As I approach another birthday and try to fight off old age, I continuously look for ways to stay in shape. I no longer can stay out until dawn and function like I did in my college days! So, realizing my limitations, I've found that the one thing I've always enjoyed to keep in shape has taken over a good part of my routine now:

Mountain Biking

I'm not talking about mad-dogging it over a cliff mountain biking. I'm talking about stay in shape riding in the woods mountain biking.

Here in the Raleigh area, there are numerous places to achieve this task. Some are harder than others, but all of them will provide you with a good work out and keep you in shape. (And, no, round is not a shape!)

For an easy work out, the American Tobacco Trail provides a nice smooth trail (7.5 miles, 15 round trip) on a hard packed, mostly level trail through Apex, Cary and into the Chatham County line. The trail is actually 23 miles long, but much of it is still under construction and, once completed, will go all the way in to Durham. However, the 7.5 miles I mentioned above is really quite nice. Bikers, horseback riders and even moms and dads with strollers can be seen on this trail on any given day.

Similar to the American Tobacco Trail, Umstead Park, located in Raleigh is a great place to check out with the whole family. If you're looking for an easy ride, or you want to take the family out mountain biking, Umstead is the place. There are several miles of packed gravel to ride on and it's mostly level.

For the more advanced rider, The Harris Lake Park biking trails offer a more challenging ride. The trails are made up of several loops that connect to a main trail and are clearly marked beginner, intermediate and advanced. The beginner trail is quite fun, has a few short and not too steep hills and, in parts, runs along side the lake for nice views along the way. Harris Lake County Park also has full amenities such as restrooms, picnic shelters, play areas, Frisbee golf, fishing locations and canoe rentals.

Next up, and for a more challenging ride, is the Lake Crabtree mountain biking trail. There are about 5 miles of some good hard riding here. Steep hills and lots of uneven terrain is par for the course at Lake Crabtree. There is also the only "pump track"  in the Triangle area at Lake Crabtree. A pump track is a series of rollers and berms and is a great place to learn how to pump your bike over ups and downs on a trail without pedaling. It's also a lot of fun!

For directions to, or for more information on any of these trails, click on the links provided or start here.

There are many other trails for mountain biking in our area, but these should get you started. If there are any people out there who would like to meet me out there one day, (and who don't mind hanging out with a Realtor!) contact me and let's go for a ride. If I'm not out showing houses I'm good to go!

Also, if anyone out there has ridden any of these trails or has any information on any others in the area, please feel free to comment on this blog. Share it with your fellow riders!