Now that our team is relatively evenly distributed between New York and Colorado, and we miss riding bikes together, we decided a TBD-MDC mountain bike reunion weekend would be a lot of fun. We all wanted to check out Asheville, North Carolina because of its almost endless mountain bike options, food scene (there’s a restaurant called Biscuit Head. I mean, come on), and hopefully excellent weather for a late-spring meetup.

Asheville delivered a truly excellent weekend with amazing trails and most of all, the ability to hang out with some of our favorite people. We (Barb, Shane, Lucia, and Danielle) have compiled some recommendations on where to ride (including a post-ride river dip), rent bikes, and eat.

Over the long weekend we hit three completely different trail systems, with pretty different terrain: Bent Creek: an incredible network of backyard trails, Pisgah: the vast, technical monster that is the main draw to the area, and DuPont State Forest: stunningly beautiful and flowy with high rider/hiker traffic.

Bent Creek

Bent Creek, at the very northern edge of the Pisgah Forest, was perhaps less spectacular than the two other places we rode, but ended up being a favorite. It’s not as dramatic as Pisgah, nor does it have trails crisscrossing exposed granite slabs for miles like DuPont, though it’s a great place to practice riding dense roots. It’s also quite a bit further from the heart of mountain biking activity in Brevard, and closer to Asheville proper. As a result of that, it seemed quieter and less crowded than its southern neighbors. It simply has miles and miles of excellent, well-maintained, and mostly intermediate-level trails that are super fun to ride. Because we lucked into an AirBnB that was two minutes from an unassuming, unmarked trail entrance to Bent Creek, we rode there twice. The New York City crew arrived earlier than TBD-Colorado on Thursday, so we took an opening spin in our temporary backyard. Then on Friday, the whole crew rode Bent Creek together.

One of the coolest things about Bent Creek is that it’s an “experimental forest” for the U.S Forest Service, where the USFS conducts research on forest management. The trails are littered with signs that describe different forestry techniques that have been or are currently being used in that particular area. Some trails even seem to be part of the experiment. Green’s Lick — the steep, loose, technical downhill trail that seems to be the trail most people bring up when they hear the words “Bent Creek” — was built “as a demonstration trail showing the forest service how eroded road beds could be converted to sustainable trail,” according to Trail Forks.

This loop, which takes you down both Green’s Lick and the somewhat smoother, but still fabulous, Ingles Gap, as well as up Little Hickory — which was one of the most fun, flowiest singletrack climb we hit all weekend — is more or less what we did on our Friday group ride, and would be a good place to start if you plan to ride Bent Creek.

Pisgah

Because we were coming to such a technical area with a wide variation in skillsets, we originally envisioned something like our Cyclesmart x TBD CX camp from 2019, where we could have a coach ride with us and work on our skills on challenging trails while we were having a great time. Our regular coach wasn’t available to join us, so he suggested that we met up with Erica Zaveta, a local pro and CycleSmart coach who is based in Brevard.

That turned out to be the best decision we made the whole weekend. In a new area, it’s so much fun to find a local to show you around, and we lucked into one of the best local pros around. Erica did a terrific job taking us on a ride that was suitable for multiple experience levels, showcasing the best of Pisgah without scaring the crap out of us. While we stopped and talked about certain tricky sections of trail together, it didn’t feel like a clinic, which can often feel like a slog with all the standing around and lecturing. We were constantly riding, but everyone came away from the day more confident than they went into it, and learned a new skill or two while having tons of fun. The area is heavy on fire-road climbing, and that’s how we spent the first hour of the ride, which provided a lot of opportunities to chat before we hit the tough singletrack. Once we did, we found the trails significantly more technical than Bent Creek and not suitable for beginners.

After climbing for an hour on the smoothish fire road, we hit a section of hike-a-bike, then a final wet, rooty slog up the singletrack of Upper Black Mountain for the final portion of the climb. It’s the type of singletrack that on a bad day is definitely going to make you cry, but on a good, low-pressure day out with friends is a fun puzzle that everyone is trying to solve. Largely because of Erica, we had the latter experience.

Finally, it was time to go screaming downhill: The descent started on Upper Black Mountain, then we hooked a left onto Avery Creek Trail. An hour-plus of climbing was well-rewarded with a long descent full of steep, rocky terrain that still managed to be flowy.

