Hello from the Sunshine State

March 1998

Hello from the Sunshine State, the place where Mike and I started mountain biking. Now, some people would say that Florida and mountain biking do not fit. I beg to differ. For example, lets start with our first stop in Ocala, the Santos trial. We visited this trail system for the first time last year, where we did an outstanding twenty mile ride. Most of it was fast, curvy, and fun. There were even sections of trail that were impossible for us to clean. kitty litter! Granted we are not the most talented at the art of technical riding, but we are good enough to earn the right to tell tall tales after the ride. This year we were to work with one of the hardest parts of trail maintenance, what to do with sand pits. The cure this time was two and a half tons of kitty litter. It is not a typo. We used 2 1/2 TONS of kitty litter to help harden the sand in the flat spots. The most frightening thing was how the club made quick work of it. The Ocala Mountain Bike Association folks are super hard workers, and their trail reflects it.

From there we cruised down the east coast to North Miami, the home of Oleta River State Recreation Area. Once again, we were pleasant surprised to find the trails technically challenging. The main feature of this system was coral. Big, sharp chunks of it everywhere! You do not want to crash on this stuff, it likes to keep your skin as souvenirs. While your riding around these trails you would never know that five million people are in the direct vicinity, this, along with just being great fun, are why if you are in the area it is a must ride, well worth the stop. Congrats to the park management and volunteers(mountain bike patrol at it's best) for having the foresight and dedication to make Oleta River a huge success.

Our last stop on the '99 Florida tour was outside of West Palm Beach at a ten year old landfill that had been converted to a public park. Dyer Park to be exact. Along with ball fields, plans for a golf course for the handicapped, there are about five miles of trails on "the mountain". The unique aspect of building trails on this landfill, is that the cap is only two feet thick. Below that is a liner and then the garbage. So you can not dig down to construct the trails. Instead, everything has been built up. In the continuing trend of destroying the stereotypical view of Florida, the possibilities of half mile climbs gives the Flatlanders the opportunity to ride up for hundreds of feet.

As you can see, the next time you are at Disney World or at Daytona, you need to make time to visit the great riding spots that Florida has to offer. If you live close to these spots, get involved and do a day of trail work, the reward is helping to keep these trails open. We always look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones in the place that started it all for us.

Happy Trails,

Jan and Mike Riter

Florida Photo Album

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	Hello from the Sunshine State March 1998 Hello from the Sunshine State, the place where Mike and I started mountain biking. Now, some people would say that Florida and mountain biking do not fit. I beg to differ. For example, lets start with our first stop in Ocala, the Santos trial. We visited this trail system for the first time last year, where we did an outstanding twenty mile ride. Most of it was fast, curvy, and fun. There were even sections of trail that were impossible for us to clean. Granted we are not the most talented at the art of technical riding, but we are good enough to earn the right to tell tall tales after the ride. This year we were to work with one of the hardest parts of trail maintenance, what to do with sand pits. The cure this time was two and a half tons of kitty litter. It is not a typo. We used 2 1/2 TONS of kitty litter to help harden the sand in the flat spots. The most frightening thing was how the club made quick work of it. The Ocala Mountain Bike Association folks are super hard workers, and their trail reflects it. From there we cruised down the east coast to North Miami, the home of Oleta River State Recreation Area. Once again, we were pleasant surprised to find the trails technically challenging. The main feature of this system was coral. Big, sharp chunks of it everywhere! You do not want to crash on this stuff, it likes to keep your skin as souvenirs. While your riding around these trails you would never know that five million people are in the direct vicinity, this, along with just being great fun, are why if you are in the area it is a must ride, well worth the stop. Congrats to the park management and volunteers(mountain bike patrol at it's best) for having the foresight and dedication to make Oleta River a huge success. Our last stop on the '99 Florida tour was outside of West Palm Beach at a ten year old landfill that had been converted to a public park. Dyer Park to be exact. Along with ball fields, plans for a golf course for the handicapped, there are about five miles of trails on "the mountain". The unique aspect of building trails on this landfill, is that the cap is only two feet thick. Below that is a liner and then the garbage. So you can not dig down to construct the trails. Instead, everything has been built up. In the continuing trend of destroying the stereotypical view of Florida, the possibilities of half mile climbs gives the Flatlanders the opportunity to ride up for hundreds of feet. As you can see, the next time you are at Disney World or at Daytona, you need to make time to visit the great riding spots that Florida has to offer. If you live close to these spots, get involved and do a day of trail work, the reward is helping to keep these trails open. We always look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones in the place that started it all for us. Happy Trails, Jan and Mike Riter Florida Photo Album Ocala Mountain Bike Association group photo. A few members pose with boxes of Kitty Litter. Putting the Kitty Litter on the trail. Mixing it into the sand. Maggie guarding the Kitty litter against cats. Group photo at Oleta River State park. Welcome to the Jungle. Working hard to put in a new trail at Oleta. Riders on Dragons Tail at Oleta. The entrance to Dyer Park "Florida's Mountain". Dyer Park Group Photo.


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