TRIPS: Biking with 'gators in Tampa, Florida

Admittedly, I picked Florida for mountain biking out of desperation, not expecting much. It was warm in January there, and it was in the United States. So ...

I met my West Coast brother in Tampa for a few days in January, while I was en route back to Okinawa, Japan (where I currently live) from Iraq, and it was definitely worth it for good singletrack and great new friends. If you've honed your technical skills, you'll have no problem tackling even the "double black diamond" trails at the many parks -- but the roller-coaster ride you get, as well as catching air while avoiding alligator-infested swamps, will leave you with a grin plastered to your face. The rides are only about 30 minutes from downtown Tampa in the Brandon area.

The ride
My brother and I warmed up at Boyette Park and finished with Alafia River State Park. Both of these parks were developed on land previously strip mined. If you're skilled and looking to push it I'd definitely recommend passing on Boyette, but for a guy getting back on the bike after six months in a war zone, it was a good place to practice the basics for a day. It's also a great place for familes, beginners or novices to have a great day of biking, and difficulty levels are color coded on every trail. While Alafia River State Park also has beginner and novice trials, it's double black diamond ups and downs on "Moonscape" and the aptly-named "Roller Coaster," as well as close calls with swamps on either side of hairpin turns and sizeable descents on "Gatorback," was great. You also find that many roots like to grow on top of the trails for some moderate technical stuff. As a bonus, Alafia's got a camp ground with facilities, so there's no need to spring for a hotel. Did I mention the close encounters with armadillos? You'll see tons of these creatures at Alafia -- a remarkable mix of cute-faced little rodents with shells like turtles!

Local MTB associations
You can get all of the most updated trail maps, conditions and advice from the Southwest Association of Mountain Bike Pedalers (SWAMP) club at http://www.swampclub.org./ They really do a tremendous job keeping the trails up and letting you know of upcoming events (in addition to their weekly rides that you're welcome on). One of their members actually greased the skids for my whole trip via my e-mails from Iraq (thanks Julianne), and we met another on the trail who was extremely helpful. There's more great singletrack in the area, but we only had two days, so see the SWAMP web site for details on other great rides.

Bikes/gear/wrenches
I went to seven bike shops in the area shopping for my next beloved Cannondale, and can tell you without a doubt to go to AJs Bikes and Boards for all of your needs (rental, gear and mechanical). Dave and Heather (co-owners) are friendly, knowledgeable and down to earth -- and all of the other shops even speak highly of them. Many of the staff (including Dave) also ride the trails regularly. AJs is also the closest to Alafia and Boyette and recommended highly by SWAMP. You can get a three-day full suspension rental (Giant/K2) for only $100 including helmet. See www.ajsbikesandboards.com.

Food
No trip is complete without a food tip, so here it is: we mistakingly found one of Tampa's hidden secrets for great steak and beer: the Frontier Steakhouse. Menu runs $13 to $30 for a meal. Best of all, you can challenge the restaurant's 6-pound steak if you're famished from a day on the trails -- eat it all and it's free. If not, be prepared to drop $50. The place is truly hidden but you can call for directions at (813) 621-3050.


Sleep
We stayed at the Marriott Residence Inn in Brandon, which is great for space if you can split the bill, come in the off season or get a discounted rate (free breakfast and a kitchen stocked with pots and pans in the 2-room suite). On a shoestring, check out camping at Alafia River State Park: www.floridastateparks.org/alafiariver/default.cfm

Cannondale riders' corner
There are two great places to go (since AJ's isn't authorized to work on "Crack & Fails"). I recommend avoiding the corporate "salesman" mentality at University Bicycles in Tampa. Instead truck into St. Petersburg to see Bill at Revolution Cycles (http://revolutionbikes.com/site/intro.cfm) or over to Clearwater to see the folks at Chainwheel Drive (http://chainwheeldrive.com). Chainwheel even let me use the phone to call a competing bike shop!

Acknowledgements
I'd like to extend a special thanks to my brother, a snowboarder & photographer, who left Mt. Shasta's snow base (aka his love and financial base as well) to ressurect his MTB skills for me and star in my photos for you. You can see his products at www.chadthomasphotography.com. This makes three times he's met me for some singletrack, and I can still barely stand on a snowboard!