Extreme Mountain Biking as done by Lucky Neophytes

Day 3 of this multi-sport trip was Biking Day. Lou bikes a lot and I bike some so we thought this would be within our comfort zone but maybe a bit of a push because of the length of the ride and possibly some hills. Well, how we underestimated what this ride demanded! We survived but tempted the fates so many times we lost count.

Today we only needed to drive about 45 minutes to the starting point of the bike ride. As a whole group, we rode the first 2 km to the place where we could choose between a more challenging and less challenging ride. One ride was about 12 miles and the other was about 22 miles. In our experience, the 12 mile ride just seemed too short. On a bike, 22 miles isn't really that far. Claudio kept saying that the longer ride was more technical. He really didn't explain what that meant or check in with us about our experience on mountain bike rides. And, I think, he was being very polite with us and not direct about the challenges - maybe a cultural thing. I don't know, but I do know Lou and I should not have chosen to take the more challenging ride. Once we chose it, there was no turning back.

Over the next 5-6 hours, we rode, carried bikes over streams and logs, navigated narrow ditches, bounced over hundreds and hundreds of mounds made by tucu tucu's (Patagonian rats), road down vertical "paths" over multiple boulders and rocks, waded through mud and pushed the bikes up hills too steep to ride. Never having mountain biked, I learned the hard way about keeping my pedals level - or I would hit the side of the ditch and crash and keeping my butt back over my seat. Alberto stuck with Lou as Lou realized that skill and experience in road biking doesn't translate to very "technical" mountain bike riding. At one point, Alberto took a series of pictures as Lou went ass over teakettle. I wish I had them. At another point, Lou fell into a lovely bush called Mother-in-law's Pillow. It looks soft but is covered by little tiny prickers. I finally realized I couldn't stick with Lou and Alberto because if I stopped, I might have a hard time convincing myself to keep going. Slow and steady without a lot of overthinking seemed to be the best plan. After a few hours, I was riding solo trying to figure out where the trail was and focusing on circling Lake Azul to get to the white house at the lower end.

 Rutted trail

 He looks better than he feels

 Bar-be-que

Lake Azul

Astonishingly, we both made it to the end with only a few scrapes and bruises where we were treated to an amazing bar-be-que with meats, salads, vegetables and drinks. Those who chose the easier route had been there for hours but were supportive and forgiving of those who struggled to finish the more challenging route. This certainly pushed us to the limit.