How do you get lost in Cumberland while looking at Trailforks? I’m a man of many talents, some of which are even useful. In this case, mixing up one gravel road for another resulted in a small detour and our umpteenth lap down the Crafty Butcher Trio. And then, of course, the coup de grâce on Space Nugget. So, in the end, everyone was stoked.
Day-5 did begin with a little bit of side-eye accompanied by Nina’s inquiring as to why we’d save the climb up Above & Beyond for this late in the week. And then we were off, rise and grind, headed up to hit a called Blueprint that Claire absolutely loved last year. The dirt has dried out quite a bit lower down, but up on Blueprint, it was amazing.
We were about to drop in at the top when a couple of women rolled up. We offered to let them roll first but one of them looked at us and said “Go ahead, we’re old.” I’ve been laughing about it all afternoon. I’d guess neither of them is in firing range of thirty, so the comment was clearly in deference to Claire.
After Blueprint and a trail after it called Hunky Dory we headed over to Bear Buns so I could not f*ck up getting a picture of Nina rolling the entrance. Claire has had a real boost this trip in terms of her terrain reading and also her confidence on much faster trails than we normally ride on the Shore. It’s easy to attribute her riding progression to having grown up on Shore, but Cumberland trips have played a huge role in achieving new normals as well.
This trip, Bear Buns in particular has been a big confidence booster. Other than b-lining the entrance Claire can, and has been, legitimately laying claim to having cleaned the trail. It’s also earned the coveted prize of Claire’s second favourite trail in Cumberland. Following Space Nugget, of course.
As we rolled out the bottom of Space Nugget, Claire said that “This was the best day of riding yet!” I just realized I never asked if she meant the trails themselves or her particular engagement with them, but in either case, the way she expressed the sentiment was certainly a highlight for me.