Friday: Hickory Ride and Summer Haze Tour

On my way "down east", I stopped by the trails in Hickory to check out the stuff someone has been talking up on MTBreviews. I had ridden a few of the trails twice before in years past but there has been a lot of work performed and some new trail cut. In the past there were a lot of stunts/jumps/drop offs that I didnt ride and at that time it was obviously where most of the trail maintenance was spent. All of the "North Shore" stuff was torn down and someone is turning their attention to the trails and it shows - this stuff was a blast!

The way the trails snaked through the woods reminded me of a small version of Dupont without the slickrock and no steep or long climbs. I only had to go into my granny ring 3 times so that is an indication that there was not much in terms of hard climbs but it is not an indication of the fun factor. After flying through the woods and sliding my back wheel across a long bridge til I got a sprocket grind and caught myself with a sapling to keep from falling off the bridge, I realized I better heed the caution signs a little bit more. At first I thought all the caution signs were a little bit of overkill but after my little "mishap" I paid closer attention to all signage. I did about 10 miles and had a blast. I'll be back for some more, as it is pretty convienient if I'm heading east.
I got to Cary in plenty of time for the Summer Haze show. Ozomatli was on first and got really funky. I read they have won a Grammy?
Slightly Stoopid picked up where Ozomatli left off and spiced it up with a little bit of thrash for one tune.
G. Love & Special Sauce stole the show and ended his with everyone back on stage. The sound was GREAT! 50% of the time I didnt see anyone I knew but I made some new friends and still had a good time. The music was great and the crowd was really laid back and fun. I stayed in the middle of the crowd or in the "mix" most of the show, moving back to the sound board for the encore and when all the horns from Ozomatli came back out. The sound mix was incredible. Maybe the best outdoor sound I've heard. It was the 3rd to the last tour date and it showed, they had it all together!