Babes On Mountain Bikes Albuquerque 2011 Day 1

This clinic was everything you could have asked for. We had a great group of kind-hearted, enthusiastic, and of course babe-o-licious ladies become BOMBs.

Day One

The Pre-Ride Nutrition at the Kickstand bike shop was a hit! Everyone loved the warm baked sweet potatoes and yams with butter and cinnamon. We also had a scrumptious variety of Fall fruits apples, pears and oranges to top off those potatoes. Boiled eggs and a variety of fresh raw nuts and seeds gave us the protein boost we needed for our skills clinic at a near bike park off the North diversion channel bike path.

Skills at the park with Emily

Like usual, the weather in New Mexico was sunny and cheerful. A perfect weather day for the BOMBs to start mastering mountain bike skills! We started this skills clinic with the anatomy of the bike and proper riding gear.
Next we practiced the different stances of ready position on our bikes. Rolling through the grass can be a deceiving warm up. “Ready position is a neutral stance that allows the bike to roll under you while conserving your energy” (E. Eads). Flexed elbows and knees, level pedals, shifting weight back, forwards and side to side. After we mastered complete control of our bikes while rolling and pedaling we worked on cornering, turning and balance. Look where you want to go! Choose your line, and be in control of your bike. Finally, we worked with the props practicing riding a straight line, lifting our front wheel, and rolling over uneven terrain. Use that power foot “2 o’clock position”! Two hours later, these BOMBS were hungry! Our host luncheon deli was back down the diversion trail about 5 minutes away. Deli-Berry had a variety of choices, salads, soups, wraps, and sandwiches. After we filled our bellies with delicious nutrition the ladies got the first schwag bag full of goodies from The Kickstand, The Pedal Pushers Club, and famous REE bars and Gluten Free Goods cookies made by the Bicycle Yogi and BOMBs Director Rita Leon. Acknowledging the rest of our sponsors; Tough Chick, IMBA, Chamois Butt’r, Eleven Gear, more schwag is yet to come.

The Ride

After our leisurely lunch, we headed over to the Michael Emery trailhead at the top Spain and Bear Canyon, a beautiful entry to the Sandia foothills. These women  on bikes we ready for more! With our small group of ladies we decided to stay in one group and practice our new skills together. There was plenty of opportunity to practice uneven terrain and wheel lifts due to the rocky nature of the trails, combined with sweet rolling single track it was perfect for skills practice. At the end of our 2.5 hour ride, everyone was satisfied with their improved bike handling and the awesome support from the BOMBs. Go team!