on our hot road ride, very, very happy to have the Perpetuem on this ride. I felt fresh and perky the whole time; I stayed hydrated and didn’t need very much to supplement besides that even on a longer day.

 

 

So much maltodextrin and caffeine. Is this the reason I passed all the guys climbing??

Day 3: Hammer HEED – Strawberry and Mandarin Orange – and Hammer Gel – Espresso 

HEED [“Hydrating Energy Electrolyte Drink”] differs from Perpetuem in a few ways: it has no soy protein isolate, so is missing some of the small amounts of protein and vitamins that come from that source; it’s lower-calorie per packet, meant to be consumed over a shorter exercise period, and thus has fewer carbohydrates and sugars per packet than Perpetuem; and it has no amino acids. It’s Perpetuem without the sustained-energy components; it’s supposed to be pure energy. The body absorbs water-dissolved fuels more efficiently than solid fuels and gels; this was our first time trying one, and we were excited.

We planned a slightly shorter ride time this day, but it was supposed to be quite a bit warmer than the day before, so we decided it was the right time to put a packet of HEED in our Camelbacks. Retrospectively, we probably should have put at least two packs in to actually get any benefit, but we thought consuming it within the time period in which we were biking would make up for that difference.

HEED smells good. Pouring it into my waiting pack smelled like pouring a pixie stick; the flavor, even in 48 oz of water, came through much stronger than in the Perpetuem. It tasted pleasant while riding. I imagine that, less diluted (say, one packet in one 20-oz water bottle), it would have the flavor quality of a sports drink rather than flavored water.

Because I diluted the HEED so much, I wasn’t expecting to feel much; I just wanted a little extra boost of hydration/electrolytes on a very hot day. Maltrodextrin is the sugar in HEED, as it is in Gels; this is supposed to be an efficiently-absorbed, low GI sugar while exercising. I generally find that I have fewer hard sugar crashes – insulin issues – with maltodextrin than other sugar sources, including natural sugars like cane sugar or maple syrup. Continual drinking of HEED at this dilution did give me a sense of constant rehydration and replenishment, but I felt a little extra-jumpy. Maybe the lack of protein alongside carbohydrate? Maybe the faster absorption because it was water-based?

Then I had my Hammer Gel. The Espresso flavor has caffeine in it. Oh man, does it have caffeine in it like doing a shot of espresso. it tastes like very sweet coffee. On the whole, we find these Hammer Gels to be quite palatable. However, maybe because I’d faceplanted two days earlier; maybe because of the sun; maybe because of the sugar delivery systems; maybe because of the caffeine; I started seeing bight spots and reeling a little. I felt like I was floating, riding. I rode fast, and it was fun, but I’m not sure I would combine these two products again in quite the way I did!

Nutrition Review: Hammer Perpetuem on the Road

My husband and I road cycle and mountain bike together. As I’m getting faster and we’re riding longer and farther – and as the weather is hitting peak heat and humidity in July and August – we’ve started experimenting with during-ride fuels. We eat a diet pretty heavy in veggies, fruit, and protein; we’re relatively light on carbs at this point, with the occasional treat pasta night. I feel better and am able to train better eating this way. 

Yesterday, we were doing 2,000ft of climbing on a 32-mile ride. It was hot (95 degrees) and we were leaving at 11am, so we wanted something to help with endurance. My husband mixed up a batch of Hammer Perpetuem – Strawberry-Vanilla flavor. We were also carrying Hammer Gels and Gu Gels. Maltodextrin is the first ingredient in all of these products — it’s an easily absorbed, low glycemic-index, fast carbohydrate source. We frequently have Clif Bloks and Honey Stingers on or before our rides, but I have been frustrated with these because I tend to get more spikes and crashes (they use a different carbohydrate/sugar source), and have more heavy-stomach feeling when I eat them because they’re less quickly digested. More about the short-release, short-ride fuels in another post. 

While Hammer designed the Perpetuem for longer rides (3h+) than we were doing, we found it extremely helpful on this ride. We split it over two water bottles, consumed gradually as we rode. The 8:1 carb-protein ratio kept me feeling fueled and clearheaded, and neither of us bonked on our way up Bear Hill. I even set a PR! [See my ride here.] My husband drank his more quickly than I did; he’s also, obviously, bigger than I am. We both felt tired and hot, but able to keep riding at a relatively normal pace – I felt like I was able to maintain until the very end. I had 3 Clif bloks about 10 miles into the ride, and Gu Gel just before we started our longest climbing stretch; I could feel the boost from each of these wear off after about half an hour, but didn’t have a corresponding lag. I really thing the small amount of protein in the Perpetuem helped regulate this better for me!

