8:32 p.m. How's the going? Paul Skilbeck rides a lap and lives to tell the tale
The history of the 24-hour courses in West Virginia is filled with stories of epic proportion about courses that were character-building or wildly fun, depending on the rider's skill and experience. These days the courses less demanding than they were back in the day, but don't be fooled: this Big Bear course is a very technical, rock-strewn trail through the woods, and while rewarding and thoroughly enjoyable, it is far from an easy ride.

For starters, it's a 12.2 mile loop. This means it takes several laps to really remember the lines through the many, many, many technical sections. There are no big climbs or descents, but dozens of short hills give the impression that the terrain just keeps coming at you, wave after wave after wave. It's almost all through forest land, which means if you stop concentrating and go off the trail you'll probably eat wood. Onlyat three or four points on the course can you comfortably reach down for your waterbottle, so it's definitely a course to carry water on your back, not on the bike.

The most difficult thing, though, is the technical difficulty of the trails. If your singletrack skills aren't sharp, and mine are very rusty from years off the mountain bike, this terrain will work against you - every inch of the way. My colleague, Matt Butterman, brought his cyclo-cross bike, but wisely chose not to ride it after looking at parts of the course. It's a true mountain bike course in that you can only ride it on a mountain bike. He wouldn't have had a good time at all on a 'cross bike.

Heavy rain during the week added to the technical challenge. This course drains really well and the mud doesn't clump. This means you can ride it fast enough to make the protruding rocks along the entire length of the course a rapid fire challenge. Unless you're really accustomed to riding in these conditions, you just have to take it easy when the rocks get slippery or steep, or you'll be pitched off your bike.

There are maybe 20 water splashes, and a section of maybe 200 yards where you ride down a shallow creek. Most of the muddy, soupy water splashes are shallow and easier to ride than the surrounding mud. But a few of them are deep and pull your front wheel in, as if to keep you guessing.

So it's a hard loop, but is it fun? Oh yes, it is a blast. When you finally get to the end of a lap, there is a feeling of accomplishment on this course, it's the ending of a journey. You will have had your heart in your mouth a few times, and frequently you will have felt the unique thrills that only mountain biking can offer. If not for running this webcast, I'd get back out and ride it again. It clearly got the better of me, and I know there are several sections I can ride smoother, or stay on the bike, or not crash (I came off twice)... you know? And in case you're wondering how long it took me to get around the loop, it was about 1:20.

Today, some of those same riders are still competing, now in the Men's Masters class. Notable among these teams is the the Big Bear Masters team, which includes riders from Pittsburg and Champion, Pennsylvania; Morgantown; and Davis, WV. Years of rivalry has brought the protagonists together, it seems.

At the time of writing the Big Bear Masters were holding second place, only 92 seconds behind the Double J Disciples team... which is composed of 'foreigners' from New Hampshire, Missouri, and Kansas.