Friday was a bad run. My back really started to hurt, so even before I started my third running session I had to stop. I went to see a doctor about it, but he didn't seem to be too worried about it. He said I'm probably just going too hard. Not what I wanted to hear. It was easy to take Saturday off though, since it was raining and cool.

Today I went out to do some mountain biking. It was threatening to rain all day so I followed the clearings in the clouds. That lead me up to Ravenshoe, which was my usual place when I lived near. It didn't seem to be as well taken care of as before, but it was still awesome. I didn't hurt myself too badly this time. Probably just a couple bruises and small cuts. I really hurt my knee by banging it on my bike's frame.

Ravenshoe is a pretty technical set of trails. I had completely forgotten how to ride at first, but by the end of the hour and a half I was close to where I was before. The only difference is now I really don't like hurting myself. Before it used to be a way to gain battle scars. Now it just hurts. It was so easy to climb the hills. The last time I was there I was really struggling, but most of these hills were easy for me. Easy.

After that I drove through the rain and down to the lake to see if I could find the riders I was training with ride to Montreal. I caught the tail end of them, and got a chance to see a few people. The waterfront trail looks great, I can't wait to do some riding along it.

Just north of Coburg was another set of trails with my guide book of trail maps. I picked this one because it wasn't very technical to contrast to Ravenshoe, and the guide said it dried out quickly. There was nobody else there, so I felt a little worried. In Ravenshoe there was a sign that said there was a bear spotted on June 14. I had never really considered that. I looked at my bear spray before I left, but decided against bringing it. Why would I need it? But being alone in this somewhat remote location kinda freaked me out a little bit.

The trails were pretty good. A little tame, since there can't be any obsticles for cross country skiiers. The trails were wide, and really fast. There was one hill that was an absolute killer. It was a 300 foot climb over 1km... a 10% grade, practically straight up. But I didn't have to slow down, let alone stop. I wouldn't have been able to do that without all the training I've been doing.

My back started to get a little sore near the end, and I kinda wanted to just get out of there. It wasn't just the bear scare, but if I hurt myself it would take a long time to get someone over (not to mention I forgot my phone in the car). At least I had my GPS co-ordinates though.

In the end I ended up riding for 2:40, with an average heart rate of 137. That's pretty intense. Even though I probably rode only 20-25k total, I used about as much energy as I would have if I had ridden 60-70k on the road. I got to use all different muscles in different ways. It's definitely a great idea to cross train on a mountain bike. I can't wait to make it out again (after I get some bug spray).