Now, my first sip of Perpetuem was chalky. Chalky, and boring. We diluted slightly more than recommended in order to spread a serving across two 20-oz water bottles. However, as the bottles warmed and the ride progressed, I found that I enjoyed the slight strawberry taste and hint of milky sweetness. The taste came out more the warmer the water got, but was never cloying or unpleasant. We’ll be trying the Caffe Latte flavor on our mountain bike ride this weekend – stay tuned!

Summer Garden Tips: Thinning Peaches

When we’re not tooling around the yard with the kids on bikes, we care for a small orchard with 14 trees! The bulk of these are peaches; we have 3 older trees that produce well but lose a branch or two every year; one “middle-aged” tree that’s pretty big but still developing its shape; and two very young trees that just started fruiting last summer. Over the past 4 years, I’ve been learning a lot about pruning and thinning the fruit. Two years ago, there was 95% crop loss of peaches and thinning wasn’t an issue. Last year, we lost some branches because they were so laden with fruit!  My trees have benefitted immensely from clear online and in-book guides to pruning, but I found it extremely difficult to visualize what a branch should look like when properly thinned of fruit. Here’s what I wish I’d had when I was starting out! 

Before thinning fruit, I wait until it’s somewhere between quarter and golf ball sized. Realistically, I need to give myself this window, because there are six trees and one me thinning fruit. If I only had one tree, I’d probably err on the side of bigger fruit – this ensures that the pits of the fruit won’t crack in the mature fruit. I take my hand pruners (the smallest I have) and use them to clip the fruit cleanly from where it grows, so I don’t damage the tree by pulling.

  1. Remove all small or unformed fruit (this will frequently fall off in your hands)
  2. Remove fruit from the underside of branches where it won’t find sun/ripen as quickly.
  3. Remove fruit from places where it touches or will grow into other branches – this will split the skin of mature fruit. 
  4. Space remaining fruit 4-6 inches apart. I find it useful to imagine the amount of space the fruit will need when it is full-sized.
  5. With remaining fruit, take into account the size/sturdiness of branches – if they’re bending under the weight of the baby fruit, they’ll probably sink even lower as fruit grows! Add support or thin accordingly. With small, weak branches, I often leave only the biggest baby peach on; these branches will frequently die and be pruned off the following spring.

Some visuals:

Trim off the smaller of the fruits

With closely spaced fruit of similar size, trim off the fruit that won’t get as much sun

Crowded branch before thinning

Thinned fruit spaced 4-6 inches apart

Branches already sagging from fruit

Thinned branches springing back!

 

Bike Post #1: Balance Bikes

We love biking with our kids. Had we known just how much fun it was – and how quickly kids pick up riding – we might not have waited until our oldest, Charles, was 2 1/2 to find a bike for him. If our kids could be on their bikes all day, we’re pretty sure they would.

 

Flying at 2 1/2 on his Kickster!

STEP 1: THE KICKSTER

When we first started looking at balance bikes for Charles, we wanted something sturdy. We didn’t know anything about the kid’s bike world, so we went with Trek’s balance bike, the Kickster. It had thick wheels and was much better put together than the bikes he’d been able to try out at retail stores. Since we live in a rural setting and our driveway is gravel, we needed something that had thicker tires (think mountain vs. road bike) and a well-made frame for him to bump around on. It was a pretty ideal first balance bike: very simple. Nothing to write home about, but nothing to complain about, either… except the footrests for coasting. This is a feature I have seen on SO MANY entry-level balance bikes, and it drives me absolutely crazy. Not only have I never seen a kid who’s proficient on the bike really use them; I’ve seen them in multiple instances – with my own boys and with other kids – be an annoying distraction/hindrance to riding, whether because kids use them as “pedals” and fall over, or because they stick out from the frame enough to catch at a kid’s feet and ankles. I think they’re one of the features that sounds good to a parent who isn’t sure what kids do with their feet when they’re riding if they don’t have pedals.

STEP 2: THE RIDGEBACK DIMENSION/SCOOT AND THE WOOM 1 Once Charles had spent a year riding his Kickster like a maniac – in the snow, up and down stairs, on trails with us – he started to chew through the toes of his shoes trying to stop, and it became apparent we needed something a little more aggressive for him. That’s when we discovered Two Wheeling Tots, by far the most useful website about kid’s bikes ever created. [If you’re looking for a site that will guide you on how to pick the right bike for YOUR kid, please visit them! I can just offer you advice and a glimpse at what it was like as a parent to choose bikes.]

First ride!

