Mountain Bike Meccas, 10 trails to Tackle
If you're a beginner you may want to consider taking a clinic or workshop before hitting the trails. According to Tom Oakes, owner of Trail Masters Touring in Cortlandt Manor, NY, very few trails in the area are truly for beginners, and you should know some key skills before you go, like proper body positioning proper braking and shifting. And don't assume just because you kicked butt in last weekend's time trial that you can hit the dirt without a hitch. "Someone very fit who rides the road a lot may not have the technical skills to match," Oakes says. He suggests taking a clinic if you can't follow a more skilled rider and pick up and imitate what they're doing as you go. Take the time to learn the skills for yourself. This will ensure that your first time out doesn't scare the dirt out of you forever.
--Metro Sports New York
A Trail Unpaved
Tom Oakes of Cortlandt Manor, demonstrates how to descend a steep terrain at Blue Mountain Reservation in Peekskill. Oakes, a mountain bike tour guide, says not locking up your wheels is the key to a safe descent.
--The Journal News
Training available for Mountain Bikers
For those who want to try mountain biking, Trail Masters Touring has weekend group and individual instruction and tours on terrain in Westchester. Trail Masters is the brainchild of Tom Oakes, a mountain bike racer and school teacher.
-- The New York Times
Happy Trails
At Blue Mountain Park in Peekskill, you'll feel as though you're miles from civilization--it's peaceful, you'll see the occasional horse going by and there's a view of the Hudson from the Peak. "It's one of my favorite spots," notes Tom Oakes, proprietor of Trail Masters Touring, which runs mountain biking clinics here and at other parks.
--Westchester Parent Magazine
