There are certain phrases in mountain biking that should never be taken literally.

“Just one more climb.”

“It’s not very technical.”

“You probably won’t need knee pads.”

And perhaps the most dangerous of all:

“It’s mostly rideable.”

The COWS mountain bike crew had reached the top of the trail and stopped to inspect what appeared to be the remains of a geological disaster.

The trail dropped sharply through a collection of boulders, roots, ledges, loose rock, and several features that appeared to have been installed by people who disliked bicycles.

One rider studied it carefully.

“It’s mostly rideable.”

Another nodded.

“There’s just one slightly technical section.”

This was technically true, assuming the entire next two miles could be considered one section.

The trail-rating sign wasn't much help. Easy? No. Moderate? Probably not. Difficult? Perhaps.

Depends who you ask?

Absolutely.

Mountain bikers have a remarkably flexible definition of rideable. A road cyclist sees a three-foot boulder and thinks, Why is there a boulder in the road?

A mountain biker sees the same boulder and thinks, I wonder if I can get enough speed to clear that.

The group continued evaluating the descent.

One rider pointed toward a particularly nasty rock garden.

“You just have to pick your line.”

Another looked at the six-foot drop immediately beyond it.

“And commit.”

Nobody mentioned what happened if you picked the wrong line and committed anyway.

Farther down the mountain, several previous riders could already be seen demonstrating another important mountain-biking technique: walking the bike while continuing to insist that the trail was rideable.

Eventually the group reached a consensus.

They would give it a try.

After all, the experts agreed:

It looks worse than it rides.

Usually.

Off to the side, a squirrel wearing a bicycle helmet studied the same trail.

He reached a different conclusion.

Nope.