After a little bit of research and some soul searching (did we REALLY want to spend upwards of $300 on a balance bike?) we bit the bullet and ordered a Ridgeback Dimension. Our model is from a few years ago now – the redesign is the Scoot. When we found the Dimension, we liked that it looked a little more like a “real” bike; we liked its more aggressive (that is, less upright) riding posture; and we especially liked that it had a functional handbrake. Now that we’re starting to move into pedal bikes, I cannot stress the importance of this feature on a balance bike enough. It’s easy for the kids to ignore a handbrake before they’re ready to use it, and now that he really needs it (we’re skipping coaster brakes because they’re heavy and unnecessary!), we’re glad he learned to use it when he still had his feet as “backup brakes.”

Setting up the Dimension

When the bike came, we were unbelievably impressed with its craftsmanship, and Charles was enchanted with it. It has now been ridden almost every day for almost a year, including on snow and ice. It’s fallen off the edge of a trail, taken him over logs, been hosed down at Kingdom Trails dozens of times, gotten muddy, wet, grassy, dusty, abandoned in the driveway, taken to the beach, and thrown in the trunks of various cars…and it’s still going. With Little Bro now tall enough to ride it with its seat at the lowest setting, we can attest to its brilliance yet again: it’s encouraging speed, better balance, and more aggressive riding from him as well. He’s happy to inherit wider wheels, a “cooler” frame, and a more comfortable seat than his own balance bike.

18mo old on the Woom 1

I like to think that we had no requirements from Theo’s first bike besides that he be able to sit on it – he had an 11-inch inseam at the time of purchase, and most balance bikes don’t have a low enough seat. The truth is, I was impressed with the Woom 1 for more reasons than just the low seat height. The Woom’s more upright positioning, thinner tires, and lighter frame make it perfect for an 18-month-old who is just mastering walking. It also has a functional handbrake that is easy to adjust, and comes in so many fun colors! We’d be sticking with Woom bikes if we had less aggressive little mountain bike riders; the wheels are just a little thin and the positioning just a little too upright to make their larger bikes functional for our kiddos. I have seen plenty of kids flying around out on the trails on them – it’s just not the right choice for our kids. I would recommend the Woom 1 to ANYONE just starting out, because there is so much room to grow on this bike, and it’s so easy for even the smallest kids to balance from the get-go.

Our only complaints are small. The more upright seat position paired with the geometry of the bike set a toddler’s feet right below the rear fork. This made Theo’s feet hit the fork (he had little ankle bruises!) when he was very short and first learning to ride; now that he is taller and faster, he catches and cuts up his little ankles on the outside of the brake calipers. This definitely bothers me a lot more than it bothers him, and, much like the footrests on other bikes, he is adjusting to both problems by learning to keep his legs wider when he rides. The handbrake is also better suited to older kids who ride the bike – he’s been on it for over a year now, and only in the past month have his hands finally gotten big enough to squeeze the brake. (The brake on Charles’s Dimension is softer to squeeze and set closer in to the handlebars; the angle can also be adjusted independently of the handlebar position, which is very useful when switching the bike between kids. The Dimension also doesn’t have the same problem with rear fork/brake interference with the feet – the brake is set higher on the wheel and the curve of the frame keeps the fork up and away from kids’ feet.)

Talking with Dad about pedaling

STEP 3: THE CLEARY GECKO Now that Charles is proficient with his handbrake, and has started pushing the limits of his Ridgeback, we looked into the pedal bike reviews on 2 Wheeled Tots and, based on our kid’s riding style and weight (he’s only 35lbs!)  picked the Cleary Gecko. [More about actually learning to ride with pedals in another post – we are just using it as a balance bike for now!] This bike is a step up from his Dimension in a few ways. It has both rear and front handbrakes, with faster response than the balance bikes. This is extremely important, as it’s about twice as heavy and another inch longer than the Dimension

Theo on the Gecko

Even though it’s Charles’s bike, and even though it’s so much bigger, Theo has been able to get on the Gecko and tiptoe it around the driveway and flat lawn; the wheel travel is great, and doesn’t require a lot of strength to gather momentum. The pedals are VERY easy to get on and off, so while we’ve done a few experimental runs with them on, we’re letting Charles use it as a balance bike to adjust to the new weight, brakes, and body position.

 

On an entirely practical parental note, I have been spoiled by the ease of adjusting both the Woom and the Dimension, whose seat height I can change with no tools. The Gecko needs an allen wrench to adjust the seat height and a regular wrench to secure the pedals. I’ve been in a bind a couple of times because I’ve been without tools and needed to make adjustments for comfortable riding. That said, I am pretty much a novice at actually assembling/caring for bikes, and the instruction manual to assemble the Gecko out of the box was so clear that I set it up in less than an hour, even with an excited 4 1/2 year old trying to rip it off the bike stand while I was working. Thanks for the super instructions, guys!!!! Even MOMS can follow it! 

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