Once we returned to the parking lot, we decided we hadn’t had enough and headed back out for a bonus hour: back up Thrift Cove to the Lower Black Mountain trail. By the time we were done, we were ready to collapse at the car but rallied to head to a nearby swimming hole instead.

The Davidson River (and the Davidson River Recreational Area) runs parallel to US-276, the road on which we entered Pisgah. Head north after your ride and you’ll find a ton of places where you can wade into the water. After a brief dip near Coon Tree Picnic Area, we laid like seals on some giant rocks and soaked up what was left of the sun. It was the perfect way to unwind after a demanding day on the trails, but if you’re looking for less peace and more drama, continue north on 276 a bit further and you’ll be treated to Looking Glass Falls, a 60-foot waterfall that’s one of Western North Carolina’s most popular.

DuPont State Forest

DuPont: for our last day on the bike, we chose DuPont as we had heard it was a bit more smooth and relaxed, with less sustained climbing. While it got very busy with hikers later in the morning, it was still a lot of fun and worth a visit.

DuPont is quite different from the other trails we had done — more sandy & pine-needly terrain, with larger boulders. It felt similar to trails in New England or the Shawangunks of Upstate NY. We’d highly recommend hitting this area on a first or last day in Asheville, as it’s pleasant but didn’t destroy our legs. We did two loops with a short road ride in between, starting with Ridgeline and finishing with a Burnt Mountain figure 8. They were both fun. Burnt Mountain had significantly more tech, including several sections of exposed slick-rock-like boulder rolls above the tree line. Ridgeline was smooth, fast, and generally delightful with berms and slalom feeling flow built-in. It was also a bit less packed with hikers. We had to cut our day a bit short to drop off some rental bikes, but it would have been a great day to ride Ridgeline a few times and head to a waterfall, of which there are several in the immediate area.

Bike Rental

Instead of dealing with the hassle (and cost) of flying with bikes, Barb and Danielle opted to rent rigs from Sycamore Cycles ahead of time and were pleasantly surprised to find they had 2021 Yeti SB140’s available (as well as Specialized Stumpjumpers if those are more your speed).

Pick-up was a breeze: The bikes were dialed in and waiting for us when we arrived — equipped with a saddle bag, integrated multi-tool, and free water bottle. After making a couple of quick saddle adjustments with the help of a shop employee, we threw the bikes in the bed of our rental truck and headed into Brevard for breakfast. Having not yet gone grocery shopping, getting food and coffee was a priority for our group, but if you’re looking to pick up your bike and immediately ride, the shop couldn’t be in a more convenient location — it’s within walking distance of Pisgah.

The bikes were a dream, which Barb already knew because she owns one. Danielle, on the other hand, had never ridden such a souped-up machine. Between the 160mm of front travel, the 140mm of rear travel, and the dropper post, she found herself willing and able to send the most technical trails she’s ever ridden.

At the end of the weekend, we stopped at Sycamore on our way back from DuPont to return the bikes. Drop off was just as easy as pickup. 10/10 would rent from Sycamore again.

FOOD Spots

With the pandemic still not quite over, we opted for dining options that had outdoor seating. Here are some spots that are worth a visit.

Wedge Brewing Co. at Foundation in the River Arts District in Asheville. It has a really chill outdoor backyard family bbq vibe with a rotating slate of food trucks. We enjoyed food from the La Semilla food truck, which was Mexican inspired, gluten-free, and locally sourced. Delicious and beautifully presented.

Haywood Common in West Asheville was where we went for our last dinner. It had a large outdoor seating area with nice picnic tables under umbrellas. Haywood has an eclectic menu from shrimp & grits to poke grain bowls, and lots of delicious cocktails to choose from.

Biscuit Head was a fantastic spot for breakfast. While, as the name suggests, the menu was chock full of various biscuit & gravy options, there were also plenty of gluten-free options and several delicious jelly & jam spreads worth sampling. Also, lots of cat decor, which always signals really great owners and staff.

The Hub in Pisgah is more than just a gigantic bike shop. Inside you’ll find Pisgah Tavern — with 8 rotating taps. Outside, there’s a different food truck every day, as well as a coffee trailer. Because the shop is as close as you can get to Pisgah without actually being in the forest, its outdoor picnic tables become a natural gathering place for cyclists, hikers, and the like after a day spent exploring trails.