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Curran Eastes, a senior at Carmel high school, flys over a jump at the Town Run trail on Tuesday, Nov. 23. Town Run trail offers multiple challenges along the trail ranging from big jumps, rock climbs, and even a wall ride. “Even though you may not have the greatest equipment in the world, get out into the outdoors and experience it for yourself. It’s truly eye-opening what the outdoors can do for you,” Eastes said.

Curran Eastes, a senior at Carmel high school, dismounts his mountain bike from his car on Tuesday, Nov. 23. Curran has been mountain biking since age 10 and has accumulated a good amount of gear to help him hit the trails. “My dad was the first person to get me into the sport. He bought me my first bike and ever since my first ride with him I’ve been hooked. Ever since then I’ve been upgrading my bike so I can go on any trails I want to,” Eastes said. Eastes has now bought his own bike that allows for a much more comfortable ride and allows him to go on more advanced trails then his initial bike his father bought him.

Curran Eastes, a senior at Carmel high school, attaches his front wheel to his bike in preparation for his ride on Tuesday, Nov. 23. When riding at a new place there is a lot of preparation involved like mapping out your route, preparing your bike, making sure you have any tools you may need if something happens to thebike. “I always make sure to have water and some kind of food with me when I’m riding. I also keep a multi tool in a hip pack I wear in case something happens to my bike and I need to fix it on the trail,” Eastes said.

Curran Eastes, a senior at Carmel high school, checks the map at the front of the trail before heading out on Tuesday, Nov. 23. Trail maps often hold important information about the trail needed before going out on them like the difficulty of the trail, if any areas are too dangerous to ride on, if something is blocking the trail, or any wildlife that could be on the trail. “ I’ve had a lot of crazy things happen but probably one of the craziest was descending down a Trail in Brown County and a deer was standing in the middle of the trail so I had to slammed on my breaks but I hit the front brake too hard and went over the handlebars and my bike landed on top of me,” Eastes said. Mountain biking can be  dangerous if you aren’t staying aware of your surroundings or don’t know your skill level and try a trail that you shouldn’t be on. 

Curran Eastes, a senior at Carmel high school, hits the Town Run trail on Tuesday, Nov. 23. Town Run Trail Park is a popular mountain biking trail in Carmel, it is located off of 96th Street and Hazel Dell Parkway. “I really enjoy Fort Benjamin Harrison State park. It’s relatively close and well maintained. I also really enjoy going out there because it’s such a cool landscape that you wouldn’t think would be in the middle of Indianna,” Eastes said, speaking on his favorite trails in Indiana.