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This trip for me was more than just another day of hitting the trails. My first MTBing(trying to look Gen Z) was back in 2018 when I was in grad school. We had an organization called ORGT(Outdoor recreation of Georgia Tech). For $20, they would train you for the trip, equip you with a bike and mentor you throughout your time riding the trail. Back in Atlanta, we had trained on the Blankets creek twice and some other trail whose name I forget. That was the first time I had experienced this thrill of riding fast downhill. At the end of the ride, I was in a different place mentally. I was totally present in the moment, it had to be one of the highest levels of attention I had achieved. Since, then MTBing has held a special place for me and something which I definitely wanted to pursue.

Fast forward 2 years, right now in NY(Jersey City actually) and I finally purchased my mountain bike. It is a Talon 2 made by the manufacturer Giant. There were a number of reasons for this delay. The price of the mountain bike, the inaccessibility of the trails because of my stupidity in not getting a driving license were the main ones. I finally decided that enough is enough, got up from my couch, and did finally purchase the bike :P. (Still got to get that license though). A gift from my sweet brother Radesh also took care of the financial aspect of the problem.

On November 25th, 2021 (Thanksgiving day), I took the bike from my apartment in Exchange Place, Jersey City to Cunningham Park, Queens. I initially took the Path to WTC, then took the E till the Kew Gardens – Union Turnpike and then the F to 169 street. I had to ride for a good 20 mins after that to reach the trail. All in all, it must have taken me about 1hr 45 mins to get to the trail. Covid vaccines might be free but you got to pay the price of this dose of adrenaline with time. Having reached the trailhead there was a special feeling going through me. The past few years I have been constantly telling myself and my close ones that adventure sports are the set of activities that truly make me come alive. This sense of aliveness I had felt when I had done skiing last year too. So, once I reached the trailhead, it had a sense of closure to it. I was telling my mind that life can get any better. You are doing the one activity you were constantly yapping about and this was it. For a time, mind was definitely quiet because of the closure and after a couple of minutes it starts singing the song by Bob Seger appropriately “Come back baby, rock and roll never forgets”.

Today I did the green loop which was a great start. It had a couple of uphills and downhills and the track curators also had thrown a few roots and rocks in between. I had ridden for a total of 1 hr but it was one very satisfying hour in terms of its intensity. Looking forward to many more trips like these and a small phrase for re-kindling those forgotten passions of yours “Come back baby, rock n roll never forgets.”