The summer weather in Florida can be fickle. The forecast for most days is a combination of hot, bright sunshine with the occasional thunderstorm. These summer storms can come from any direction: north, south, east or west, shifting course without notice. They can can be small, lasting only a few minutes and producing little more than a sun shower. They can also slam down an epic deluge of golf ball sized drops from a black swirling void of thunder, lightning and tornadoes. The dilemma is that you can never quite tell what you are about to face. On May 14th, 2015, Tim Reifschneider planned out one of his legendary time trials to be held at the Carlton Reserve in Venice, FL. Tim is the creator of the long standing Tempo & Timmy's Time Trial Series which was done in association with the now closed Tempo bike shop. While these free time trials are done without advertising or even much notice they can get rather large. The peak attendance came during the summer of 2012 wh...

One of the joys of Mountain Biking is the sense of exploration. The opportunity to escape the confines of paved lines and stop signs, to distance oneself from the sounds of honking cars and busy lifestyles. Nothing says exploration like trying something for the first time. Recently I got the opportunity to do three different things for the first time and all of them took place on the same ride.  My new friends at Real Bikes Englewood told me of a regular Tuesday night group ride. They would all meet at an agreed upon location at sundown, armed only with the normal riding fare plus a few thousand lumens worth of light. I decided to give it a try. I bought a basic model light for my bike, clamped it to the handlebars and met the riders at the Sleeping Turtle Preserve in Venice, Florida. Remember those three things I have never done? Here they are - I have never gone on a group ride in Florida, I have never explored the Carlton Reserve Park and I have never don...