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| here’s this place called Comatillo, 35 miles northeast Santo Domingo. You have to take National Road 2, cross Northbound the San Isidro Air Base and look for the road to Bayaguana, in the Monte Plata Province. The very first time I ride inside all that trees -the truly tropical forest- I felt a funny mumble. It was more like a mufflered sound of the ubiquitous electric generators so common in the Dominican Republic. They are supposed to be for emergency purposes, but you hear them all the time. Fifteen minutes later, along in the woods, the sound went louder. I tried to listen carefully expecting some birds or something else. Nope. The sound continues. I took a dirt road towards a nearby mountain…and the sound was there again… |
| I did a lot of motorcycle trail riding in the 70’s and 80’s. It’s the best you can do with your clothes on. Well, I was young and in good shape. Me and my buddies could made 50 miles in a short Saturday afternoon, shower and go dancing –and drinking- all night. The DR had 4 Millions inhabitants (almost 10 Millions now) and tropical forests were just 10 minutes away from the city.
Mountain biking was, well non-existent. Motorcycles, like my then new ‘74 Yamaha 125 -4 inches in front/no disk brakes- were cheap. Once a month, the bunch hit the dirt for a whole-day trail ride, up in the mountain or the deep tropical forests of. . . It was MY heartbeat! I was listening to my body sound. Man, incredible. That forest is so quiet that you can hear, you. |
| Only the tropical forest as companion |
| Mountain Biking in the Northwest |
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