MAKENZIE’S OUTDOOR ADVENTURES: Mountain Biking in Medicine Park

MEDICINE PARK, Okla. (TNN) -Southwest Oklahoma is home to many mountain bike trails. You may have seen the signs while you were out hiking.

In Makenzie's latest Outdoor adventure she tested her limits as she tried her hand at mountain biking in Medicine Park.

She found out, it's harder than it looks.

Mountain biking is not for the faint of heart.

“It takes a little bit of stamina and endurance,” said Darrin Hall, Owner of Terry’s Bicycles. “So you want to be somewhat in shape.”

But before you hop on a bike, you need to have the right gear.

“Padding and gloves do help,” said Hall. “You’re always going to want to have a helmet on.”

Most mountain bikes have several gears, which make it easier or harder to pedal.

Once we went over the gear-shifting, we were off.

Darrin owns Terry’s Bicycles in Lawton. He rides with a group on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

“It’s very challenging and I enjoy the challenge, and the physical challenge,” said Hall. “I like to stay in shape, and it gives me a reason to stay in shape.”

Chad Everett is the co-founder of the Mountain Bike Club of the Wichita’s...A group made up of all ages.

“It’s exercise disguised as fun,” said Everett. “You don’t realize what you’re doing to your body because you’re thinking about everything else. So it’ll make your heart and your lungs stronger, and it’s fun.”

Emil is 10 years old, and races mountain bikes. He also helped coach me through the ride.

“It’s better than any video game, because you get to flow, you get to do berms,” said Emil. “I’ve got a scar right here. It’s about 2mm deep.”

Part of the clubs job is to maintain the trail systems. Everett says, there are different trails for each level of difficulty.

“The best thing you can do is come to us and we’ll try to send you out on what we can,” said Everett. “But there are the green and red labeled trails. They’re going to be the most forgiving stuff we got.”

Our ride was full of twists and turns. I spent a lot of time pushing.

It took hard work, a lot of water breaks, and a few close calls, but we finally finished and rode back to Base Camp.

If you’re interested in mountain biking, you can call Basecamp Adventure Outfitters in Medicine Park or Terry’s Bicycles in Lawton, and they’ll set you up.

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